Gleanings

From The Shadow Land by Elizabeth Kostova

“This book is a train with many cars, moving clumsily along a track at night. One car contains a small supply of coal, which spills out into the passageway when an internal door is opened. You have to step over piles of slippery black grit to get through to the corridor. Another car contains grain, shipped for export. One car is full of musicians and instruments and cheap overnight bags, nearly…

I’m not telling you to make the world better, because I don’t believe that progress is necessarily part of the package. I’m just telling you to live in it. Not just to endure it, not just to suffer it, not just to pass through it, but to live in it.  To look at it. To try to get the picture. To live recklessly. To take chances. To make your own work and take pride in it. To seize the moment. And…

Writing Habits: Noticing and Nurturing your Imaginings

I preach the gospel of pay attention. In fact I preach it a lot. Because while some stories are meant to be written, must be written, it’s the smaller details that bring scenes, moments, characters to life. And for that a writer needs to be plugged in to her surroundings, an observer, a collector, a detective.

Here are some things to notice in your daily gatherings that will in turn feed your…

Quick Take: In Springtime Collect the Senses

We’re having unseasonably warm weather in the Pacific Northwest this week, though with climate change it’s hard to tell what unseasonable means any more. I’ve got new seeds in the ground so I’m watering them twice a day, nursing along seedlings and starts. And enjoying the last of the lilac blooms.

Spring is the time to collect delicate and audacious colors, to breathe in new scents, to feel the…

From an Editor’s Desk: Eliminate Junk Words

I work as a developmental editor and my clients include beginning writers, authors with a dozen or more books published, and indy-published authors. My focus is on the larger issues in their manuscripts such as does the story arc work, are the characters believable and consistent, and are individual scenes pulsing with tension and purpose. In the midst of  nitpicking my way through manuscripts I…

Every Day is Earth Day

Happy Earth Day to all.

I’ve been planting trees and shrubs this spring, added a new raised bed for growing vegetables, and will plant more pollinators to attract bees, including lavender, Russian sage, poppies, and sunflowers. Here’s a list of pollinators that might work in your yard.

As writers there’s so much we can do to support our endangered planet. Here are a few suggestions:

Stay on top…

11 Authors on Their One-Word Titles

Book titles are hard. They need to be memorable, indicate the genre or what the book is about, create buzz, and have pizzazz. The title is likely the most important marketing decision you’ll make.

And then there are one-word titles which might be the hardest ones to get just right. If you’re considering a one-word title, this articlepublished by Merriam-Webster is a small gem. Because as the…

5 Clunkers to Eliminate

The first thing I notice when reading an opening paragraph is if a writer uses precise, fresh language. In case you’re having problems seeing your common bloopers here are some you can fix or avoid:

Said exclamations:Today’s readers are sophisticated and understand when characters are talking and that at times the character’s voices and emotions change. The notion is the ‘he said, she said’ parts…

Introducing Unforgettable Secondary Characters

There are so many tricky aspects of crafting fiction, so many techniques to master. And then there’s revision with all it’s myriad decisions. Many writers can struggle creating vibrant and complex secondary characters. After all, complicated main characters are hard enough to create. Memorable co-stars, however, can make or break a story. I always view them as a measuring stick for a writer’s…