There are years I barely remember – what happened to all 365 days of grade four? The only thing I remember is Mrs Vanbuskirk getting so mad she yelled at me in front of the class. I remember her white coat with the red embroidered designs of polar bears. She had impossibly black hair and… Read more »
Editor’s Note: Columnist, Sara Farmer, is writing a limited series for DIY MFA in which she interviews #ownvoices authors and authors of color. She began her series with an interview of Silvia Moreno-Garcia, author of Mexican Gothic. Check back in two weeks for the next installment! About Marcie Rendon Marcie Rendon, citizen of the White… Read more »
Hey there word nerds! Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Julia London. Julia is the New York Times, USA Today, and Publisher’s Weekly best-selling romance author of the popular contemporary romance series, The Princes of Texas, including the Charmer in Chaps, The Devil in the Saddle, and The Billionaire in Boots, as well as… Read more »
Why vote? I never ask myself this question and here’s why. At nineteen, I went on my first trip abroad. It was Fall 1980. My plan was to traipse across Europe with my bestie, starting in October, have grand adventures, become more worldly, and be home by Christmas. I thought I had prepared for the… Read more »
Hi, writers! Today, I want to talk about pen names: when and how you should use one and tips on creating and managing one (or several!). You’re probably already familiar with at least a few authors who write under a pen name or pseudonym. J.K. Rowling and J.D. Robb are a couple big names that… Read more »
Writing a memoir is not easy. Like any genre, we need a compelling narrative arc driven by good scenes full of sensory details and great dialog. But we also need to create meaning from experience and offer takeaways for our readers. We need to claim our own emotional truth. Negative critics jabber away in our… Read more »
It is fascinating how past experiences culminate into the present, creating beliefs. Taking part in critique was, at times, akin to a battlefield. The gauntlet was daunting and sometimes painful. In academia, I developed shied away from peer critique and moved toward mentors and professionals for feedback after much proactive work on my part. As… Read more »
Hey there word nerds! Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Mike Maden. Mike grew up working in the canneries, feed mills and slaughterhouses of California’s San Joaquin Valley. A lifelong fascination with history and warfare ultimately led to a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of California at Davis with a focus on… Read more »
During an interview for the promotion for my most recent book, it dawned on me we have never actually discussed, in this column, the relationships between “pure” historical fiction and the adjacencies that might be either sub-genres or just tangentially related. The interviewer asked how historical fantasy differs from historical fiction – and answering that… Read more »
Don’t Do What I Did: Mistakes in Indie Publishing When I started my indie career, I made a lot of mistakes with my email list. I knew I needed a mailing list, but I didn’t know the best way to get addresses legally and ethically or what to do with them once I had them…. Read more »
