Right now, I’m waiting for the bookmarks for HOWL DEADLY to be finished at the printer’s. HOWL DEADLY is the eighth in my Kendra Ballantyne, Pet-Sitter mystery series, and it will be a December release.
I’ve been doing bookmarks since the series started, and I love ‘em! I always feature the cover of the latest Kendra book, and I’ve been absolutely delighted with each of the covers. I use the bookmarks to introduce the next book and to show what stories have already been published. I leave some at book stores and libraries and wherever else seems to make sense at the time. I give them to readers, book store personnel, other writers, people I interview for research, friends, total strangers, whoever. My bookmarks tell people who I am, as well as who Kendra is.
I’ve also been pleased this year to give out bookmarks created and provided by Harlequin for Silhouette Nocturnes. Since like all series romance Nocturnes are available in bookstores only during the month of publication, I haven’t done my own because of the timing. But since this is Harlequin’s 60th birthday, they’ve put together bookmarks that promote a series on one side, and offer free downloads of stories on the other.
And I’m also happy now to be passing out KillerHobbies bookmarks, designed and obtained by my fellow blogger Joanna Campbell Slan and first distributed at Bouchercon, which I unfortunately didn’t attend this year.
BTW, I’m also proud of my fellow bloggers and their ingenuity. Next week, we’ll each be giving a lesson on some aspect of writing. Mine is on point of view. This blog entry is, obviously, in first person.
On the other hand, the wonderful, modest author Linda O. Johnston will be blogging about point of view in her writing next week. Stay tuned!
Back to my original subject and point of view. Bookmarks--I love them all!
In fact, I do a lot of traveling for fun, and I also collect bookmarks representative of all the places I’ve visited.
Since the Kendra books started being published, I’ve seen occasional blog posts and comments on groups to which I belong that criticize promotional bookmarks--for whatever reason. None of them have made sense to me.
Oh, and by the way, I do use bookmarks when I read. Although I admit that, occasionally, I slip in a notecard, or the library’s printout of borrowed books, or a grocery receipt...
How about you? Do you like bookmarks? Do you like to receive any that are distributed by an author, often as BSP (blatant self promotion)?
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Random Thoughts
I’ve played golf twice in the past week, the last time just yesterday. The weather in this part of Minnesota has been amazing for November, after a cold and rainy October -- it’s as if the two months traded places. My game is improving, not a lot or quickly, but noticeably. My drives go farther down the fairway and sometimes my putting is quite satisfactory. Yesterday, however, there was a definite trend into slices -- the ball goes off to the right. (To the left is a hook.) Frustrating.
One thing golf does is take one’s mind off writing. It does mine, anyhow. I’m having a tough time with this one section of Buttons and Bones and it’s great to be able to escape it now and again. Problem is, once back home, there the problem is, big as ever. But it’s fixable. It’s got to be, I don’t have time to tear the whole book down and start over. I have a feeling that pretty soon I’ll be struggling with it and it will just detangle itself and knit together like a good, obedient story and I’ll wonder later what the problem was. I’ve had that experience before, thank God, and hope to have it again -- soon.
I’ve started getting some kind notes from fans about Blackwork. It’s heartening to an author to get a note praising her work. This is not a hint I’d like some more, but encouragement to any of you who like a particular book to say so in writing. Many, if not most, authors have a web site with a “contact me” button on it. If not, write care of the publisher -- publishers forward these fan letters to their authors. You can get the address of the publisher from the library or on the Internet. Brighten someone’s day, okay?
The holiday season is upon us and for those who think they might have trouble getting in the mood, there is a new book called “101 Ways to Keep the Spirit of Santa Alive.” It’s by a friend of mine, John Hagerman, and it’s not a kiddie book, but a parents’, godparents’, grandparents’, aunt-and-uncles’ book. It tells the origin of Santa Claus, how Santa is named and described in other countries, and offers a great many suggestions for things to do with children to make the season more real, more wholesome, and more satisfying. It’s published by The Inspired Elf, a very small press.
Later this week I have to get out my killer Christmas wreath, which is about four feet in diameter, and pull off all of last year’s lights and decorations and put it back together again. I bought the thing at Sam’s Club about four or five years ago as the Christmas season was winding down. Got a heck of a buy on it and it sure looks snazzy hanging from our balcony, but somehow the lights, bows and artificial fruit get all droopy and tangled and burned out from just being stored and need renewing. I have a friend who is going to come over and we’ll spend a couple of hours getting it all prepped for the season coming up. I felt kind of odd doing the work this early, until I saw that two or three houses right in the neighborhood already have their Christmas lights out and turned on. The other houses still have their Jack o’lanterns on their front porches! My wreath isn’t going out until Thanksgiving -- and I can remember my mother complaining about Christmas advertising starting right after Thanksgiving. Now it starts right after Halloween. I know it’s important to merchants to extend the season, but the result is that by the time Christmas actually gets here, a lot of us are heartily sick of it. Of course, by Christmas, I should be well into plotting the next Betsy Devonshire novel -- and I think I’ll set it around Easter . . .
