Getting Ready for NANOWRIMO

I’ve written two complete novels (neither one published, btw) with NANOWRIMO. I think it’s about the best idea to happen to writers since the invention of ebooks. Everyone has a story in them. Some of them are a little more interesting than others, but the great thing about NANOWRIMO turning thousands of amateurs into dedicated […]

Warming up for NANOWRIMO

Do you have your ‘what if?’ ready? http://www.amazon.com/What-Writing-Exercises-Fiction-Writers/dp/0062720066 http://ezinearticles.com/?Creative-Writing-Prompts—What-If?&id=3952836 http://www.writing.com/main/handler/item_id/770807-What-if-Prompts http://www.writingforward.com/journal-writing/journal-prompts/what-if-journal-prompts http://murderby4.blogspot.com/2009/07/writing-what-if-scenario.html

Muse Killers

When I am going through emotional trauma, I can’t write. I think that makes sense, mostly, but when it is over, I have a hard time recovering and writing again. I have to start with drawing, sometimes, or some other creative outlet. I wonder if other authors go through this or if it’s just so […]

Evolution of a Sidekick – Why Does A Hero Need One?

Why does a hero need a sidekick? I think we can sum this up PERFECTLY by going to the first story to introduce a sidekick: The Creation Genesis Chapter 2 20 …. but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him. 21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon […]

Have We Lost The Art of Conversation?

This was the question posed by an opinion piece in the New York Times on Sunday April 22. I ran across it thanks to a ‘freshly pressed’ blog here on WordPress. Read that article, then read the comments below, and you’ll wonder what sort of hell we have stepped into. But I have to tell […]

Are Charities Taking Advantage of Me?

I am the sort of person where if I get a bunch of return address labels from a charity and I don’t just throw it away, if I actually use them, I feel obligated to give a donation. I know from ordering these sorts of things professionally online, that they do not cost 10 dollars […]

We Are All Sinners

Writers have definite rules. We have Commandments, as I illustrated a few posts ago. Unfortunately, we also have heretics, sinners, apostates (not to be confused with apostrophe’s) and zealots. It is easy to become one of the aforementioned because not only are the commandments constantly changing–what edition are we on the Chicago Style?–they also contradict […]

Thou Shalt Not – Commandments of Writing

There is nothing harder for a true believer in the Word, than discovering that you might be guilty of serious blasphemy. Such was the case for me while an acquaintance was reviewing a manuscript for me. I was informed that you can’t use contractions in the narrative. This came as quite a shock to me. […]

When Your Muse Goes On Strike

Many writers, professional and not, are at the mercy of very fickle Muses. Like OWS protestors or Union workers, Muses are very good at showing you their dissatisfaction, but not so good on explaining why or how to remedy it. For this reason I have written a list of common symptoms. The symptoms of a […]

You Think Too Much…

One thing the internet has shown us quite clearly is that everyone wants to be heard. No one understands this desire better than authors. The opposite end of the spectrum has also been exposed through the power of message boards, blogs, fan sites, Goodreads and Amazon.com reviews: You think too much. I read a book […]