How can a writer expect readers to be excited about a novel unless the writer feels the same passion? Does enthusiasm for story mean having passion for every word? Absolutely! Every grueling step of the process must be met with a committed spirit. Passion for Firewall kept me spellbound, as though the world around me had stopped while I wrote the novel. Research captured me with intrigue and … [Read more...]
Brainstorming, Here I Come
I’m so excited. Today is the day I depart for my brainstorming retreat. This is the 12th annual retreat for this special group of writers. I’ve shared photos in the past and no doubt will share photos again, although I may not be first. Tamera and Tricia are also part of this “Plot, Play, & Pray Retreat.” Whenever I’m asked what is my favorite part of writing, my answer is “Brainstorming!” … [Read more...]
Ask the Author on Goodreads
Have you heard about Goodreads' latest feature? It's called Ask the Author, and you can find it on participating Goodreads Author pages. It is fairly new and still being rolled out. An author has to sign up to participate, so you may not find it on all of your favorite authors' pages yet. Here is the link to my Goodreads page. Just scroll down. You'll see my profile, then my latest blog … [Read more...]
Fan Art
Recently, I heard a statistic that surprised me. The speaker said that from 5% to 25% of fiction readers draw/paint/sketch pictures of the characters and/or scenes from the books they read and love. Really? So many? That fascinates me. Curious, I asked on my Facebook Page if there were any fans of my books who have illustrated characters or scenes from them. Granted, Facebook showed that … [Read more...]
Collaborating on a Novella Collection
Over the course of the last 30 years, I've written a number of novellas that were part of multi-author collections (sometimes called anthologies). For most of these, the publisher picked the authors who would write the collection and told those authors what was required in all of the stories (they have cats, they have dogs, they have horses, they are set in the West at Christmas, etc.). And then … [Read more...]