I didn’t get as much writing done over the weekend as I’d hoped because, first, I had to come in to work for half a day, and second, I was dragged (kicking and screaming, of course) into an Unexpected Adventure on Saturday. The high point – literally – was this: The view from the top [...]
I read some interesting comments lately about conflict in stories, and how what you might think of as conflict – characters arguing, for example – can be exactly what you don’t need. We’re often told that stories need conflict. But obvious, shouting-at-each-other conflict can actually decrease the level of tension. Two people stepping around each [...]
I expect that every writer has certain tendencies they have to be on guard against. Things they instinctively do that they have to prevent, catch in the act, or fix later. One of my biggest problems is a desire to make everything okay. It’s the same desire you have as a reader. (At least most [...]
I realized a couple nights ago that I have a sagging middle. (Middle of the book. Sheesh, what did you think I meant?) I should have expected it. I dialed up everything in the beginning, so now what I had before doesn’t quite live up. Especially since one of the more exciting scenes won’t work [...]
I read an excellent post by the author Maggie Stiefvater titled The Giant Butt-Kicking How to Write a Novel Post. It boils down to this quote: “All of these questions are really one question: “How do I write a book?” And the answer, which I will explain in depth, is a simple two-parter: 1 – [...]
I’m trying out a new theme for the blog. Everything seems okay, but don’t be surprised if things are odd occasionally as I play with it. Feel free to let me know what you think of the change!
I’ve done pretty well in wordcounts this week, but not as good as I’d like. I’m having a hard time creating more writing time since I’ve been working late at the day-job. I plan to make up for it on the weekends, though. No reason I can’t get several thousand done then. I’m hitting the [...]
I should’ve written this yesterday, but didn’t take the time between one thing and another. I got over 3600 words written during the weekend! (Mostly because I hit a patch that didn’t need much re-writing, but hey.) So, as I said in the previous post, I went the Pacific Northwest Writers Association literary contest awards [...]