Writing an action sequence is a unique part of writing. All of the rest of writing—setting a scene, establishing a character, revealing an epiphany, etc.—are all different as well. But they are clear siblings of each other. Action stands apart from all the others as much as a raven sitting on a wire amidst blue…
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Publish or Perish (Your Writing Career, That is)
As part of my job maintaining the adult fiction collection for the local public library, I have to weed books. I know it sounds awful—getting rid of books—but we have limited space, so it has to be done. I’ve been weeding the collection for a long time, removing books that are damaged or worn out…
Rocky Mountain Writer #178
Susan Smith So you’ve finished a draft of your novel and you’re ready to submit to agents and editors. You’ve checked it, you’ve read it. A few friends said it’s good to go. Not so fast. Susan Smith has just the class for you—a special extended class at Colorado GOLD, one of the Friday morning…
Research status? Confusing, cluttered, and chaotic!
Research, both noun and verb, means to investigate for facts—explore, analyze, delve into. But what’s next? I overheard an author, I think Susan Spann, say that by writing a rough draft first, she then knew what research she needed. A quarter of the way through self-editing my final draft, I tested Ms. Spann’s idea. By…
The Element of Surprise
I recently started a new project at my day job, with a new team of coworkers. Naturally, the writer in me began studying these people in search of writing fodder. After just a few interactions, I could paint a picture of my colleagues’ personalities in broad strokes. Character A: confident and self-assured. Character B: easygoing…