5 Things to Consider Before Writing a NaNoWriMo Outline

The annual National Novel Writing Month (November) is only a few weeks away.  If you haven’t started on your outline for the event, then you’re in luck!  I’ve narrowed down the five most important things you should think about before you start work on it. Overkill – I’m sure you have a germ of a

5 Tips for Creating Dialogue That Flows

I haven’t been on the blog for a while.  I received an e-mail from a reader who is having trouble with dialogue, and so I decided to crank out a little tip list for them. With NaNoWriMo coming soon, keeping these five tips in mind when writing dialogue should help any writer craft meaningful and

Being An Indie Novelist is Tough, But Rewarding

It’s time to rant. I haven’t had serious time to work on the second book in my science-fiction series because I have been swamped with the day job, and swamped with my side jobs. I’m a high school English teacher by trade, and at the start of the year I had things under control.  However,

New Podcast Up: NaNoWriMo and Adaptations

On the latest podcast, Ryan and I discuss NaNoWriMo, our experience with it, some advice to those attempting it this year, and the things you need to know before starting on such a complicated endeavor.  We also discuss our favorite book adaptations and some that are not our favorites at all. Shame on you, Hollywood.

Under the Gun

I have heard two origins of the term “under the gun”.  One definition originates from a military situation when people used to mount castle sieges.  Men who built back a wall that had been damaged with cannon fire while the cannons were still firing were considered “under the gun”.  There is also the simple explanation

NaNoWriMo Tip #16: Free Write

Today’s tip comes from a lyric I heard in the new Soundgarden album King Animal (It has indeed been too long).  The song is entitled Halfway There and the lyric follows: “I woke up with my feet nailed down and my head moving the speed of sound” (Chris Cornell) As a writer, many times I

NaNoWriMo Tip #15: The Midway Point

Well, here we are.  The midpoint.  We are now 15 days away from the deadline and many of you should have most of your novel completed if you want to spend some quality time editing and revising. I have a few encouraging words for you today so that you will not quit when you have

NaNoWriMo Tip #8: Adverb Use

One of the ugliest faux pas of any writer are the use of meaningless adverbs. There are three adverbs used by writers which slow down any writing style: really, actually and extremely. If you can avoid these all together and find better adverbs or remove them altogether, your prose will take on a much more