Losing your writing mojo? It happens. Boy, does it ever happen. You’re on a roll, you’re loving what you’re working on, then BAM! Gone. Or, perhaps it’s a slower, more slippery slope where you start second guessing yourself and every word you’ve ever typed on the page. Been there, done that. Perhaps what you need […]
I wasn’t really looking forward to When Words Collide this year. It had nothing to do with the conference. My life has just been a bit of a crazy schmozzle of ridiculous-ness lately. Turns out, WWC 2015 was exactly what I needed to pull me out of my writing funk and get me reengaged. I […]
I had the great pleasure of sitting on a panel at this past When Words Collide conference about supportive critique groups. What do I know about critique groups? I know that without a critique group, I’d never have finished the first draft of my novel, Girl Tries Life. I know that I wouldn’t have learned as much […]
Do you know… before I left for my three month leave of absence, I worked by BUTT off to get edits done on my book. On paper, I finished 2/3 of my book (the third edit, I might add). And then, push came to shove, things got super stressful and it was the one thing […]
I’ve been fascinated by covers for a long time. One of my most popular blog posts to date has been I Judge Covers. I Judge Titles. So Sue Me. So… I’m guessing that you’re all interested in the process too. In chatting with an editor from one of the big five publishers, I learned some […]
As I’m about to send my novel out to several beta readers, I’ve found myself thinking an awful lot about how prepared I am, or am not, to take on their feedback. I remember vividly when I sent the first fifty pages out to a few key people. One of them in particular is a […]
My name is Victoria, and I suffer from Shiny New Story Syndrome (SNSS). Shiny New Story Syndrome Definition: (noun) 1.When a writer struggles to finish the story they are working on, and is instead distracted by newer story ideas. 2. The writing equivalent of ADHD. Am I alone in my suffering of SNSS? I feel like […]
For my poor critique group, they know how I’ve historically abused dialogue tags. “He stood”, “She sighed”, “they somersaulted” (okay, that one was a joke), are some of the ways that I would use dialogue tags. After MUCH editing and MUCH research on the subject, here are my golden dialogue tag do’s and don’ts. DO use […]
I was recently asked to take part in a blog hop by the lovely Diana Cranstoun. If you haven’t checked out her blog before, please do. You’ll find fascinating posts that bring history to life as she writes about wartime nurses. She’s even been known to go on a wartime rations diet challenge from time […]
I can’t imagine how many times new authors ask themselves this question? Am I ready for an agent? It’s like asking yourself if you’re ready to get married, or ready to have kids? Do you ever really know? Can you ever really be sure? Or, do you just have to take the plunge? Here are […]