The peculiar thing about writing a book is that sometimes you don’t know where the idea for it came from. Other times you can trace it exactly to something you saw, heard, read, researched, etc. But whatever spawned the idea, something about it made you feel as if you...
Yes, I've been very, very busy with bookish things. Full-time busy. And I'm all over the place. Literally. But you can find me! And I'm still here too. Find information about my latest books here. See more about my 13th-century trilogy here. Want to come to one of the...
Many books and blog posts have been written about "show don't tell." I'm not going to pontificate about it here. As most writers understand, there's a place for both in a novel. What I want to talk about here is what that phrase actually means. I want to illustrate...
A little late, but at least it's still January! Why is it that turning the page on the calendar feels so significant? For me, a new year is an invitation to new beginnings. I suppose that's obvious, but the symbolism of it is very powerful. It's a challenge to adjust...
How do you know when you’re finished? How do you know when it’s time to let go of your manuscript and send it out, either to beta readers or to your agent or to querying agents? Because let’s face it: every time you look at it you will find something you want to...
I've had a remarkable week or so, the land of both truth and fiction. First, the fiction, because in many ways that's easier and more predictable. My manuscript is going out to beta readers. Yay! Working title: The Adored. In some ways this novel has very quickly made...
I'll be brief. Here are some really good tips about writing a novel, from a whole bunch of industry experts. Take a look!
Yes, I have done (and am doing) NaNoWriMo. So are many of my serious, well-published author friends. Why? Isn't NaNoWriMo just a gimmick to make everyone believe they can write a novel (and there's nothing bad about that, IMO)? That depends. On why you're...
That was a phrase from Jamie Ford's advice to writers, which I linked to in an earlier post. The metaphor—meaning going back to something you wrote long ago and revising it and shining it up thinking even though it didn't sell then, it might sell now—I found very apt....
I thought about just leaving it at that. You all know exactly what I'm talking about, don't you? It goes hand-in-hand with wanting validation, feeling unappreciated, and that pesky cousin: imposter syndrome. It's especially powerful for me when I have a manuscript out...
I try to be tolerant and not too pedantic when it comes to the way people use the English language. Colloquialisms are totally fine, weird punctuation, etc.—especially in quickly dashed off social media posts. But when I see something repeated misused in mainstream...
If you're an aspiring writer and you've explored options for working with a developmental editor, or a story coach, or any of the other titles people give someone who is going to help you scrub and polish and tweak and twist your story into decent shape, you've...
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