Remember back in January, when we talked about choosing a Word for the Year? I chose the word Go, and several of you chimed in with words of your own. The idea of a Word for the Year is that it gives you more of a focus for the year, one word to guide you as you go wherever life leads you, rather than setting … Continue reading Word for the Year: An Update!
When it comes down to it, it’s pretty hard to tell a completely original story. In the most basic sense, stories are made up of the same pieces—a protagonist with a goal, an antagonist in the way of the goal, and the journey the protagonist goes on to either succeed or fail in getting that goal. A young kid finds out he/she is magical and … Continue reading Someone Already Wrote My Book (And Other Lies You Tell Yourself)
Five years ago, I attended a writing retreat with a large group of authors who all debuted in 2014. We spent a long weekend working and writing and talking about goals. One night, we were asked to talk about where we hoped to be in five years. There were a variety of answers: I want to sell foreign rights to my work. I want to … Continue reading Celebrate the Steps
It’s time to start a new book, and I am not ready. I’m never ready. That’s the whole problem. If you ask me what I need to be ready, I can’t even tell you. I don’t know. All I know is that I’m not ready. I wrote Between and its sequel without worrying about being ready. I wanted to write them, so I did. Somewhere … Continue reading I Am Not Ready.
If you read my last post about Artist Dates, you know that the whole idea of taking time to do something alone that nourishes my inner artist was a hard one for me to embrace. I was worried that it would seem selfish, or that I wouldn’t find any value in them. Sure, I enjoy my alone time, but would it necessarily make me a … Continue reading Thirty Ideas for Artist Dates
I’ve been thinking a lot about self-care lately. In Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way, she talks about the importance of setting aside time for yourself each week. She calls them Artist Dates. The idea is that you have to give yourself breaks in order to refill the well, so to speak. From Cameron’s web site: The Artist Date is a once-weekly, festive, solo expedition to … Continue reading The Artist’s Way and Artist Dates. Alternate Title: Am I Really Allowed to Schedule Dates with Myself?
Suzy G is a writer of dark, lyrical things, and I know that any time I am lucky enough to read something she has written, I’m going to be both in love with and envious of her talent. I’m so happy she sent me something to share here–she’s one of those writers whose work I constantly want other people to read. (She’s also one of … Continue reading SPOOKY SHORT STORIES: The Learning Season by Suzy G
Sarah Blair is an author, podcaster, mommy, teacher, and all around outstanding human. She’s been one of my favorite people from the moment we met. You know how some people are just calming to your soul? Sarah is that for me. You can learn more about her at http://www.sarahlblair.com, and listen to her on the The X-Cast: An X-Files Podcast. Check out the giveaway at … Continue reading SPOOKY SHORT STORIES: Darkness Creeping by Sarah Blair
Reggie Whitley was one of the first writers I met on twitter, and his creepy short stories have always been some of my favorites. I was happy when he agreed to send me something to post for my blog party, mostly because it’s been a while since I’ve read a Reggie story. You can find him on twitter at @_RScottWhitley_. THAT’S NOT FUNNY … Continue reading SPOOKY SHORT STORIES: That’s Not Funny by Reggie Whitley
Most of you know I participated in a writing contest a few months ago, in which we were assigned different genres, characters, and subjects to write about in each round. I shared my first round story here. For the second round, I was assigned “Suspense, Judge, and Medicine,” and came up with Keeping Judge Spencer. Enjoy! Keeping Judge Spencer The roses are too pink. … Continue reading Spooky Short Stories: Keeping Judge Spencer
