Beating “Mediocrity”
For a long time, I refused to write because I was afraid of being mediocre. I was afraid that if I tried my best, my very best, it would turn out to be not-very-good. And then, I wouldn't have any more hope. See, in my head, as long as I didn't try, I had the possibility of being good, and then I could hope. Does that sound familiar?
Letting Go of Publishers Marketplace
This is kind of a big deal to me. Publishers Marketplace is one of THE best resources for agents and authors and anyone with a professional interest in the literary…
Sundered Teaser: Low-Water Freakout
Teaser time! Enjoy. Low-water freakout still has me by the balls, so I stay on deck in the dark. Six other people huddle nearby like paranoid insomniacs, and we think…
Blog Tour
Ever heard of RAOK? Random Acts of Kindness - this is a beautiful concept, and one that's personally affected me in this past week.
The World of the Sundered
It's amazing what humans can adapt to handle.
Behold My Dorkiness, Take One
You think you're high on the dorky meter? I may just have you beat. Behold: I have made My Little Pony versions of my dark-apocalyptic-dystopian-science-fiction protagonist and antagonist. (I'm pretty sure they'd both object.)
All About Writing in Two Short Videos
You want to know how I feel about writing, creating, the whole awesome, tear-shedding, joy-birthing, without-it-we'd-DIE-or-maybe-explode process?
That Was Not Fun
So, remember this? In preparation for surgery, one of the things they're trying to do is get my hematocrit (red blood cell count) up to normal levels via something called…
Why Do You Write?
So what inspires you? For me, it's heroism and sacrifice. True love that beats death, beauty and nobility going hand in hand. In other words, what's done matters.
A fantastic note from Jim Butcher….
The only person who can kill your dream is YOU.
WIN!
I am so happy about this. I did it. I didn't think I could do it. I did it. Of course, the book's nowhere near DONE, but that's okay. Knowing…
The Brave and the Bold
So guess what I learned this week?
That I could attend and work at two comic book conventions, write from 1700-4000 words a day, and realize my mind is already made up about The Sundered. I'm going indie.
Holes in the Cheese
Life. It is crazy. I will be more personal later, but for now, have some links. There Are No New Stories by Liana Brooks “We must all suffer one of…
What Makes a Compelling Story, Pt. 4
So you've developed your characters, answered all the important questions, and your readers love them. You've developed your world, made it rich and full and extremely real. What's next?
Conflict.
What Makes a Compelling Story, Pt. 3
It affects YA authors, who tend to be considerably older than the people they're writing about. It affects fantasy/sci-fi authors, who are responsible for creating something that feels new and different but still relatable. It affects everything. But it isn't impossible to do.
Sundered Query: New Directions
I think... this just might be it. Aakesh, king of the alien Sundered Ones, has struggled for centuries to free his people from human enslavement. Now, humanity's greatest weapon -…
What Makes a Compelling Story, Pt. 2
Unlike the character concepts in part one, you may think wordl-building doesn't apply to you. But even a modern, magicless YA has world-building, and if you do it wrong, your readers can tell.
What Makes a Compelling Story
There are two key things to a damn good story: 1. You can't put it down. 2. When you finish, it won't leave your head.
The Sundered: Query (new)
Harry Iskinder has no future, but it doesn't matter. Nobody else on Earth has one, either.Black water that kills on contact covers the entire planet. Humanity survives because of the…