Arachnopocalypse, or The Things That Occupy a Writer Between Paragraphs
It’s a good thing it’s hard to fall asleep on a yoga ball chair. Yes, it helps your productivity to actually be awake at your desk. (Although I have heard a well-timed nap can do wonders, unless you have three dogs and a cat for whom human napping is anathema.) But right now, staying awake at my desk is a matter of life and death. The day I fall asleep may be the day they eat me. Following is a rough reconstruction of the Arachnopocalypse timeline. Day One: Oh, that little bitty web at the ceiling is too hard to reach, Read more…
The Readers Have Spoken: And the Next Sydney Brennan Story is…
Last month I posted a Survey to see what Sydney Brennan Short Story you’d most like to read. It closed earlier this week, and the results are in. From most to least popular: Noel agrees to help Syd with some simple surveillance and gets more than she bargained for; How Sydney became an investigator; JD arrives unexpectedly for a weekend with Sydney, but the PI’s life gets in the way; and A relaxing day at the beach for Sydney and Ben becomes anything but relaxing. So, Noel and Syd it is! To be honest, I was pulling for Syd and Ben, but Read more…
Writer’s Bronchitis: The Dangers of Straining Your Voice
You may have noticed, in my various ramblings, that I’m a fan of the TV show Castle. Some of the long-term story arcs are wearing, and some seasons are inconsistent (see The Challenges of the Wayback Machine for a mini-rant). But at its best, the cast has great chemistry, and at its worst, you’ve still got Nathan Fillion. My husband and I recently watched an episode that looked like a nice, goofy one. (We were taking a break from Broadchurch; I wrote about Season 1 in Stories I Love, but Season 2, still impeccably performed and filmed, is even darker). Castle Read more…
The Joys and Hardships of Rewrites, and Survey Results So Far…
When does a draft become a rewrite? Is anything after the rough draft a “rewrite,” or does your story have to be farther along (i.e., less crappy)? Sorry—that’s probably a little too esoteric for a Friday morning. Maybe I’ll look it up when I’m not so busy second drafting/rewriting. Overall, I’d have to say I’ve enjoyed my first week of Book Five rewrites (gotta call it something), but it’s a contradictory process. There are entirely new scenes to be added (two in particular are going to be so much fun!), descriptions to flesh out and motivations to clarify. But I’ve Read more…
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