If there’s one thing Southern gals know how to do, it’s gab. Silly or serious, all it takes is a glass of iced tea and time. Pull up a chair, kick off your shoes, and make yourself comfy…get ready to dish!
Bears With Furniture
One problem with living in a creative family is the amount of stuff we all tend to accumulate. When Mr. Man decided he wanted to play guitar, the Yamaha acoustic cutaway was soon joined by five electrics and Frick’s Squier jazz bass and Martin dreadnought. We have piles of movies and video games, boxes of art supplies, and yarns for both knitting and needlepoint. We’re all readers, so we basically drown in books (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing). But the worst, thanks to the fact that I’m a writer and we hate...
read moreRelease Day!
Today’s the day. Today, although I’ve been writing forever, I can officially call myself an author. My debut novella, Fortune’s Fool, is on sale! To call my path to publication a long road is understating the point immensely. I’ve done the dance (and been abandoned on the floor) by several publishers along the way. I have an uncanny talent for writing exactly the right book at exactly the wrong time–either it’s too weird or just misses the wave or the line closes or something. This time, though, I took a...
read moreGetting My Ass(ets) in Gear
The great thing about attending RWA’s national conference is the time spent with people who get you: women who write, who know the excitement and terror of putting stories on the page and hoping the effort results in happy readers. The bad thing about RWA national conference? The food. Not the quality–it’s usually fantastic–but the quantity. The restaurants. The cocktails celebrating new opportunities. The chocolate. And more chocolate. Post-conference euphoria (I’m finishing the WIP! I’m submitting the...
read moreRWA National: Multiplicity Rocks
Authors Zoe Archer, Shoshanna Evers, and Linda O. Johnston and agent Paige Wheeler of Creative Media Agency gave an overview of writing concurrently in multiple genres or sub genres. The changing publishing industry certainly gives authors opportunities to write a variety of stories for any number of outlets. However, there are both advantages and disadvantages to creating a mixed portfolio of work. Writing in multiple genres can be beneficial if you are not yet published and you are searching for your genre “home.” You can...
read moreRWA National: Social Media 360 with Cindy Ratzlaff
When Cindy Ratzlaff was in kindergarten, she brought home a report card that said she chatted too much with neighbors and daydreamed in class. Her father read over the remarks and, thankfully for us, said, “Don’t let anyone tell you that’s a bad thing.” Cindy has been able to parlay those qualities into a successful career in PR and marketing. She’s been the brains behind hugely successful book launches. Today she talked about branding and how social media can contribute to establishing your writer brand and...
read moreRWA National: The Slow Writer
Successful author Courtney Milan, a former scientist and attorney, had some great advice for writers who don’t maintain a pace demanded by the changing markets and analytics of the hybrid publishing market. Milan reminded everyone that everyone’s definition of “making a living” is different. The key is to determine what your goal is and how to adapt your process to make it as effective as possible in achieving your goals. The current market is predicated on a 90-day release pattern. Fast writers can make that happen....
read moreRWA National: Art Journaling 101
My very first workshop of this year’s conference was one presented by my dear friends Katherine Garbera and Nancy Robards Thompson and moderated by yours truly. Both of them have been using art journaling as a creative pathway, and this interactive workshop (glitter glue was involved) gave the participants an opportunity to create an art journal page. You don’t have to be a fabulous artist to reap the benefits of the art journal process. Nancy and Kathy use their journals as character inspiration and exploration, for catharsis,...
read moreA House Is Not a Home
In February of 1976, after several years of living in the Carolinas and a memorable year or so in the midwest (a foreign country to my Southern sensibilities), my family finally moved permanently to Florida. We left our house in Westerville, OH and drove through a sleet storm until we crossed the bridge across the Ohio River into Covington, KY. The sun broke through the clouds for just a moment, and Daddy quipped, “It’s an omen. We’re never going back.” He was right. We never did. I remember marveling how we’d...
read moreOnward!
Welcome to the new year, everyone! Here’s wishing all of you a marvelous 2014. My dear friend Katherine Garbera was blogging about goals over at the Jaunty Quills, and she had an interesting way of looking at the new year. This year, instead of making a list (although she is an inveterate list maker and checker-offer), she’s choosing a word to direct her year. She chose adventure. I like this approach. It appeals to my holistic sensibilities (right-brained folks, unite!) and probably won’t leave me with the vague sense of...
read moreA Look Back
As usual, I began 2013 with all kinds of positive energy and ended up limping to the finish line. It wasn’t a failure of a year, but I didn’t take the world by storm, either (not that it was on my list). As a teacher, I’m always asking my students to reflect on their work so that they can chart a pathway to improvement. In that spirit, here’s how 2013 went for me: GREAT Redesign the website – completed this and redesigned site for a couple of friends as well, so this was a solid plus. Keep in touch with my girls...
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