You work hard to write, edit, and otherwise ready your manuscript for others to read. Missing out on friends, family, activities you enjoy, and even sleep isn’t easy, but attaining your writing dream is worth every sacrifice. Writing is your defining passion, as you no doubt discovered long ago. Did you make up your own bedtime stories in childhood, like I did? You might have written for your high school paper, excelled in your college composition class, or discovered a penchant for storytelling as an adult. However it happened, at some point you dared to pursue your writing dream. Exactly what does that dream look like? Continue Reading>>
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9 Low-Stress Ways to Increase Your Writing Productivity
Having trouble creating? Don’t feel all alone. Stymied ceativity is a big complaint in writing communities at the moment. That’s not surprising. To point out the obvious, we are in the middle of a pandemic. No doubt you’ve experienced upheaval of some kind. Life can be hard while you are confined to quarters, unemployed, or otherwise disrupted. When you think about it in those terms, it would be unusual not to feel disconcerted. Continue Reading>>
Surprises of a Solo Writing Retreat, Part 2
On the first morning of my solo writing retreat, I settled down with my planner to mark out my time for the next couple of days. Different-colored markers made it easy to categorize my tasks. Blue designated personal items like going for a walk, journaling, reading for pleasure, and the like. Green represented tasks related to my writing business. Yellow normally stands for household chores, but those were almost absent from my schedule. Loading the dishwasher throughout the day kept the dishes from piling up. Tomorrow I would wash a little laundry. Beyond that, there was nothing to list. Real life was nothing like this, but that’s why I needed to get away to write in the first place. I wanted to take full advantage of this gift of time. Before beginning to write however… Continue Reading>>
Writing Historical Romance
This post is a little different. Writers Chat recently featured me in a discussion about writing historical fiction, and I think you might benefit from watching the replay. This is a faith-based group, so I freely spoke from my own experience as a Christian historical romance author. Topics we covered include Continue Reading>>
Surprises of a Solo Writing Retreat
Several months have passed since my first solo retreat. I wanted to give myself time to process the experience before writing about it for you. The experience taught me more about myself than I cared to admit. If you want to come nose-to-nose with yourself, go on a solo writing retreat. Continue Reading>>
Write Fast and Well
Writing a book series for a traditional publisher often involves starting the next story while you are proofreading and launching the previous book. I found this regimen difficult when I first started writing the Montana Gold books, especially since I was also splitting my time working on Tales of Faeraven, an epic fantasy series contracted to another publisher. It soon became painfully obvious that I’d bitten off more than I could chew. Fortunately, both my publishers gave me grace when I needed it most. Continue Reading>>
Book Journey to Publication: The Sleuth’s Conundrum by Kimberly Rose Johnson
I have to say that I laughed while reading Kimberly Rose Johnson’s description of the book journey of The Sleuth’s Conundrum. This is one of those posts where you feel you know the writer, personally. I could totally relate to wondering what you are going to write, to staring at a blank screen with no words forming, and to being relieved that your publisher will tweak your book description. (This is one benefit of having a publisher.) Continue Reading>>
NaNoWriMo Prep (Free Character Worksheet)
National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo as writers affectionately dub the annual writing challenge, arrives every November. It is a reason to celebrate, connect, and commiserate with other authors. We are creative artists first for a blissful month. Continue Reading>>
Dynamics in Fiction Writing (Advanced Writing Technique)
As a classical vocalist who sidestepped into a writing career, I’ve noticed that many musical techniques apply to writing as well. Developing as a musical artist mirrors growing as a writer. During my first public recital in college, I was relieved to finish my song. Never mind that I’d delivered a better rendition during relaxed practice sessions. I had survived the terrifying ordeal without fainting, and I even received a passing grade. When my first novel came out, the experience was similar. Continue Reading>>
Author Journey: Jeanette Marie Mirich
Blame it on my father, this compulsion to pin words to a page. As a child I’d hear him typing away in the attic office, creating magic with rhyme. The syncopation of words played the soundtrack to my childhood. Dad was a poet and musician at heart. Earning a salary was another matter. Continue Reading>>
