I'M IN the process of shifting gears and concentrating heavily on finishing both my novella TO BE FRIENDS and the zombie novella WB Welch and I are co-writing, and I'm getting nervous. I've been in the writing community for almost exactly three months now, and on Twitter only a few days more than that. Before … Continue reading Should My Author Name be Party Freckle?
Category: Writing/Publishing
Your Protagonist’s Low Point
EVERYTHING WAS just fine for your protagonist. They were living a normal life. It wasn’t a great life by any means, but at least nothing bad lurked on the horizon. Or maybe that’s wrong. Maybe your protagonist was doomed if they continued sitting around, not taking charge of their life. Or maybe an imminent threat … Continue reading Your Protagonist’s Low Point
How to Twitter Effectively: Vol. 2
SO YOU want to build your Twitter following and grow your engagement and reach. Well, the first thing to remember is this: don't start a blog series and then let a month pass before you make the second entry, which is what I'm doing right now. Guilty. Yes. Shame me, abandon me, warn others against … Continue reading How to Twitter Effectively: Vol. 2
Show, Don’t Tell
This is the ultimate phrase, isn’t it? I remember hearing it over and over in grade school; I remember seeing it scrawled in red pen throughout my college papers. Why is this so hard, and what can we do to improve upon it? This topic was actually requested by a Twitter friend. I promise to … Continue reading Show, Don’t Tell
My Writing Process
I FIND myself zoning in on a thought, turning it over and over in my mind until all else fades and my consciousness is reduced to a machine that serves only to deconstruct and reconstruct and toss and tumble and prod and observe this singular obsession. In this state I am a predatory animal, driven … Continue reading My Writing Process
Update Regarding Free Query Critiques
I'VE COME to a decision. I'm not going to suspend free query critiques. Instead, I'm going to limit how many I accept. Here's how: I'll critique a couple queries a day, maybe more on days when I have down time, and when they start to pile up, I'll just stop accepting them until I've cleared … Continue reading Update Regarding Free Query Critiques
When Am I Going to Wake Up?
I'M AMAZED at the quality of the manuscripts I've been hired to critique thus far. There's an absurd aspect to it that keeps occurring to me: I'm getting paid to read books I would buy if I picked them up off a shelf. I feel so lucky that this venture is taking off. All my … Continue reading When Am I Going to Wake Up?
