Thoughts on writing

A new year is here. That means it’s time to remember to write 2012 instead of 2011 at the top of your journal entries. In the old days, that also meant remembering to write 2012 on checks, but no one uses those anymore, right? I mean, that’s just so 2007. Anyway, the other thing that the new year means is New Year’s Resolutions. I’ll be honest I’ve never been much of a resolution maker or keeper, but I’m going to go ahead and make some this year. So, here are my writing related New Year’s resolutions: 1. Be a better blogger. It’s only the second week day of 2012 and this is my second blog post. Sure, yesterday’s was only a sentence long, but I’m still way ahead of my usual blogging tendencies. I...

I was going to start off this post by saying that this time of year is perfect for sitting in (or near, if you aren’t quite as tiny as Amber here) a sunny window, but as I look at my window today there is no sun in sight, just gray clouds and rain. As every school kid knows April showers bring May flowers, and May flowers bring pilgrims. So, what do March showers bring? Well, ear infections and floods, but I see a bit more green out there and hear a lot more birds so there are some positive effects as well. I’m hoping that today you are able to find a sunny window of your own, and if not a literal sunny window at least a metaphorical one. Today I’m over at Adventures in Children’s Publishing for their WOW Wednesday feature writing about...

Today, I’m doing something a little different. I’m sharing a couple of paragraphs from my present work in progress only not here. I’m sharing those paragraphs over at friend and fellow Class of 2K11er Gae Polisner. That cool book cover you see on the screen is the cover of Gae’s debut novel The Pull of Gravity, which will be out later this year. Anyway, Gae runs a regular Friday feature on her blog where you can read and provide feedback on the WIPs of different authors, and if you like submit some work of your own for feedback. So if you get a chance stop by to give me some feedback, and if possible share something you’re working on. I’d love to see...

According to my writing calendar today is John le Carre’s birthday. This naturally made me think of a phase I went through in my childhood when I attempted to be a spy. (In case the connection isn’t clear, John le Carre is famous for being an author of spy thrillers.) My spy career was inspired by another author entirely. While I was a precocious kid, I wasn’t so precocious that I was reading John le Carre in the second grade. Instead I was reading Louise Fitzhugh, who as any fan of children’s literature know is the author of the Harriet the Spy books. Like my role model, I was a freelance spy. I worked for no government or other entity. In fact, there didn’t seem to be any real purpose to my spying besides a general gathering of...

This week’s ask the authors feature over at The Elevensies is, “Who do you write for?” You can see the different responses,  by clicking here. Several of my fellow debut authors reached the same conclusion I did. Like me, they write primarily for themselves. Here’s my response to this week’s question: Well, it’s nice to see I’m in good company on this one. I mulled this question over some, and have come to the conclusion that I write for myself. One of my favorite writing quotes comes from Toni Morrison who says, “If there’s a book you really want to read but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” That tends to be my philosophy with everything I write. On those occasions when...

The Elevensies group which I am proud member of has begun a new ask the writer feature in which someone asks a writing-related question and all of us writers throw in our two cents. This is a Tuesday feature, and since today is Wednesday that means I’m a day late and a dollar short. (Actually, I’m 50 cents short thanks to the vending machine that refused to give me my change yesterday, but I digress.) This week’s question is: What do you wish someone would have told you when you started writing? Here’s my answer: I wish someone had told me to stick to one thing and see it through to the end. It’s lot easier to finish something if you aren’t constantly getting distracted and starting new projects. Cruise over to Elevensies and...