~ Becoming a Focused Writer ~ Being able to focus is always an issue for a creative writer. No one is telling you what story world to invent nor how to get yourself in the seat, start writing, and then keep at it. Somehow, you have to shut out the world around you and zero … More How I Learned to Focus
~ Plot Your Scene with the W-Plot Method ~ The W-Plot can be used to lay out an entire novel, but it’s true strength is in plotting scenes. I am doing NaNoWr again this year. I love being part of a huge group of writers all excited about writing and encouraging each other every day … More W-Plot Your Way to a Better Scene
~ Life in Fifteen Minutes ~ Do you know how much time you spend on daily activities like reading e-mail and perusing Facebook? Do you struggle to reach your daily word count? I know that I do. A while back, I took a workshop with USA best-selling author Kerri Nelson, which she has recently published … More Fifteen Minutes Writing – The Book Factory Method
I love to read. In fact, I don’t just love it– I am compelled to read. I read everything. If there is a newspaper in the recycle bin, I read it. If there is a cereal box on the table, I read the label. If there is a book left anywhere, I pick it up … More I love to read: Why reading during NaNoWri is a bad Idea
My first novel, written as a respite from working on my dissertation, took me five years to write. My second novel took seven years to write. My third novel took one month. What made the difference? Fast drafting. Fast drafting is the writing process in which you throw out everything you’ve learned about good writing … More Fast Drafting My Way to The End or What I Learned from NaNoWri
