Sixth-graders come in two camps: those that giggle with uncontrollable joy when presented with a dead frog and an X-Acto knife, and those that shake their heads in protest, cry, vomit, or somehow manage to skip class on dissection day…. Read More ›
Rolling for Coal
My Writing Process: A Blog Hop Stop
Hop, Skip, and Jump What better way to get me back in the ring than a blog hop? According to author Tom Lucas, “Blog Hops are these neat little things where different bloggers build bridges between their worlds and hopefully introduce… Read More ›
The Writing Path to 2014
Bender pondered the wine in his hand. “A writer needs four things to achieve greatness, Pasquale: desire, disappointment, and the sea.” “That’s only three.” Alvis finished his wine. “You have to do disappointment twice.” I share this passage from… Read More ›
In Not so Many Words – Beta Readers Respond
“The end.” I pecked at each letter with an unnatural purpose, leaving just enough pause between each tap to prolong the moment. With all the sustain I could wrangle out of the plastic keyboard, I watched the final period come… Read More ›
Now What? Bet a Reader Knows.
Now what? I’ve handed off my manuscript, Rolling for Coal, to a few highly capable beta readers. Part of me wants to gulp and say, Fate rests in their hands. Everything from this point on, it’s up to them. But… Read More ›
I Know You Aren’t But What Am I Not?
I found shadows while revising my book: Shadows weren’t where they should have been. Have you looked for shadows, only to find something else instead? I know it’s a strange concept, but something I used in my writing to show… Read More ›
Kool Challenge: Look Back at Look
My friend over at Read Tom Lucas recently posted a great response to a writing challenge (to see where this idea originated, go here): Find the first use of the word “look” in your manuscript and post the surrounding couple… Read More ›