Category: Writing Process
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I answer questions about the creative process in the journal Crossing the Dissour
Greywood Arts of Ireland released their first online journal about art and creativity. It’s entitled CROSSING THE DISSOUR, and they asked me to participate in the multi-artist interview on the creative process. You may remember that I had a writing residency in Ireland last year and had a terrific and productive time. I very much…
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If It’s Good Enough for Mr. Livgren, then …
I’ve admired Kerry Livgren for a long time. Yes, you know him. The composer, guitarist, lyricist of Kansas. Yes – “Carry on Wayward Son” – “Dust in the Wind” Okay, now you’re with me. Livgren didn’t just disappear after the glory years of Kansas in the late seventies and early eighties. Far from it. He…
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Writing for Pleasure
Last night I decided to write for pleasure. My pleasure. Sadly, a lot of writing time can be consumed with the less desirable parts of the trade: marketing, editing, blurb-writing, social media, writing-to-get-the-blasted-thing-done. We’ve all been there. But when’s the last time you wrote for pleasure, not for purpose. Much of what I have written…
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The First Ever Massive Trilogy Read-Through
I had just finished the second revision of book 3 of my brand new trilogy. So what was next? Revision three, of course. But then I paused and thought for a moment. I knew what I needed to do, but I was reluctant. It would be too time-consuming. It would stop the flow of my…
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Writing: About Lengths and Words
I’m a concise writer. I know that. I’ve learned to slow down my writing over the years because at times it can be at breakneck speeds, and there are rumors about that some readers like to stew in the words of a story and not have to gulp them all down from the end of…
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Plotting or Plodding?
Humph! Here’s the real truth about writers: sometimes we have no idea how it’s all going to turn out. I mean, really, what are we doing? What am I doing? What is my plot doing? Sometimes it feels like I’m playing a giant connect-the-dots while blindfolded. Are these two dots really going to connect in…
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Cancel Everything. Write and Discover.
A couple months ago, I was publicly weighing the options of how to write book three of my trilogy. I first stated how great outlining was, though I rarely used it before. Then I followed that up by stating that I just need to discover where I’m going before I get there. I’m not a…
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Time + Thinking = The Solution to All Writing Problems
It’s not always easy to know which way a story should go. Should minor characters begin to play a more major role? Should a character be killed off? Should I change the setting? Story threads are fragile. Each minor decision can send a story spiraling in a direction that may or may not be good. …