Since I started this blog five-and-a-half years ago, I’ve had almost 900,000 visitors, 3300 on my busiest day, visiting the 1,097 articles I’ve written on every facet of writing. I have several columns: writer’s tips (sign up by clicking here) book reviews (Fridays) tech tips for writers (occasional) In between, I write what’s on my … Continue reading
When you read your story, does it sound off, maybe you can’t quite put your finger on it, but you know you’ve done something wrong? Sometimes–maybe even lots of times–there are simple fixes. These writer’s tips will come at you once a week, giving you plenty of time to go through your story and make … Continue reading
When you read your story, does it sound off, maybe you can’t quite put your finger on it, but you know you’ve done something wrong? Sometimes–maybe even lots of times–there are simple fixes. These writer’s tips will come at you once a week, giving you plenty of time to go through your story and make … Continue reading
How do you communicate to Western world readers the uncivilized, nature-controlled land that is Africa. If your story includes an African setting, you must get that untamed, mysterious feel across or you lose credibility. Here are a few books you can read that will drench you in the scents and colors of Africa: In the … Continue reading
If I could only recommend two books about words to writers, it would be: The Lexicon by William F. Buckley Jr. The Oxford Essential Dictionary of Difficult Words Both are for those atavistic autodidactic souls who love Beautiful Words. Not ordinary words, or syntax, or grammar and spelling, nor the ebb and flow of a … Continue reading
Since I started this blog fifty-four months ago, I’ve had over 685,000 visitors, 3300 on my busiest day, visiting the 948 articles I’ve written on every facet of writing. As with most bloggers, I write what’s on my mind 3-4 times a week. It may be about the craft of writing, trends in the industry, … Continue reading
There are a lot of words that describe you and I at different times during the day. Our job as writers is to notice what those moods and attitudes are and put a word to them so readers will feel them. ‘Sad’ doesn’t have enough depth, but ‘bitter’, ‘stricken’, ‘grieved’, and heartsick’ all tell us … Continue reading
I didn’t know who David Gerrold was, but I sure as heck knew what he wrote. David Gerrold wrote over 50 books, several hundred articles and columns, and over a dozen television episodes for various Star Trek series, but the only one that matters is the amazing Trouble With Tribbles (reprised in the last Star … Continue reading
Why is it that when you look at certain people, you think they’re pleasant or kind, or maybe even mean? Before they say a word, you make judgments about whether you want to saunter over and listen to their words. It’s their body language–the set of their mouth, their facial expressions, their gestures. Often, these … Continue reading
I love words. I subscribe to all sorts of Word-a-days. I adopted an arcane word–utible–and attempt to use it weekly (daily turned out to be non-utible. People get angry if you use words they don’t understand. Even the members of my writer’s group pushed back on me). I love finding new words that say exactly … Continue reading
