A Year of a Different Color
It’s a bright and shining new year, and I aim to meet new people and embark on experiences that color scenes in my books in a positive, energizing way. Changing colors and positive vibes are themes of my next novel currently in progress, Alien Sensation. It’s definitely an alien sensation that I didn’t manage to […]
Pondering the Pleasures of Pomegranates
The world seems to be gearing up for more angst and stress as 2021 draws to a close, so it’s time to write about something that makes me feel jolly. The bursting red bounty that is a pomegranate. ‘Tis the season after all, for making merry, and it’s a fruit that’s currently in season. Protagonist […]
How About Some Goodwill Toward Women?
Perhaps the problem with the phrase “Peace on Earth, Goodwill Toward Men” is, like much of the history of humankind, it fails to acknowledge women as sentient beings deserving of good will, not to mention recognition of the reality that without women, men wouldn’t exist on Earth. Females have been treated as less than, as […]
Literary Agent Angst
Recently I read an online article from Writer’s Digest addressing whether writers need literary agents to be successful. What was most striking about it was the initial caveat from the author, who sought to make clear how they “love” literary agents and think they’re essential and important—just not necessarily for all writing projects. Hence, the […]
Say No Way to NaNoWriMo
Now that it’s December, I can perhaps safely espouse on why I find National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo, to be whackadoodle. This contest concept of drafting an entire novel in one month, albeit a mere 50,000 words, does a disservice to the craft of writing as it threatens to decimate the very last nerve […]
Eloquent Oration Versus Vile Vitriol
I always thought it would be an interesting challenge to be a speechwriter. These days, I live vicariously through Rowan Layne, post-middle-aged protagonist of my Other Worldly series. Rowan has not only written speeches for others, she’s had the opportunity to be a persuasive, passionate orator before members of Congress and Britain’s Parliament, as well […]
When a Judge Makes a Mockery of the Law
In Alienable Rights, first book of my Other Worldly series, protagonist Rowan Layne is preparing to take the test on legal ethics required of those practicing law or aspiring to practice law, including some who might one day become judges: There’s a big push to maintain the public’s […]
Venturing Into Nevada’s Valley of Fire
I recently had friends and family visit who were interested in exploring Las Vegas beyond the Strip, so I got to play tour guide at one of my favorite spots, Nevada’s Valley of Fire. This surreal, mystical place of red rock wonder is featured in my Other Worldly series, as it happens to be the […]
Resort Straight Out of My Other Worldly Series
It happened again. This time, a prediction of planetary proportions in fictionally creating the next big thing for the Las Vegas Strip, years before it will occur. And I’m tickled pink, or lunar gray, as it turns out. In this blog, I’ve previously written of the challenge of staying one step ahead of fiction becoming […]
Throw Out the Sexism from Throwback Articles
It can be fun to read a republished article on writing, gleaning advice and observations from a different era to see how literary rules and techniques stand the the test of time. But sometimes it can take you back into a warped time best left in the archives of history. I recently read a writer’s […]