Some of my writer friends listen to music while they write. Not me. The tune, the words, the meaning, the associated emotions--too much of a distraction. See, to me, each song is a story in itself. That story pulls me away from the one I'm working on. But . . . on occasion, I'll hear a song that reminds me of a situation or a character in my novel. That helps if I get … [Read more...] about Knowing your characters
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Sisterdog Sadie
I just found out my new puppy is coming tomorrow. I'm thrilled. But I'm also nervous. I've had Creo since she was a eight weeks old--three years now. She's Dachshund, Corgi, and Cairn Terrier. Earlier this month, one of the people helping me with my … [Read more...] about Sisterdog Sadie
Would you like some dignity with that?
The daytime temperatures had been in the 90s. At 9:45 pm, I was still too hot. I needed something really cold. An ice cream cone. Vanilla. Yum. With a bedroll on his back, Traveler entered the fast food restaurant from another door, arriving at the counter just ahead of me. He was wearing a quilted khaki-colored vest over a threadbare, red and brown flannel shirt. His blue … [Read more...] about Would you like some dignity with that?
Dreaming of Cyrus
When I sat down to write The Courier, I knew who I wanted Cyrus Driskoll to be at the beginning of the the book. I knew who I wanted him to be at the end. I had a rough idea of how I might get him from A to Z. To me, the most important objective was exposing his guts so that we could really see him. Because The Courier was my first novel, I was surprised at the clarity of the … [Read more...] about Dreaming of Cyrus
Don’t let me look
My cousin, Ken, has a favorite story about our Granny. He says when he was little, he used to sneak up on her to scare her. One day, my aunt caught him. "Don't scare your Granny like that!" she scolded. Now, you and I both know that my aunt was afraid Granny's old heart couldn't take that kind of exercise. But later on, Granny pulled Ken aside and told him to keep doing what … [Read more...] about Don’t let me look
