I used to say that I was so jealous of people who had a goal for their life. The ones who knew that they wanted to be a doctor or a teacher or whatever. Me? I would shake my 20-something head and say with a laugh that I have no idea what I want to be when I grow up…. Read more »
It’s always a sad day to close the lid on a novel. To admit to yourself (and to the world) that the thing you wrote and edited and loved just isn’t going to make it. And so I am sounding a solemn dirge today for novel 7. In fact, I actually declared it Over and Done on August 23, closing… Read more »
Summer begins to fade into autumn, like it does every year. Living in San Diego buffers me from this reality, somewhat. It is easy to let the sunny days slide away, one after another, sure that they will continue in an unabated stream. And yet, the days do grow shorter, and time is, in fact, passing. Such are the thoughts… Read more »
4. You finished a book! Most people will never manage that! Yeah, okay. I finished a book. Yay me! It is a big accomplishment, but it’s also one that I hit for the first time when I was 13. I’ve written almost SIX books now. It is hard to see writing additional books as anything but a failure—as in, I’ve written… Read more »
Some days are harder than others. This morning the alarm went off and I groaned. I can’t face today. I just want to sleep forever. But instead I roll over and shuffle to the bathroom. I brush my teeth in a Monday morning fog and sit down at my computer with a sense of dread. But I am here. I… Read more »
I don’t think artists and writers are, in general, known for being completely calm, level-headed, secure people. Stereotype it may be, but I sure live up to the idea of a writer whose confidence varies wildly, rising to euphoric heights before crashing down so low I just want to curl up in a ball and moan “Whyyyy did I think… Read more »
There has been a blog post making the rounds among writers on Twitter* recently. It is an excellent post by Amy Trueblood called “What If You Never Get Published?”. Go on and read it, I’ll wait. Okay, so reading her post got me thinking (again). Writing is a lot of work. I spend hours and hours on it every week—and even… Read more »
I have written before about my writing music—or the lack thereof. I don’t listen to music while I write. I’m the kind of person who is compelled to sing along to every song, so it would be a bit of a distraction from the whole actually writing thing. But there are songs that I listen to when I am not… Read more »
It’s been a while since I’ve done a monthly summary post. When I’m not producing a new MS, it doesn’t really make a whole lot of sense. But since I started a new novel this month, well, here I go! June was a great month for me in writing. I wrote what I felt to be a kick-ass query. I… Read more »
I have been writing for a very, very long time. It’s hard to put an exact number on it because I literally cannot remember a time that I wasn’t writing. The first story that I can vividly recall was one I wrote as part of a short story competition with my brothers. It was titled, appropriately, “The Competition,” and detailed… Read more »