I should really exercise and eat better. That’s a given. And someday soon I’m sure I will, hopefully before my arteries congeal and the sort of stupidity inducing aneurysm that seems to be inflicting our current resident of the White House happens to me. (I mean seriously, this man is mentally messed up, what’s WRONG…
Original Poem: Don’t F*** With Fairy
1600 miles in 4 days. 3 pitches in one morning. Lots of panels, authors, networking opportunities, and endless talk about writing. All of those are part of my GatewayCon experience. I couldn’t have asked for a better first writer’s conference to attend, it was wonderful. So here are my overall thoughts about the experience –…
I have been very remiss in my blogging. That’s primarily because: A) I’ve had precious little I felt worth sharing; B) I’ve been spending considerable amounts of my free time working on the new novel; and C) I’ve gone through a rather difficult period of self-doubt and disappointment. Dealing with C first: all writers go…
I saw a recent post on Reddit that piqued my interest, so decided to undertake what the poster was requesting. Too late to do them any good, but hey, them’s the breaks. I’ve begun work in earnest on a new novel, so I’ve decided to document the process from start to finish. Less of a…
It’s as inevitable as my cup of coffee in the morning. At some point while talking with someone, the topic of what time we get to work comes up. Then what time we wake up. Then I tell them I get up at 3:30 and the eyes boggle, the mouth drops open, and they look…
There is a reality in the world of science and technology known as a feedback loop. This is that incredibly annoying screech from a microphone when someone first starts talking into it, before they turn their volume down. It’s painful, but it has a very simple cause and effect. You speak… your words flood out…
I think all writers by now understand the importance of having their finished works critiqued by some folks they trust to give solid, actionable commentary. You know, stuff like: “we need more tacos in this section!”; or “why’d the killer wear blue boxer briefs instead of green ones, it makes no sense”; or “your use…
When I was in high school, there were three types of music I loved most. Alt rock was my mainstay, led by bands like U2 and REM. New Wave was a close second, with DEVO and Flock of Seagulls high on my list. And then there was punk. Henry Rollins, the Ramones, anything that was…
Every writer goes through bouts of depression. Or more accurately I guess, bouts of self-doubt. I suppose right now I’m going through another one. It starts with queries. These sweet little letters of torture to agents and/or publishers drive me mad. I’ve read at least a hundred of them now, examples of successful ones, and…