When I first started writing, becoming a rich and famous published author was a pipe dream. I didn’t write because I thought I would ever achieve that. I wrote because I enjoyed it – because I love telling stories, and writing is my favorite way to do it. Since I got into self-publishing, that enjoyment […]
Good News and Bad News
Good news: I’m about a day or two away from ordering the first proof copy of Quiet on the Set! Bad news: I’m pushing the release date back to March 28th. It has been a busy couple of weeks! I’ve been scrambling trying to finish my editing on the book and I finally feel really […]
Cut It Out: Painful But Necessary Editing
You know #ThatAwkwardMomentWhen you have to cut entire pages from your story because they suck? It happens all too often in the editing process, or it should. Some sections of your book just don’t come out that well. Maybe you were tired. Maybe you were on a roll and ran off on a tangent. Maybe […]
Writer as Matchmaker: The Best Friend Romance
One of the classic romances is to have the main character fall for her/his best friend. As a writer, and on a personal level, the best friend romance is one that has always made sense to me. Being close to someone first and knowing each other really well – so well that you’re finishing each […]
How to Overcome Writer’s Block
It’s National Novel Writing Month and writer’s block is a pretty major issue for a lot of wrimos out there. Me included. Yes, my word is pretty well on track and I’ve even managed to stay ahead of the daily total goal, but that doesn’t mean it’s been easy. It’s an uphill battle, every step […]
Week 1 NaNoWriMo Update: Progress!
The first week is over, but, I am kicking some serious novel-writing butt so far! I was so afraid that I wasn’t going to be able to find time this year with everything else I had going on, that I think I overcompensated. It did help that Thursday night’s TV line-up was limited to just […]
Writing Pet Peeves Part 2: Style
A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about grammar pet peeves. Worse for me, I think, are style pet peeves. I’m hard to please. I’m a philosophy major and a literature buff, so writing style in anything I read, fiction or nonfiction, matters. I am not adamant about some errant grammar choices, but for […]
Why My Characters Are Hockey Fans
Short answer: Because I’m a hockey fan! Long answer: I like to add a little everyday culture into my books. My characters read books, they watch movies, and they follow sports, just like a lot of other people do. These types of things help give characters a little personality, a little backstory, and they are […]
The NaNo Variable
It’s that time of year. No, not autumn. Not Halloween. Not the holidays. No, the time of year when I will once again be participating in National Novel Writing Month, aka NaNoWriMo. It’s going to be a tough year with all the balls I have in the air right now. For one, I am currently […]
Grammar Pet Peeves and Exceptions to the Rules
When it comes to grammar, I’m not quite as nit-picky as I am about spelling. Homonyms: it’s important to get those straight. Syntax is important because it can change the meaning of the sentence if the words are out of order. But I will end a sentence with a preposition. I will use “who” instead […]