Over the past week or so, the subjects of sex and sexism came up on Magical Words, one of the blogs I follow. As is often the case with MW, both articles were thought-provoking, and the blog readers poured many of their own thoughts into the comments. Twice as Many Male Authors Science Fiction and […]
Genre Confusion
June 11, 2011 by
An interesting side-effect of self publishing is that authors are free to step out of the traditional genre boundaries. More to the point, you see more genre blending going on. When an author is asked what kind of book she’s writing, she might say its a cross between YA, Urban Fantasy, and Romance. While I […]
The Oncoming Train
May 23, 2011 by
You know the old joke: the light at the end of the tunnel is an oncoming train. That’s how it can feel sometimes when you have a deadline. Having a deadline helps you see the light at the end of the tunnel; at least you know where you’re going and have an ETA for when […]
The Snowflake Experiment, Week 1
March 28, 2011 by
Last week I posted that I was going to try a story architecture method called The Snowflake Method. This technique is the brainchild of writing instructor and author Randy Ingermanson. He offers a free article on his web site that explains how it works. I could immediately see how it would help me move forward […]
Discovering What You Don’t Know
March 20, 2011 by
This past week has been cathartic. Using the “seat of the pants” writing approach got me through the first section of my novel, about 10,000 words worth. But finishing that first section brought me to a literary crossroads: what’s next? I realized that I had no idea. I’m feeling pretty good about my start. Or […]
Writing without a Safety Net
March 11, 2011 by
When learning how to do something new, learning what you should avoid is often just as important as learning what you should pursue. It’s good to pay attention to those “7 Blunders” articles. Learning to write fiction is no different in this respect. However, as with most disciplines, a lot of the advice you find […]
