You had me at: "Working with a good editor feels good." #1 is a killer. This person masks their sadistic self importance in "But it's for your own good," as if it's like hiding an aspirin in honey. NO, it is nothing at all like that. It burns all the way down. Thank you Chazz. …
Continue reading "Identifying a good editor is about chair placement"
I “met” Robert last year, soon after I had published my first novel. We were introduced online through a mutual friend because of our shared passion for writing. Robert writes screen plays but he is also serving our country in Afghanistan and is a husband, father and great human being. Check out his blog. You won’t regret it.
Take a good look at that picture; I mean a GOOD look. I will be turning 35 in a little over a month. That is the look of a CONFIDENT man who is VERY comfortable in his own skin. However, I’m not ashamed to say that I have honestly NOT always felt that way about myself.
I look at my life right now and I can truly say that I’m blessed. “Blessed” doesn’t mean “perfect” as some seem to think. When I say that my life is blessed, I look at where I am now and where I’ve been. I look at the problems I’ve encountered throughout my life. I look at the “tests” that have come my way. I look at the people I’ve met. I look at the places I’ve gone. Right now, I’m in Afghanistan and I can STILL say that I’ve been blessed.
Today, I have…
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We went hog wild and bought Esme a bubble gun. This was worth it!
Chris, thank you so much for having me on your blog! I sincerely appreciate it and I hope your readers enjoy it!
I was born on Valentine’s Day a long, long time ago in South Baltimore, Maryland, less than a mile from Fort McHenry and Federal Hill. I’m a very simple person. I love my life and am always striving to make it better for myself and my family.
I write, I draw and I still work full-time. I’ve been married for almost 20 years and together we have two sons, a daughter, three beautiful granddaughters and a nine year old Maine Coon cat named Columbus.
I’ve wanted to write at least one book for almost my entire life. I think my mind and imagination were simply collecting experiences and knowledge in order to build up lots and lots of material. The truth is that the time was right for me to finally follow my dream. It took me 49 years to do it but who’s counting? It isn’t as if I…
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A funny thing happened as I read this blog. Of course I took away the obvious message but beneath that, it dawned on me who my target audience for “Fireflies” and “Hope From the Ocean” should be.
In direct reference to this blog, I have witnessed these things between other authors but thankfully, have not “felt” them personally. I suppose these literary rivalries have been going on since the chisel and tablet. I agree it’s about time it stops. I’d love to raise a glass with some fellow writers sometime. Although in the real world, I’m painfully shy. 😉 Thank you so much Tara for your brilliant insight!
MOTHER OF GOD ALL THESE OTHER BOOKS ARE SO INTIMIDATING
I’ve been hearing a lot lately about rivalry in the writing and publishing industries. And it’s a sad state of affairs. Because it’s complete and utter nonsense.
Rivalry is an alluring demon for authors (and, indeed, reviewers). For one thing, the very nature of writing – a solitary activity, which rarely if ever allows for human interaction in the physical act itself – can make the loveliest, gentlest human into a raving, paranoid lunatic.
For instance, by the time a writer emerges from the Nth draft of their novel, covered in the primordial goo of self-doubt, the blinding fog that is fear of failure, never mind that murky quicksand which is the fear of success, the public domain can look like a row of guns and spears, all pointing at you. Some of them will just shoot you where you stand. You’ll manage to run in to the spears all by yourself. But it all looks terribly nasty. (And that’s enough sloppy metaphors.)
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So there's this NEW book I'm writing. It takes place during the golden age of piracy. It's a bit different. It's a bit sassy. It's a bit romantic, naughty and fun. It's a lot different than my first two novels but as I've been told, change is good. As I've told myself since I began …
Continue reading "Do you like pirates or rather, stories about pirates?"
The photographer self portrait.
If you’re seriously thinking about becoming a book reviewer, these rules are a very good place to start. 🙂
Book reviews are the cod liver oil of the writing world. Writers need them, and they can do an awful lot of good, but they can also leave an incredibly nasty taste in the mouth.
You can’t switch on the Internet these days without seeing an author giving out about book reviews and how unfair/mean/reprehensible/soul-destroying they are. There is always a writer whinging somewhere about the tears they shed over a nasty review, how personal it was, and why so-and-so was out to destroy them.
Now, for some writers of the thinner skinned variety, this might mean a review which says something unforgiveable such as “I didn’t like this book“. For others, it might take a little more venom. Such as an anonymous review which says “I would have used this book for toilet paper, but my soft under bits would have rejected it too.”
So, I got to thinking. If…
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As I was scrolling through my Instagram at lunch, I came across this quote meme. It was posted by a young woman I've known since she was a child, who happens to be a friend of my daughter's. She's an amazing photographer and anytime she posts anything, I always stop and take a look...even if …
Continue reading "The Space Between Your Goals aka The Cream Filling"
Thank you Hope To Read for having me on your blog today!
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