I submitted a short (3 paragraph) writing sample today. The content mill I submitted to wanted a short writing sample but didn’t want a first-person POV. So, of course, instead of working on the paragraphs I needed, I first wrote a first-person POV short essay on the subject. I find the most unique ways to…Continue reading Alternate Versions
Great vs. Good Writing
I’m 1.5 chapters into Illona Andrews’ book Iron and Magic and I’m already finding it to be 10 times better than the cozy mystery I’m half-way through. The characters are stronger and because of that the world feels more real (and the Andrews’ book is a fantasy while the cozy takes place in present day…Continue reading Great vs. Good Writing
It’s a Draft!
It’s been more than a week and I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that I finished an actual draft of a book. 70,000+ words — some of them well written, and some thrown blindly at the page in hopes that the round 2 edit can actually make this into something good…Continue reading It’s a Draft!
Neighborhood Garage Sales
Summer to me means the rubbery taste of hot dogs, the whir of room fans, the smell of cut grass and gasoline…and the chaos of our annual HOA garage sale. I live in a house that’s part of a Home Owner’s Association, and have been on the board and on the social committee. Back in…Continue reading Neighborhood Garage Sales
Salem Reads Review
Salem Reads is an annual event (this is the third year) coordinated by the Salem, Oregon library. The Salem Public Library Foundation selection committee picks a book for each year, and creates a series of events around the book’s subject matter. This year the book was “Good Morning, Midnight” by Lily Brooks-Dalton. Events included talks…Continue reading Salem Reads Review
Copyright, Stolen Work, and Angry Authors
If you keep up with Writer Twitter (the area of twitter posts dominated by #amwriting and similar hashtags) you know about the latest upset about a Kindle author who plagiarized a whole group of romance writers, and used ghost writers to whack the stolen passages into a single (bad) book. Or more than one book,…Continue reading Copyright, Stolen Work, and Angry Authors
What I’m Reading: Feb 19 2019
I finally read the books I got for Christmas. I meant to read them in January, but the cold that I caught in October came back again in January, so I saved the books for when I felt better. Here are the xmas books: Hazard, by Devon Monk. So cute and fun…who knew I’d like…Continue reading What I’m Reading: Feb 19 2019
Author Life Month
There’s a February challenge over on Twitter that I’m going to try to do. And I may just try to post here as well (depending on time constraints). It’s called the Author Life Month. I’m not getting writing done (at all) so I’m going to see if this inspires me.
What I’m reading: Jan 15, 2019
I downloaded the ebook “The Only Harmless Great Thing” by Brooke Bolander today, and can’t stop thinking about how beautiful the writing is. The story is both painful and beautiful, but the magic is in how Bolander creates a history and an alternate reality that feels as real as my desk chair. I want to learn…Continue reading What I’m reading: Jan 15, 2019
Inspiration
You can find inspiration in the ordinary, and in the unusual. Neither are better for inspiration as long as you get as much out of each as you can. I got home from my very first cruise on Monday night, and am still doing laundry and putting travel gear away. And reading through the…Continue reading Inspiration