For those budding writers out there, here is a deal you absolutely should NOT miss. I’ve been letting you know about freebies offered on Amazon for Kindle readers, and this is one of the best. Writing coach Randy Ingermanson (a.k.a. the “Snowflake Guy”) has put together some of his best writing tips in the book Writing … Read More
Advice for Writers
We ‘Otter’ Be Friends
I spent last week at an amazing writers retreat (hosted by Books&Such Literary Agency) in beautiful Monterey, California. It was exciting to sit around with other authors and discuss publishing, publicity, social networking and how to connect with your readers. As a still-yet-unpublished writer, I found this a bit overwhelming, but also a fantastic glimpse of what is … Read More
Titles that make you go, “Huh!”
Have you spotted any really great book titles lately? You know what I mean — the kind that stop you in your tracks and make you go, “Huh! Now THAT’S clever!” I was walking through our library’s young adult section (my son has now reached that unfortunate age — you know the book section where all … Read More
What’s in a Name?
I have read about cultures in which the parents wait until a baby is old enough to have a bit of personality before choosing a name for it. I’ve discovered that choosing a title for a book happens in much the same way. I’ve been working on the second book in a series, and although I knew it was … Read More
The Summer Sneakies
Summer is here, and I have to admit — I’ve been a bit nervous about its arrival. Last year, I pretty much gave up writing for the summer. What with kids underfoot and their perpetual, “Iwantasnack! Let’sgosomewhere! Hehitme! Canwegotothepark…” I assumed I would never be able to organize my thoughts. (Reminds me of an earlier post … Read More
History or His-Story?
Last night I was deeply touched by the PBS documentary, Perilous Fight: America’s World War II in Color. Normally, I do not watch war documentaries. But the color images drew me — and the stories swept me away. Historical documentaries have recently become less about teaching facts and more about telling stories. I was entranced by narrators reading letters from soldiers and … Read More
Common Writing Mistakes: Tension Headaches
Tension headaches, tension in relationships, tense meetings, tense conversations — we all hate it. Right? Can tension be good? A tense fishing line means a good catch. I know my seldom-used sewing machine has a tension adjustment knob — I’m not sure what it does, but it must be important. Tension is not only good in story-writing — it … Read More
Common Writing Mistakes: Couch Potato Characters
Welcome back to my series: Common Mistakes Made By New Writers (Like Me). This is part four: Couch Potato Characters or Characters Who Never Move. Feel free to read back through previous posts to read about information dumps, battling backstory and characters who talk to themselves. It’s not necessary to read these posts in any particular … Read More
Common Writing Mistakes: Talking to Youself
This is part three in my “Common Mistakes Made By New Writers (like me)” series. Part one discussed information dumps and part two talked about battling backstory. Feel free to check out those posts as well, but it is not necessary to read them in any paticular order. Today we will tackle another common problem: … Read More
Common Writing Mistakes: Battling Backstory
Last week, I started a series about mistakes commonly made by new writers (like me). The first entry focused on “information dumps.” Today, I’m going to discuss a related topic — backstory. Every character has history and we try often try to share every detail of it in the first chapter. You must know that she was born on a stormy … Read More