As writers, we spend a lot of time thinking about our story and our characters. We agonize over plot points and think about how to create heroes and heroines that our readers will love. We meticulously review the structure of our scenes, trying to keep our readers surprised and engaged. But we often skip right… Read more »
I hit a wall halfway through writing my debut novel. This is not unusual; as writers, this happens to most of us at one time or another. When I get blocked, it’s often only for a few days. I know all the tricks to fix the stoppered bottle of my brain: get outside, go for… Read more »
I don’t know how other authors of dual timeline novels decided to go that way, but this structure wasn’t my initial intention. I had an idea for a story about a young woman in seventeenth-century Spain, but I eventually realized that I couldn’t let her story begin and end there. I wanted there to be… Read more »
My memoir, The Ghost Marriage, wasn’t a book I planned to write. I had been working on short stories and a historical novel; it never occurred to me that anything in my own life would be interesting enough to write about. Then the bottom dropped out of my marriage, I went through a difficult divorce,… Read more »
Many people dream of becoming an author but there’s one pesky thing that stands in their way: writing the book. In your head, it all seemed so easy. You envisioned grabbing a cup of freshly brewed coffee, sitting down at your laptop, and writing 10,000 words on a rainy afternoon. But in reality, sometimes when… Read more »
A rolling wave of earth rumbled me out of my sleep like it had a dozen times before in other types of disaster. Instinct kicked in as I jumped out of bed to the closest doorway to only remember—there aren’t earthquakes in Tennessee. Weird. Something didn’t feel right though and without thinking, I went to… Read more »
I listen to birdsong first thing in the morning while the coffee is brewing. Stepping out on the front porch to listen, I laugh out loud at the insistent squeak of the pileated woodpecker as he makes his loopy flight to the palm tree. I smile at the cheerful songs of the curve-billed thrasher and… Read more »
[Hello Readers! If you missed the first article of this three-part series, check it out right here. Parts I and II of this article deals with ideas for writing plot twists. Part III will take you through the mechanics, the nuts and bolts of making it happen.] Let’s do the Romance Twist: Seduction for Hire … Read more »
Imagine this. You have an idea for a story but for some reason, you’re having trouble getting started. Days, even weeks go by and you stare at that dreaded white page as if the words are going to magically appear. Whether it’s writer’s block, sheer procrastination, or a mix of both, you’ve let enough time… Read more »
Most often, the questions that I get from readers and writers are about my process of writing historical fiction. Why did I choose the time periods that I did for the story? How did I do the research for four different timelines? Now, fully immersed in the research for my third historical fantasy novel, I’ve… Read more »
