By Sarah Sundin With a brand-new series launching August 4, I wanted to throw a launch party. Then my daughter chose July 18 as her wedding day. I knew I’d have no time or energy for another big event. I knew my sweet husband would grumble about spending more money-and rightly so. How could I throw a party-and survive to …
Nuggets of Ideas
By Donna Schlachter We recently returned from a research trip to California, where we stayed in a bed-and-breakfast situation, sharing meals with our host family. They were a delightful couple, and during one of our conversations, she mentioned she’d been working on a short story for a number of years. I asked some questions, and finally she admitted it was …
Using Psychology to Create Deep Characters
A PSYCHOLOGICAL APPROACH TO DEVELOPING GRIP-YOUR-HEART CHARACTERS By J.A. Marx How do we write a poignant story that’s realistic, emotionally satisfying yet not watered down? After you’ve given your character a personality, a vocation, a purpose for living, and a setting contemplate the following. 1) Reality Pick an offense more exciting than stepping on toes or cutting someone off in …
Setting – the First Character You Create in a Story
By Mary Ellis What first comes to mind if someone mentions the television show, Hawaii 5-0? The muscular actor who plays Commander Steve McGarrett, or perhaps a clever plot twist in an episode involving identity theft? More likely it’s a visual of tanned young surfers riding the perfect wave to the shores of Waikiki, or perhaps a volcanic peak rising …
Story Glimmers
by Ann H. Gabhart A writer needs time to gather a story, to let the glimmers spark out of that mysterious dark center of the imagination where stories are born. At times the glimmers may sparkle but still be as elusive as a sunbeam. You see it but you can’t quite grab it. I’ve been at the glimmer stage for …
The Luby’s Listener
The Luby’s Listener Or Where Do Writers Get Their Ideas? By Kathleen Y’Barbo This year I am celebrating fifteen years as a published author and ten years with my fabulous agent, Wendy Lawton. In April of 2016, I will celebrate twenty years since I purchased that Cannon StarWriter and decided I might be able to write a book. Just one. …
Writing Prompts Prompt Good Writing!
By Bruce Hennigan There once was a website called Storypraxis. Perhaps you remember it with fondness. If you subscribed to the site, you would receive a “writing prompt” every 3 days. Your job was simple. Write quickly for 20 to 30 minutes using the word or phrase as stimulus for a short, short story or a poem. No editing. No …
What Happens Next?
By Karen H. Richardson Writers have many methods for developing their story. Some are very methodical and create detailed outlines. Some have a spreadsheet that lists chapters, summaries and potential word counts. While others use writing software such as Scrivener to write and organize their thoughts. Me, I’ve tried a little of all of these methods. More than likely as …
Your Seven Staples as a Writer
by Cheryl Wyatt For this blog post, we’re going to do a little digging. The title mentions seven staples. In the case of this blog post, by staple, I mean the commodity of theme, or something regular that is unique to you and your writing. One definition of staple, according to Merriam-Webster, is “a chief commodity or production of a …
Chasing Inspiration
By Kariss Lynch In an information age, inspiration is often muted, masked, and downright frustrating to identify. It can be even more difficult to figure out where to start when beginning your writing career or beginning a new writing project. Inspiration then becomes a process of discovery. Something you search for until the story begins to fall into place. But …