When I started writing my "first official novel", I had a full time job that took up most of my day. I spent more time daydreaming about this novel than I actually spent writing it, and when I did write it, it was for thirty minutes here and there before I went to bed. It… Continue reading Why I write books in 30 days or less
Category: writing
2017 Writer Goals
It seems like just yesterday I was writing my goals blog post for 2016. I was lucky last year and managed to achieve all of them. 2016 was a great year for my writing and I hope to be as lucky this year, too! Of course, the thing about setting goals is that luck only… Continue reading 2017 Writer Goals
How to Wait
I once read an article that estimated that humans spend one third of their lives waiting. Waiting in line, waiting in traffic, waiting for service, etc. If you're a writer, you wait longer than that. You wait in the query trenches, you wait in the submission trenches, you wait for your book to be published.… Continue reading How to Wait
Inspiration Collages and Writing
Collage of inspiration photos for The Breakup Support Group As the days are slowly passing until the release of my next book, The Breakup Support Group, I thought I'd share my inspiration collage for it. I used to make inspiration boards after I'd written a book, as a way for the reader to see some images… Continue reading Inspiration Collages and Writing
How I outline a novel
Admittedly, I started out as a pantser, (one who writes by the seat of their pants, with no regards to outline or planning) but that was many years ago, and I am now firmly an outliner. Some authors argue that outlining a novel strips creativity away and leaves no room for making up some magic… Continue reading How I outline a novel
The magic of your first book
[The first draft notes of my first ever novel.] As I began working on a new WIP this weekend, I felt the crushing weight of all the stress and work this WIP drags along behind it. It's a story idea I've had simmering in the back of my mind for about five years, and I… Continue reading The magic of your first book
On Writing and Publishing
Recently, my writer/vlogger friend Avianne was asking me questions about writing & publishing, and since they were pretty great questions, I got her permission to use them for a blog post. Check out her lovely blog here: http://www.xoavianne.com and I'd like to thank her for letting me ramble on about myself, seeing as that's one of my… Continue reading On Writing and Publishing
Naming Characters in Unscientific Ways
Sometimes the hardest part of writing a book is coming up with all of the names. Character names, town names, store names. I wanted to write a blog post about how I go about this process, but after thinking about it, I realized I have no scientific method for naming. As so many creative endeavors… Continue reading Naming Characters in Unscientific Ways