Month: April 2012

Eavesdrop Your Way To Better Dialogue

Ideally, dialogue in fiction is supposed to be a representation of how people actually speak. (Extracting the polite greetings and chitchat and such, unless that chitchat reveals story or character.) So how better to learn the way people actually speak than listen to them conversing with one another?

Before I get arrested as an accessory to violation of privacy, I’m not saying that you should put your ear up to walls (unless something particularly juicy is going on and you stand to make a few bucks selling the story to the tabloids) or hang out outside people’s domiciles with a shotgun mic. I’m talking about a little public eavesdropping. Don’t think you can pull it off without blushing, staring, urinary incontinence, or otherwise giving yourself away? Try some of my favorite Harriet The Spy eavesdropping tips: Continue reading “Eavesdrop Your Way To Better Dialogue”

Sneak Peek: Vanished by Barbara Derksen

Vanished introduces readers to the beginning of the Wilton/Strait Mystery Series, with Presumed Dead, Fear Not, and then Silence adding to the collection. In Vanished, death, fire, and kidnapping send Andrea Wilton and Brian Strait to the country of Haiti where voodoo, restavic children, and scuba diving lead them to discover a diabolical plot that sets nerves on edge.

Vanished tells the story of Brian and Andrea’s search for their friends, Trent and Diane Michner, but before they ever get started, a neighbor is murdered on Andrea’s doorstep and then her house is burned to the ground. Two men in a black Mustang shadow the couple.

Vanished is available at Amazon US, Amazon CA, and at Barbara Ann’s Website.

Continue reading “Sneak Peek: Vanished by Barbara Derksen”

Promoting With Style

Anne Rice is a master promoter.

I am fascinated by people who move through life confidently promoting themselves and their projects. For this golden few, the prospect of walking into a room full of strangers inspires excitement and endless opportunity. Who wouldn’t want to meet them and talk to them about their latest pet project? These self-promoters exude a joy at networking that seems to be second nature.

For more introverted folk, the prospect of a cocktail party full of strangers has all the attraction of a root canal. This seems to be a common problem for writers, whose brains crave the solitude needed to create and the lack of distraction to focus. Often, the words that flow so easily onto the page trickle in conversation. Don’t fret, my friends, there is hope. Continue reading “Promoting With Style”