There was a time when I didn’t even consider the problems of writing a sequel to a story.  The writing I was doing was  going so slowly I wasn’t sure I’d ever finish.  But finish I did and I now have not one, but two completed books to try and get published.  It feels pretty good. Still, the two books are not related to each other; they’re not the same genre and weren’t even writen for the same age group.  But now, I’m plotting out my third book which is a sequel to my first.  So chronologically, it will be the second book of my first series.  Clear as mud, right? Still, this leads me to the subject of today’s […]

I’m very excited to announce that I have achieved one of my writing goals:  to get a book published.  Now before you go popping the champaign I’ve got to clarify that statement a wee bit.  I published my Nanowrimo book… on a web-based POD (Print on demand) site.  It’s not available for sale (not yet anyway) and I have no self-delusions that I’m going to hit the best-seller list with it (again, at least not yet). I know what you’re thinking; print on demand’s not real publishing.  It’s nothing more than a glorified vanity press… and at one time I might have agree with you.  Now, I’m not so sure.  If there’s one thing that really can give you a […]

Picture this if you will:  I’ve been working to build a compelling synopsis for my first book.  I’ve written it and rewritten it several times.  But I still don’t like it.  Several different people have suggested that I let it sit for a week.  Come back to it with fresh eyes and a fresh perspective.  Great advice, except, the darn thing never leaves my thoughts. Am I the only one with this problem?  The only writer in the entire world who can’t seem to let it go?  I know I have a tendancy to focus (with a laser-like, frightening intensity) on the project at hand.  It becomes virtually impossible to think about anything else. Sometimes that’s a good thing.  Take Nanowrimo […]

Have you ever had a scene in your head that just won’t go away?  It’s kind of like having that annoying tune running through your head that you can’t get rid of (usually something like Barney singing “I love you, you love me…)… oh dammit, not again! What about if it’s well into your story and you’re not ready to write it yet?  I’ve read interviews from several professional writers who say that they don’t write their stories in sequence.  They do things kind of like film directors; everything with a certain setting or group of characters gets done at the same time regardless of where it fits into the actual story.  For them, writing out of order is natural (so […]