As writers, we often talk about the hook – the first sentence, or first few sentences, of our novels, that will intrigue our readers enough to keep going. Beginnings are important, of course. But … [Read more...]
Camp NaNoWriMo-No Fooling
April 1, 2013 by
I must be an absolute glutton for punishment. Here it is, April first; I’m barely recovered from the last National Novel Writing Month event in November; and I’ve signed up for Camp NaNoWriMo, … [Read more...]
Why Libraries Still Matter
March 1, 2013 by
I read an article earlier this month that’s got me in the mood for a good, old-fashioned rant. The thing that got my dander up was posted on The Guardian's website. In it, a popular (by all … [Read more...]
The Future of Bookstores
February 1, 2013 by
It seems as if every month or so, we have another round of discussions about the eventual fate ofbookstores. Usually it’s sparked by a news story about sales numbers or store closings. Well, … [Read more...]
Goals for 2013
January 2, 2013 by
With the end of the world now behind us, we can confidently step forward into the future, right? So I guess it’s time that we begin thinking about where we want to be at this time in 2013. I’ve … [Read more...]
Don’t Read That – It’s Not Done Yet!
December 1, 2012 by
One of the comments on my post about morning pages last month got me thinking. The commenter said he or she wouldn’t feel comfortable doing morning pages because of a past incident in which … [Read more...]
Morning Pages
November 1, 2012 by
Last month, I talked about the artist’s date, one of the two key practices recommended by Julia Cameron in her book The Artist’s Way. This month, I’d like to talk about her second key … [Read more...]
Filling the Well
October 1, 2012 by
I suppose it could be argued that indie authors have no trouble being creative. After all, we churn out novels at an amazing rate. We never lack for inspiration and we never, ever suffer from … [Read more...]
The Power Position
September 2, 2012 by
Once upon a time, many years ago, when my two daughters were younger but no less goofy than they are today, I was driving us home from a visit to my mother in America's Heartland. We'd been on the … [Read more...]
News from the Publishing Front
August 1, 2012 by
Mark my words: the summer of 2012 will go down in history as a watershed season for indie authors. A number of developments in the publishing business have given us a boost. In June, three … [Read more...]
Why I Write
July 1, 2012 by
Samuel Johnson once said, “No man but a blockhead ever wrote, except for money.” I have a copy of the quote stuck to my fridge precisely because of its delicious irony – by which I mean that … [Read more...]
Mental Pinball
June 10, 2012 by
If you were to take a poll of authors, I bet you would find that the number-one interview question every author dreads is this: “How did you come up with the idea for your book?” I mean, how do … [Read more...]
