Most commented posts
- Failing Gracefully as a Writer — 9 comments
- How to make a YA book cover in 4 easy steps! — 7 comments
- Preparing to Publish: Editing — 6 comments
- Introducing the other sister…muse… — 5 comments
- Paying Attention — 3 comments
Author's posts
Sep 17
Editing Focus 1: The Big Picture
J. Leigh laid out our editing map very nicely last week. Today, we’re going to consider Focus 1, what I call the “big picture” edit. There are three levels present in Focus 1 — character, plot, and setting. Character Editing As we step back and look at the Big Picture, we need to consider how …
Sep 10
September Blog Fest: Preparing to Publish
J. Leigh got us started with a bang yesterday with her fantastically funny (but sadly all-too-accurate) post on creating a YA cover for your novel. If you haven’t read it yet, do. Hopefully it will make you smile! All this month, J. Leigh and I will be writing about the process of getting your manuscript …
Aug 24
Mirror, Mirror…
A month ago or so, I finished reading all the entries I had received to judge for a writing contest. I read both children’s lit and YA fiction this year, and it’s been fascinating. I have so many things on my mind to say about what I observed, but I wanted to take a step …
Aug 07
Dressing the Set(ting)
I happened to catch a fascinating show the other day on the DIY Network – Hollywood Builders. They were following the construction of the sets for the new Total Recall movie, and I found it riveting (pun intended). Watching the set electricians wire up the set for futuristic lighting, watching CGI transform a “green screen” …
Jun 27
When the Going Gets Tough….
Bother. It’s hard to write about not following your own advice, isn’t it? In the last post, I made very true remarks about the importance and necessity of daily writing. Slogging ahead. No matter what. Right? Well…I got off my routine. I realized that my July 4 deadline for Lords of Askalon was incompatible with …
Jun 06
The Daily Grind
I’ve been working diligently on The Lords of Askalon this past week, and I’ve learned something that I suppose I should have learned a long time ago…or perhaps I’d just forgotten it since my frantic dissertation writing days. There’s just no replacement for honest hard work when it comes to writing. I’ve called this post …
Dec 01
Virtual Book Signing!
It’s December. I don’t know about you, but I am, as always, woefully behind on my holiday shopping. If you’d like a quick, easy gift for those special readers in your life, I am doing a virtual book signing! From now until December 15, signed copies of Silesia: The Outworlder are available for just $10, …
Nov 16
Identity Crisis and Target Audiences
Well, I suppose it was bound to happen eventually. As a writer, I often feel like I belong on the Island of Misfit Toys. Yes, I can say (and mean completely) that I write the stories that are in my heart. BUT…where do I belong? More importantly than that, almost, where do my books belong? …
Nov 01
NaNoWriMo 2011: Day 1
So. How did your NaNoWriMo Day 1 go? 🙂 I logged 883 words today. I didn’t think I’d get 1 written…so I’m fairly pleased. But I did fall short of my 2K word goal…guess I’ll have to catch up later on in the month. As so often happens when you have a project you absolutely …