Tag: W.A.N.A.

Point of View—What IS It? How to Find the Perfect Voice for YOUR Story

Our high school English teacher didn’t care that we used 15 metaphors on one page. Why? Her goal was to teach us how to properly use a metaphor…NOT to prepare us for a career in commercial fiction. Same with college.

Write a Terrific Novel (NaNo), Minimize Revisions, & Improve Odds of Finishing AND Publishing

If we finish, yet have written something that can never live off life-support? We are back at Square One. Though I am a fan of NaNo and Fast Draft, these tactics will work for writing ANY novel and minimize revisions.

Want to Successfully Publish? First, Are You a "Real" Writer?

My father had a genius IQ (was FAR smarter than me), yet died working minimum wage at a bike shop. He’d always longed to be a writer, but that was “foolishness.” It wasn’t a real job. Friends and family often offer the strongest resistance, partly because they love us and mean well. “Don’t you want to learn medical billing? The pay is GREAT!”

Nothing Says "Forever" Like a Dead Mother-In-Law Solitaire

I had to vacuum up my father, and he’s now laid to rest with cremated flip-slops, cat fur, dust bunnies one of my favorite earrings, and I hope that makes him happy after being a smart@$$ about that “being blown up in space” crap.

Why Too Many Flashbacks Might Be a Warning of Deeper Story Problems

Today, I’d like to talk about WHY flashbacks can be red flags for me as a teacher or editor. I feel I can speak to this because when I started writing I was CLUELESS. My first novel is being used in GITMO because it is more effective than water boarding.