Are you a monogamous writer? You get up every morning and all you can think about is the one novel, the one poem, the one essay you’re trying to write to the exclusion of all else. If a news item sparks a what if scenario, or a fascinating character comes to you in a dream,…
Tag: productivity
Production in the Time of Corona, or Why I Needed New Commandments
At first it seemed that being forced indoors, laid off work, and practicing social distancing would foster my creative endeavors. Just imagine what I could do with loads of free time alone—time to finish abandoned projects, to bolster my research, to type the stack of story notes languishing atop the file cabinet, and to expand…
The Excitement and Terror of Deadlines
Since small publishers don’t usually offer for your book until it’s finished, I haven’t had a deadline in years. Now, after signing with a new publisher, I have one, and I’m a little unnerved. With 17 books published, you’d think I would take this all in stride. But having a deadline (two, in fact) is…
Time
I’m in the process of cleaning up Gary Reilly’s ninth Asphalt Warrior novel before sending it off to our eagle-eyed editor for the thorough polish. If you don’t know, Gary Reilly was a close friend of mine who had one story published in his lifetime—in 1977. That story, The Biography Man, was published in The Iowa…
Getting the Words to Flow
It used to be rare that I got stuck while writing a book. But lately, with my time more fragmented and no deadlines except those I impose on myself, I’ve found myself clawing my way through first drafts. To try and get the momentum going again, I’ve gone back to the techniques that served me…