editing
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Telling the Whole Story
“Don’t write through a migraine.” I find myself thinking this, even as a hundred new ideas barrel into me for the two pieces I’ll be focusing on come November: Sandcastles, and a novella that I sense will be about a ghost ship. It’s exciting. I’d like to say one day that I told the whole…
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On the Solitary Writer
After 70 episodes of my serial, I find myself contemplating it—wondering how it got to 70 episodes—and marveling at how great a difference it can make to have readers. Writing is by nature a very isolated activity. I now wonder how much of that isolation is self-imposed. Why does every writer have to brood over…
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Joy in Editing
I had forgotten that editing can be fun. Once I’ve moved past the stinking mess that is a first draft, edits & rewrites become puzzles–very personalized puzzles. When adding new scenes, I’m figuring out what the story lacks; I’m filling gaps for character development, making conversations meaningful, using words to increase tension. When adding/removing words…
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On Plot Holes
Plot holes are a constant threat in every manuscript. When writing a serial, I have found that, at least for me, it’s easier to forget what’s been written before. When I add a significant object or event, I try to work out a good place where it can be resolved before I forget it. It’s…
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THE AUTUMN PRINCE: A Vella Serial
I discovered this year that shifting focus clarifies a story. I’ve been toying for a while with the idea of putting THE AUTUMN PRINCE on Vella; I even dreamed of it once (too much?) but didn’t trust in my ability to do so without crossing from editing to rewriting. THE AUTUMN PRINCE can be read…
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New Book – The Mermaid of Rose Hill – Out Soon!
Here is a photo of me with a case of lazy bed head, holding a proof copy of my new novel, which I plan to release this month. The Mermaid has been my project for the last two years or more. It began as an urban fantasy, but I decided to challenge myself and write…
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Around the Literary World in a Year
A new year always brings with it pressure to come up with a resolution. Though setting goals often feels like a trend, I don’t like ignoring a clean slate. I don’t plan to do anything mind-blowing this year, but I know where I hope to be when roaring 2020 comes in. Writing-wise, 2019 will see…
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My Struggle with Perfectionism
Do you know your biggest obstacle against creativity? As a writer, perfectionism has kept me from making a good deal of progress. Much is said about Writer’s Block or the phobia of cliches being reasons why we don’t make progress. We rarely address a hidden problem. It’s the idea of striving to write a scene…
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The Forest of Heldbreath
Imagine your mind is a forest. The edge of the forest is a place where you pause and get distracted–a place of heldbreath, of course. Sometimes we wait at the edge of heldbreath for days, months, or years. I’ve been lurking there for several weeks, skillfully talking myself out of a very important task. Should…
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Writing: The Learning Process
Too many writers talk and act as if writing were slow torture. … As New York sports writer Red Smith once observed, “Writing is easy. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein.” … If you want to write, here’s a secret: the writer’s struggle is overrated, a con game,…
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On Mermaid Tales & Short Stories
I may have completed edits for Serenade (which I still expect to release sometime in October,) but that doesn’t mean I’ve stepped away from these characters and their adventures. It has been a fun week of world-building and character profiling. My personal copy of Dissonance is currently full of sticky notes! They were placed to…
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On Finishing Serenade & Old Clichés
There is a curious emptiness many writers feel when a project is finally done. I’ve finished editing Serenade, and find myself searching for ways to pass the time—plotting a new novel, or working on my TBR pile. It’s tempting to keep searching the document for things to edit, but I’ve already made all the changes…
Mariella Hunt & the Tearoom 