Do you rebel against yourself? Me too. Sometimes I have to trick myself. I’ll decide to do something that seems so good for me. I’ll purchase books and watch webinars and do the research and decide, That’s it! That’s the thing that will change my life for the better! Then, as I embark upon the… Read more »
My mission of self-discovery began when I started documenting my journey through breast cancer. But it did not end there. The more I wrote, the more I learned. I initially wanted to know why my breast cancer diagnosis set off such a wave of sorrow inside me. Why was my past trauma fast and furiously… Read more »
Much of the space in this column has been devoted to the craft of historical fiction, the details that need to be accurate in our stories, and words of wisdom from some best-selling authors in our genre. So I thought it might be interesting to turn our attention to another challenge we all have: how… Read more »
Certain words keep writers up at night. They live in the darkest corners of the dictionary and carry with them anxiety and dread. For me, one is particularly ominous. Quitter. Let’s be honest. Writing is swimming upstream with a thousand pounds of hope, expectations, and manuscripts strapped firmly to your back. Publishing is a subjective… Read more »
When people ask me to talk about my book, The Devil Makes Three, the question of genre always comes up. Now, it’s somewhat obvious simply because it’s practiced: I write horror. This book is horror. That’s not quite how it started, though, and it was a long road to get there. When pitching books, we… Read more »
Hi, writers! Today, I want to talk about some of the strategies I use to generate ideas and inspiration, especially when I have a deadline to meet. Before starting grad school, my “writing schedule” typically involved waiting around for the perfect idea to strike. I didn’t have a set writing schedule, and I spent a… Read more »
We all play games. We use games to break the ice, pass the time, or as a buffer in awkward family gatherings. I use games (especially tabletop games) to make new friends, and deepen my understanding of the people in my life. Games show people at their best and at their worst. They reveal hidden… Read more »
I’ve been having such a hard time doing anything productive. All I want to do is sip a cold drink and read…yet my attention span isn’t super great right now either. Thank you, August heat. (We’re actually having a bit of a weird cool spell at the time of this writing, but whatever.) I haven’t… Read more »
As authors we are always on the lookout for ways to improve our craft—to help our writing rise above the slush pile and connect with readers. And once it’s in readers’ hands, we want our work to ring true, to stick with people long after they put it down. We read articles, watch webinars, scour… Read more »
Do you feel battered and bruised after a writing session? Does your mind and body ache? That’s because writing is a sport. You must commit to it, train for it, and love it even when you hate it. All athletes start at the same place. They find a sport they love and work towards improving… Read more »
