A lot of writers struggle with describing settings. I’ve written before about how to describe settings and why it matters, but a few people have told me they’d like me to do some of my master lists for writers to help them out! I have a weird love for creating lists like this, so I’m happy to do it. “How
Category: Writing Matters
Hi friends! I’m writing this post at SleuthFest, a terrific writers’ conference for mystery and thriller writers. As an acquiring editor, I’ve spent hours here hearing novel pitches and chatting with writers. If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you know I love talking with fiction writers about their projects, so I enjoyed it. Writing conferences often set up
My author blog changed my life, and it became a project and a passion unto itself. When writers I know consider starting a blog, I always encourage them to do it! However, people sometimes tell me they don’t know how to start a blog because they won’t have enough ideas for blog topics. And “What should I write about on
Hi friends! This is a workshop I’m going to be giving in a couple of places this year, and I thought I’d share it on the blog, too. I’m not saying this is the best way to plot a novel. I take at least a few weeks, and sometimes much longer, to outline a story and develop my characters. But
Hey friends! I set a goal on Goodreads of reading 52 books in 2019. I’ve got to admit it’s not a goal I’ll feel terrible about if I don’t hit it, for three reasons: I read so much in my day job that reading a lot outside of it can be a challenge. I already have 10 New Year’s Resolutions
Although I mostly write fiction now, I started out writing poems. My MFA is even in poetry. I’ve taught beginning poetry workshops at university and also in some fairly unusual settings. I know a lot of people can use ideas for poems, poetry writing prompts, and inspiration. Even if you write poetry all the time, one of these idea starters
Last night Mr. Donovan and I saw an old friend of ours with her two now-grown-up sons. As we were talking about movies and books, we realized we all loved Lord of the Rings , and we made plans to have an epic marathon watch party soon. I’m so excited about it! I first read Lord of the Rings when