Write Like You’re Gazing into a Crystal Ball?
Sometimes it feels as if there’s a crystal ball kind of clairvoyance going on when I write each novel of my Other Worldly series. Or perhaps I fervently hope that if I write something, it might come to fruition in some form or another. Like, maybe, actual accountability for Earth’s all-too-human bad guys will eventually […]
Channeling Earth’s Terrain for Outer Space
When I first took the plunge and launched my Other Worldly series protagonist Rowan Layne into outer space, my greatest challenge was how would I describe what other planets, moons, and stars look like in terms of ecosystems? I didn’t want it to be trite or cheesy, and as always sought some semblance of believable […]
Crossing Genres as Vast as the Universe of Imagination
I just read an online Writer’s Digest article about writing across fiction genres and the challenge this inevitably presents with marketing folks. Because if you dare to encompass more than one established genre or subgenre, you aren’t fitting into the traditional publishing world’s edict of how they can make money. I’ve written about this in […]
New Year’s Resolutions from My Cat
I recently snapped a photo of my orange tabby critter sitting uncannily above my “Dear Santa, I can explain” Christmas decoration sign my sister gifted me years ago and got to thinking about what a cat’s new year’s resolutions might be. In particular, my feline Morris who is featured along with my dog Bodie in […]
Dancing on the Moon for New Year’s Eve
It’s been far too many moons since I attended an exciting New Year’s Eve party and experienced a thrilling toe-curling midnight kiss. Hence, I decided to put a sexy and scintillating—and serendipitously silly—scene in the third novel of my Other Worldly series, Aliens Abound, launched in 2021. The festive party was fun to write, but […]
High-Flying Christmas Eve in Chapter One
As I was drafting the first two novels of my Other Worldly series, I was hounded by a suggestion in writer’s circles that the all-important Chapter One should begin with a high-octane action scene. I resisted until book three, Aliens Abound, which launched in March 2021. And I’ve now somewhat braved this concept of an […]
Don’t Forget the Apples
This is the time of year when one tends to reflect back on Christmases past, and on the past year when I write my annual letter for friends and family. Kind of like what I do when I’m drafting the next book for my Other Worldly series. I peruse each novel to maintain continuity and […]
Salute to a WM
Maybe it’s because I’m in limbo between books, or the approaching holiday season with its maudlin whispers of auld lang syne, but last Friday I went searching online for a friend with whom I’d long ago lost touch. I first knew her as Staff Sergeant Sandy Winget in a graphic arts class my senior year […]
Swirling Emotions of Unpacking Christmas…and Writing a Book
I’m busy putting out Christmas decorations for the first time in three years and doing so in a new abode. Hence, an opportunity for displaying keepsakes in varied spots, seeing cherished collectibles from different angles. And perhaps culling for giveaway items not so very dear or memorable. This made me realize the process is a […]
Write It, and It Will Erupt?
Two simultaneously erupting volcanoes in close proximity to each other. Some might call that portended Armageddon. In my Other Worldly novels, folks might try to blame it on aliens. Yet in real life this week, we have the world’s largest active volcano, Mauna Loa, erupting for the first time since 1984, with its neighbor Kilauea […]