A Bird Going East

08 Oct

I will admit that in almost every case, I will overlook poetry in favor of prose. There are, however, a couple of poets I keep an eye on. One, who I refer to on the blog fairly regularly, is my good friend Ashley Capes. The other is James Hutchings, another Australian poet.

To Pseudonym or Not to Pseudonym

24 Sep

Shakespeare very likely asked this question as well–though I’m sure he did it with more eloquence. Whether or not to use a pseudonym (a pen name) is a question pretty much every writer asks themselves when considering publication. There are plenty of reasons to use one, and just as many not to.

A Cautionary Tale: 3 Writing Rules That Can Derail Your Story

16 Sep

Lisa Cron wrote a fantastic blog post on Writer Unboxed, outlining three oft-preached and just as oft-misapplied ‘rules’ that can derail an otherwise brilliantly executed story. Last year I had occasion to read a batch of ten page manuscript submissions in a hurry, one right after the other. What I noticed was startling in its consistency. All of the writers …

An Intro to Haiku

08 Sep

In this post, I’ll instruct you on how to write a haiku. Just kidding. My poetry sucks. My friend Ashley Capes, on the other hand, is a fantastic poet. I’ve mentioned my feelings on the connection between poetry and prose, and how I feel a working knowledge of one can improve the other. Ashley has just posted a fantastic intro to …

Tess Grantham on The Power of Doubt

29 Jul

Tess Grantham, a member of my writing group, Alchemy, has a brilliant post on her blog titled “The Power of Doubt”–how it hinders us as writers, and how it pushes us to become better. …Doubt is the improver in baker’s flour. It’s the magic ingredient in Grandma’s secret steak and kidney pie recipe. It’s the great arbiter of good work. How …

CJ Jessop’s Take on The Avon Lady

21 Jul

CJ Jessop, an awesome writer (whose first novel I had a blast beta reading) and a member of my crit group, Alchemy, posted a 300-word short story on her blog in response to a writing challenge. The story could be on any topic, but had to contain the words SWAN, FUCHSIA, PARANOID, SMOTHER, SCREEN, and BODY. I think she did brilliantly, …

The Dreaded Sag

10 Apr

This is a post about writing, I promise. Since I write fantasy, I know a lot about killing tension. Fantasy and other spec-fic writers have a ton of information and backstory to convey, and more often than not this results in the story coming to a screeching halt. Epic fantasy, in particular, tends toward long, drawn-out ‘saggy bits’ that can …

Miss Snark, Literary Agent

24 Aug

I came across Miss Snark’s blog years ago, and it’s been one of my favorites ever since. The very aptly named Miss Snark describes her occupation as “Satan’s literary agent”. Her blog provides an immense amount of information on the publishing industry, delivered in such a hilarious, scathing voice that her anonymity is a wise career move. Miss Snark closed …