Tag: Writing

“Out There” Is In There

My posts here are generally informational, but I want to take up space with something of a more personal nature, though it might strike chord with some of you. Since we all know not to start with the weather, I’ll start with a dream.

This dream was decades ago, but I try to keep it in my thoughts. I was the MC or ringmaster for a show of some sort. And things weren’t going so good. Some underlings came to me saying that they needed special food and toys for one of the players. They hauled him in and it was this amazingly dorky little RainMan geek, not even verbal. He shambled out onto the stage and stood there, then let out this peculiar squawk. And the crowd went wild. This fat, pimply, four-eyed little gooner was what they came to see. I took it all in and told the handlers, “Look, we’re not exploiters here. Give him whatever he wants, keep him happy. Treat him good.” Continue reading ““Out There” Is In There”

Writing is a Business

Guest post
by JM Leitch

First of all, I must tell you up front that this article doesn’t contain strategies about how writers can market their books. It literally means writing – the actual words on the page – and I’m hoping it will serve as a reminder of something important that I, and many other writers, often forget!

Every now and then throughout my life, a tiny, nagging voice coming from some remote and forgotten recess in my brain used to tell me that I should write a book. On three occasions I nearly gave in (I’ve started two novels over the years and one self-help book back in the day when there weren’t so many on the shelves and may have stood a chance of getting noticed!). But after I moved to the beautiful Island of the Gods and writers’ sanctuary that is Bali, with no ‘proper’ job, a daughter in school all day, a husband working away from home over half the year and an idea, I ran out of excuses to give this pesky, persistent little voice.

It was ‘now or never’… and I had never wanted it to be ‘never’… so ‘now’ it was. It was time, in the immortal words of the brand giant Nike, to ‘just do it’. Continue reading “Writing is a Business”

Writing Sex Scenes?

There has been some discussion lately about how to write sex scenes in effective ways. Perhaps Valentine’s Day got us thinking in that direction. In any case, it gave me pause for thought.

Recently I had the privilege of critiquing such a scene for a fellow writer. She’s amazing but has a very different style and writes in a different genre. The scene I read really got me … well … you know. Just as it was intended to. And she did it without graphic descriptions of body parts like heaving bosoms and … well, you get the idea. Continue reading “Writing Sex Scenes?”

Write More – 100% Guaranteed

I’m going to keep it simple this week. Every once in a while, we need to check ourselves and keep things ridiculously simple. Social media, publishing, distribution, the demise of the publishing industry … Ahhhhhhh!

What is the number one thing that will keep you from publishing your next, or first, book? Continue reading “Write More – 100% Guaranteed”