Thursday will mark one year since I left stepped off a plane from Mexico, introduced my Mexican puppy to snow, and pressed restart on my life. But that’s not what this post is about (that’ll be Wednesday). The new beginning I’d like to talk about today is for my latest novel. I’ve received wonderful feedback …
writing / editing
Don’t Give Me That Look
Raised eyebrow. Snarling lip. Clenched jaw. Trembling chin. Wide eyes. Flushed cheeks. … A lot can be said with a shift in expression. A change in mood, a sudden thought, a devious plan. As writers we know what our characters are feeling, but showing those emotions is often easier said than done. It’s easy to …
Total Ellipse of the Heart
Get ready. This post might be a bit of a stretch. Last weekend I bought something I’ve coveted for nearly ten years: It’s an elliptical machine! Good for the heart, good for the knees, and no annoying aerobics instructor telling you to give her eight more! And, um… it’s in a box. Yes, I bought …
Find and Replace
Ahh… technological devices designed to make our lives easier. When will I ever learn? One of the comments from my first beta reader pointed out that I had a lot of extra spaces in the document, as well as some wonky apostrophes. (I blame the PC, as usual.) I hit Control F, plugged in the …
Wheeeeeeeee!
I got my first comments back from my first beta reader and I’m so relieved someone likes my story! Since this was my very first reader there were lots of silly things to fix, but by later today my very first TEENAGER will be reading it. Eek! Another benefit of my wonderful network of writing …
Knowing Myself as a Writer
A few days ago, friend of the blog Adam posted about his writing style and how he’s okay with the fact that it’s different than some of the so-called “experts”. (That’s me totally paraphrasing.) His points got me thinking. I’m a clean writer. I write chronologically and cannot wrap my head around those who write …
A Dramatic Finish
Saturday morning I rolled out of bed, fired up the laptop, and edited the last 27 pages of my manuscript. My friends on Facebook congratulated me, I danced a little jig, then I went through the document to check that my chapter numbers were in order. And that, apparently, was the straw that broke the …
Fact Checkers
A string of recent political snafus have got me thinking: who’s responsible for checking facts? As writers, it’s considered part of our job to do research. Sure, we’re allowed to stretch the truth or bend things to fit our stories, but basic things need to be true. (I’m excusing fantasy & sci-fi from this.) As …
It’s Been Eleven Months and I’m Already Thinking About Month Twelve
I have several things I’d like to talk about, so today’s post will be a hodge-podge of things. First, I’m glad Friday’s post resounded with so many of you. I kind of figured it would, but what I didn’t expect was the people I consider friends worrying that they’ve somehow offended me. I’m by no …
Percolating
I’m being very good. I haven’t opened my wip yet. I really really want to, but I said I’d let it sit for two weeks and I’m determined to do that. In the meantime I’ve started brainstorming the plot for book two. My plan is to have synopses ready for books two and three when …