Uncategorized
First Drafts are for Scribbles
On January 1, 2019 by adminFirst drafts can be the beginning of something beautiful, but they themselves aren’t meant to be beautiful. They are meant to be scribbles. They are meant to be raw. They are meant to make you cringe a little. One lesson that I have learned over the past few years is that the single most important
Uncategorized
Progress is not a Straight Line
On December 22, 2018 by adminIt’s important to capture snapshots of success, even amid what can feel like a path of failure. There are times in life when we cannot live up to the goals we set for ourselves—even the smallest of goals. The key, in my mind, is to never give up hope that today will be the day
Uncategorized
Writing Off-the-Grid
On December 17, 2018 by adminSome of the traits that make us good writers are also some of the traits that make us good not-writers. Let me explain. We are writers. By nature, we are susceptible to wandering thoughts, we are victims of sparks of creativity that hit completely unannounced and sometimes at the most inopportune times (which is why
Uncategorized
Thank yous, promotions, algorithms, reviews…repeat!
On November 16, 2018 by adminFellow Scribblers, So a crazy thing happened this week. White Dove shot up to #2 in its genre for about 36 hours on Amazon. I have no idea how many books exist for sale on Amazon in the genre of “historical fiction, war”, but there have to be at least 384 because this is where
Uncategorized
Armistice and Updates
On November 11, 2018 by adminGreetings Scribblers, I’ve spent the last few months toiling away at my next big project, working title Forever England. As usual, writing occurs between an ever-increasingly busy schedule of actual life, but my characters, plots, transitions, are always on my mind. While the first book of the Shadows in Drab and Green trilogy focuses on the characters
Uncategorized
Remember the Touchdown Dance
On June 1, 2018 by adminI am one of those people who always neglects to celebrate. I participate 100% in the lead-up to an accomplishment, 110% in the self-chastisement of not yet reaching a goal, but never stop to tell myself, “hey… awesome job!” when I finally achieve something I’ve worked for. I just move onto the next item on
Uncategorized
Publish Eve
On April 30, 2018 by adminI’ve had a lot of awesome experiences over the past year or so getting White Dove ready for publication. So, on the eve of its official debut (though the eBook has been flying off the digital shelves this week–wow!), I thought I’d recount some of the most awesome moments of this final push to publish. So, for
Uncategorized
Five Thoughts on Rocking this Writing Thing In Between Your Actual Life
On April 26, 2018 by adminA lot of people ask me about how I find time in my day to do the things that I do. It is probably the most common question I get, with the exception of “Are you crazy?”– which for some (undetermined) reason is another question I frequently field. I answer these questions pretty reliably– first,
Uncategorized
Goodreads
On April 10, 2018 by adminA lot of people ask me about my Goodreads feed and why it takes up so much real estate on my website. Great question! If you can’t tell, I’m a big fan of Goodreads. If you’re not already a Goodreads user, I’ll lay out the case for why you should be. Pretty much everyone I
Uncategorized
Red eye? Yes, please.
On January 12, 2018 by adminI often hear people complain about traveling– “Oh, I had to take the red eye back from [insert place here]”. I used to commiserate. The red eye? Oh yeah. Can’t get comfortable, someone wakes you up every 15 minutes, the dude next to you is a loud sleeper–wait, that sounds really familiar– isn’t that