I am critical of badly written sex scenes. I want, therefore, to be able to write an emotionally singular scenario that scorches as it burns through the heat of unfolding events; a scene that twins joyous abandon with losing one’s self in a blazing physical coupling of passion and sweat. I read various authors with…
Tag: Writing Craft
Character Clues on the Christmas Tree
ORNAMENTS AND CHARACTERS Dismantling my Christmas tree is like a trip down memory lane. First I’ll tell you of some of my memories, then I will show you how it can help when you’re creating your fictional characters. PINE CONES. I love these, and use them on the tree and in my wreaths. I collected…
The Gifts of Writing
Everything in the city was clammy, doorknobs and train handrails slick with other people’s sweat, the air heavy with the smell of yesterday’s lunch. If that isn’t enough from page one of Sara Novic’s debut novel, Girl at War, perhaps sentences from page two will prick your writer self: We took cold showers and walked…
Writing Romance: Crossing into Act Two
Welcome, Campers. Last month we approached the turning point that launches our duo into Act Two. By the end of Act One, your characters will likely have stated – either in their heads or actually out loud – that they want nothing to do with the other, nothing to do with a relationship with the…
My NaNoWriMo Roadmap
After spending nine months on a first draft and another year and a half on revisions, I resolved to make my next book a more streamlined process. That’s why I’m spending October of this year on research, outlining, and pre-writing, and I hope to use NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) to write my rough draft….