When I asked my friends what would be a good subject for my writer’s blog, the vast majority answered, “Writer’s block!” (And I stared at them mutely because that’s been the subject, in a way, of ALL my posts.) Either they hadn’t been reading my blog before offering advice (Gasp! Read more…
The thing you do to be sane and happy should besomething you can control. -Cory Doctorow How to fight writer’s block? Well, we identified it as a mood, so what causes the mood? Boredom with the project? More advice from Cory (and I was chuffed when he gave it Read more…
To do lists are the most important tool I use to treat writing like a job. I keep two to-do lists. The first is in my writing journal. When I think of an idea to fix a story, I draw a box and write it in the journal. Then, Read more…
Shortly after attending Clarion, I was bragging about it to a colleague. “All the teachers are published authors,” I said. “Like who?” she asked. I listed my instructors. She stared blankly. “What would they have written that I would have read?” she asked. I’d mentioned award winners, a genuine New Read more…
I am terrible at plot. (And character, description, mood, theme, setting, and everything else, but particularly plot.) Andy Duncan taught me this plot trick. I don’t know where he got it. You write the names of your characters on a sheet of paper. Now draw an arrow to and from Read more…
My writing procrastinating process. At least last night. Step one: Listen to music while playing 2048 for two hours. Step two: daydream about David Bowie. Worry about ethics of daydreaming about actual person, switch to Spike the vampire, Feyd from Dune… specifically as portrayed by Sting, specifically that one scene where Read more…
Like everyone I’ve ever seen answer the “when did you start writing?” question in an author interview, I wrote a novel in grade school. Now, I’ll be fair – this wasn’t my FIRST novel. First came a story Grace and I wrote together, trading a notebook back and forth, each Read more…