Writing a Sequel is the Hardest Work of All

I’m currently working on the sequel to The Terminarch Plot, and as I found out when I wrote This Broken Earth, writing a sequel may be the hardest work I’ve ever done as a writer. Usually I write one-offs or novels not intended to produce a sequel.  I wrote The Transgression Box with the intention of writing more of Dornin’s

5 Ways To Focus On Writing

  There are so many different things in this digital age to distract us from writing.  The picture to the left is of Ernest Hemingway typing a novel on the beach, but the days when a writer could isolate themselves from their tech may be completely gone. Even though I love writing (the process, the

Workaday Writer: The Marathon Writing Weekend

I have an awesome wife.  I absolutely have to put this out there.  Without her I wouldn’t be able to write the books I write.  You see, I also have four children.  I am extremely involved in their lives and love every minute of raising them (even the pre-teen drama). Yet, I am a writer

The #NaNoWriMo Checklist

In just two weeks we will be heading into dark territory.  The National Novel Writing Month will be upon us.  How many of you wordsmiths plan on cranking out a novel that month?  Well, you can include me in that mass of lemmings desiring to throw their minds into overdrive to write 50,000 words in

Writing With Juxtaposed Tones

The past few nights, while working on my current WIP, I discovered that I was nearly subconsciously doing something with my prose that was at the same time fascinating as it was a personal best. I wrote using two juxtaposed tones. I will not post the chapter in question on this blog as I am

20 Useful Tips for Writing a Novel

Today I decided to compile a list of one line tips that help me keep focused on writing and observations I have made since gaining a literary agent.  Here they are in no particular order: Don’t play video games. 1000 words a day is healthy. Make time for your family….but not too much. Write a

The Necessity of Kinesics

K is for kinesics, which in the study of linguistics means the analysis of how body movements can communicate meaning.  As a writer this is something that we must learn how to use as well as we use dialogue to communicate characterization, mood and tone. I have read plenty of writing where the writer has grasped

Why Do I Write?

I’ve had a pretty rough week as a writer.  I have quibbled over two projects I currently have in the works, and realized that I haven’t really done enough in the planning stage to continue.  I have spent the past two days without a single word written and it’s killing me. My problems are thus:

The Terror of the Blank Page

Last night as I watched The Walking Dead I would cycle back and forth during commercials to view the Oscar ceremonies.  One phrase stood out to me as I was doing this, and it was what was said by the announcer right before Quentin Tarantino was awarded an Oscar for best original screenplay.  The announcer said in

A Word About Flashbacks

The flashback can be one of the most wonderful and magical ways to give background for a character.  It can also become a horribly overused device that can cripple a text.  It works for comic effect on Family Guy because its overuse becomes the butt of the joke, but when writing fiction it can be something