A few weeks ago I had to write a synopsis of my current work-in-progress to submit it to a contest. I hate writing synopses. My novels are over 100,000 words, and I’m supposed to capture the plot and essence of the story in under 1000 words? Nevertheless, I found this […]
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Write Brain Trust Authors—What We Love (and Hate) About Writing
On my page for writers, I mention Write Brain Trust, a group of Kansas City area authors whose mission is “Writers helping writers with creativity, publishing, and marketing in a digital world.” In the seven years since we began, about thirty authors have been a part of the group. Recently, […]
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Logging in Oregon in the 1850s
When the pioneers reached Oregon, they found abundant old-growth forests with timber that had never been cut. But logging has always been a part of Oregon’s history. In 1805, Lewis and Clark built their winter shelter, Fort Clatsop, out of logs they cut. Hudson Bay Company built a water-powered sawmill […]
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Breaking Ground: On Building New Homes and Novels
I wrote in an earlier post that my husband and I are building a new home, after thirty-four years in our current house. The builder broke ground on the new house at the end of November! Now there will be something to see after months of planning. Building a house […]
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Twenty Tips from Another Writing Conference
Last Friday and Saturday, November 2-3, 2018, I attended the Johnson County Library’s writing conference. We in the Kansas City area are very lucky to have excellent library systems in our area, and the Johnson County Library system is one of them. This two-day conference was free to anyone, whether […]
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The Fun Part of Writing: Meeting Readers . . . So Come Say Hello
One issue every writer must address is how much time to spend marketing as opposed to writing. At first, of course, it is most important to produce a high-quality book and get it published. Once a writer has published a book, however, marketing begins to take more time. Some of […]
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On Writing and Editing and Procrastination
I talked to a friend the other day and found her in the process of making tomato sauce. “I haven’t made tomato sauce in years,” I said. “Not since someone gave me an excess of tomatoes one summer.” “Well, it was either this or edit the book I’m working on,” […]
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Whining about Writing
Sometimes you just have to whine. Or rant. I’m doing some of both today. For the past several weeks, I’ve only been able to work on my novel about one day a week. Maybe two. I am in a weekly critique group, in which each participant (there are six of […]
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International Women’s Day: Strong Women in Fiction
Tomorrow, March 8, is International Women’s Day. I was with a group of women fiction writers last week, and someone mentioned the occasion. The authors at this meeting realized we all write about strong women. To celebrate International Women’s Day this year, each of us agreed to post an excerpt […]
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What Happened in Oregon City in 1850-52? Researching My Work-in-Progress
My current work-in-progress takes place mostly in the Oregon City area, beginning in October 1850. I think the novel’s timeline will take me into 1852, but I don’t know for sure yet. When I did the research for Now I’m Found, which was set in Oregon and California between 1848 […]
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