Starlog

  • Ok, so, I’ve been a delinquent

    I know I haven’t been posting much lately.  I put insane deadlines on myself that no human could possible keep up with… and then I go and meet those deadlines.  But it does keep me writing, which at least is good. So, What have you been up to? I finished the first draft of my WIP, and… Read more

  • Don’t repeat the tense — Rule #25 of 32 Simple Rules to the Writing the Best Novel Ever

    I’m dissecting the article Hunting Down the Pleonasm, by Allen Guthrie, using it as a cattle prod to search for little nasties in my manuscript.  Yep, you can join in the fun, too.  Let’s take a looksee at topic #25 25: Avoid unnecessary repetition of tense. For example: I’d gone to the hospital. They’d kept me… Read more

  • Write a Story With Me # 66 – “Strong Insult” by Joe Owens

    Write a Story with Me is a group endeavor just for the fun of it.  A different writer adds a new 250 words each week.  It is the ultimate Flash Fiction Challenge! If you’d like to sign up, come on over.  There’s always room for more! Here’s this week’s excerpt.  We hope you enjoy! Part… Read more

  • Just how good is the first line of your manuscript?

    I recently had the opportunity to chat with a submissions editor (you never know who you’ll run into at a coffee shop) and we had a discussion about first lines of a book, and how important they are. I knew already how important it was to hook a reader quickly, but Mike told me that… Read more

  • Do you have trouble getting people to comment?

    As some of you know, I am just coming off a two-month blog tour.  The first month was to promote my Novella “Paper Wishes” The second month was to promote my story “The First Day of the New Tomorrow” Whew!  It’s good to be home. I have a lot of the same thoughts as the… Read more

  • Stop feeling! And don’t “think” either while you are at it — Rule #24 of 32 Simple Rules to the Writing the Best Novel Ever

    I’m dissecting the article Hunting Down the Pleonasm, by Allen Guthrie, using it as a cattle prod to search for little nasties in my manuscript.  Yep, you can join in the fun, too.  Let’s take a looksee at topic #24 24: Cut out filtering devices, wherever possible. ‘He felt’, ‘he thought’, ‘he observed’ are all filters.… Read more