So this week I’m hanging out with friends from Odyssey for a writing retreat focused on finding our joy in writing. It’s so easy for publishing and deadlines and craft and pressures both internal and external to steal that joy, so periodically we come back together to encourage one another. I am *so* lucky to […]
Writing a Series
As most of you know, the last few weeks I’ve been researching series writing as a way to get my head around not only my next book (no. 2 in a series), but also the next however many I get to write with this world and characters. As a reader I hate the series that […]
What is Good Fiction?
Ever since I’ve gotten back from Odyssey, I’ve been struggling with how to integrate their teaching with my own system of fiction. Since the system I wrote under originally sold two books for me, I wanted to hold onto it. But the central principles of Odyssey kept echoing in my brain, so that when I […]
Requiem for Odyssey
Well, I’ve been back from Odyssey a few days now and am finally getting my energy back. It was a crazy ride, and a long one, and it seemed fitting to take a few minutes to toast the experience. Six weeks of in-depth writing craft. Three hours of lecture per day plus occasional afternoon sessions. […]
Tics and Word Choice: Resource
Last week I wrote a post on voice and “tics,” the unconscious lazy word habits we all get into as writers. This week I found a lovely article by science fiction writer C.J. Cherryth on Writerisms that goes into more detail on what to avoid. I have an issue with a few of the rules […]
Painter’s tape, or Structure Like You Mean It
I’m starting to see that writing a novel is a lot like painting a room. Taking a bunch of time to lay down guidelines doesn’t feel very creative. In fact, if you’re impatient (like me), it can seem like a pointless time-suck. But, after having done a few novels from instinct – the same instinct that got my paint everywhere – I’m starting to see that doing it without guidelines turns into a nightmare.
Reasons to Write
There are 1,939 reasons not to write, but on the other hand only a few very big reasons to sit down and do it. Don’t let the numbers fool you – the big ones outweigh the small ones by a long shot.
A Thousand Small Triumphs
Ever seen that commercial with the cheering section that follows a guy around his entire day and cheers for him? Life isn’t like that.