Next week we -- the Killer Hobbies Crew -- are going to publish a series of helpful (we hope) articles on writing. I’ve got the one on Plotting. I believe I’ve already published something on that topic, but it won’t hurt to give it some daylight again. I’ve seen a preview of Joanna Campbell Slan’s item on Character, and it’s really good, very helpful, whether you’re a beginner or deeply experienced. I know I learned something from it. So please stay tuned.
One thing golf does is take one’s mind off writing. It does mine, anyhow. I’m having a tough time with this one section of Buttons and Bones and it’s great to be able to escape it now and again. Problem is, once back home, there the problem is, big as ever. But it’s fixable. It’s got to be, I don’t have time to tear the whole book down and start over. I have a feeling that pretty soon I’ll be struggling with it and it will just detangle itself and knit together like a good, obedient story and I’ll wonder later what the problem was. I’ve had that experience before, thank God, and hope to have it again -- soon.
I’ve started getting some kind notes from fans about Blackwork. It’s heartening to an author to get a note praising her work. This is not a hint I’d like some more, but encouragement to any of you who like a particular book to say so in writing. Many, if not most, authors have a web site with a “contact me” button on it. If not, write care of the publisher -- publishers forward these fan letters to their authors. You can get the address of the publisher from the library or on the Internet. Brighten someone’s day, okay?
The holiday season is upon us and for those who think they might have trouble getting in the mood, there is a new book called “101 Ways to Keep the Spirit of Santa Alive.” It’s by a friend of mine, John Hagerman, and it’s not a kiddie book, but a parents’, godparents’, grandparents’, aunt-and-uncles’ book. It tells the origin of Santa Claus, how Santa is named and described in other countries, and offers a great many suggestions for things to do with children to make the season more real, more wholesome, and more satisfying. It’s published by The Inspired Elf, a very small press.
Later this week I have to get out my killer Christmas wreath, which is about four feet in diameter, and pull off all of last year’s lights and decorations and put it back together again. I bought the thing at Sam’s Club about four or five years ago as the Christmas season was winding down. Got a heck of a buy on it and it sure looks snazzy hanging from our balcony, but somehow the lights, bows and artificial fruit get all droopy and tangled and burned out from just being stored and need renewing. I have a friend who is going to come over and we’ll spend a couple of hours getting it all prepped for the season coming up. I felt kind of odd doing the work this early, until I saw that two or three houses right in the neighborhood already have their Christmas lights out and turned on. The other houses still have their Jack o’lanterns on their front porches! My wreath isn’t going out until Thanksgiving -- and I can remember my mother complaining about Christmas advertising starting right after Thanksgiving. Now it starts right after Halloween. I know it’s important to merchants to extend the season, but the result is that by the time Christmas actually gets here, a lot of us are heartily sick of it. Of course, by Christmas, I should be well into plotting the next Betsy Devonshire novel -- and I think I’ll set it around Easter . . .
Next week we -- the Killer Hobbies Crew -- are going to publish a series of helpful (we hope) articles on writing. I’ve got the one on Plotting. I believe I’ve already published something on that topic, but it won’t hurt to give it some daylight again. I’ve seen a preview of Joanna Campbell Slan’s item on Character, and it’s really good, very helpful, whether you’re a beginner or deeply experienced. I know I learned something from it. So please stay tuned.
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Let the decorating begin
Today we are joined by cozy mystery author Gayle Trent, whose latest book DEAD PAN has just been released from Bell Bridge Books. DEAD PAN is the second book in the Daphne Martin Cake Decorating Mystery Series. Gayle is here to help us decorate our holiday cakes.
To learn more about Gayle and her cake decorating mystery series, visit her at http://www.gayletrent.com. If you Twitter, be sure to enter her Twitter contest to win a copy of DEAD PAN, a copy of MURDER TAKES THE CAKE and a red Murder Takes the Cake apron. E-mail Gayle for more information at gayle@gayletrent.com.
And now -- Gayle!
Can you believe it’s that time again? I looked at the calendar the other day and could hardly believe it was November already. So, of course, I started thinking about Thanksgiving and Christmas. As the author of a cake decorating mystery series, people expect me to know how to decorate beautiful cakes. Unfortunately, knowing how and being able to actually do something are often two separate things entirely! Fortunately, you don’t have to be a professional to make a beautiful, elegant dessert you’ll be proud to tell your guests, “I made it myself.”
Artificial flowers (fresh, too, but check to make sure they aren’t poisonous), ribbon, strands of pearls or beads (from your local hobby shop) and fruit can all make beautiful decorations for your cakes. One simple decorating technique – the Swiss dot—can add an additional touch of elegance to your cake.
Note: If you’re using flowers, ribbon or other inedible decorations, be sure and wash them in hot water and let them dry thoroughly before using them on your cake. I like to wash inedible decorations in a salad spinner.
First, crumb coat your cake. A crumb coat is the first coat of icing put on your cake. That way, if you have crumbs in your cake icing, it won’t matter because you’ll be putting a second layer of icing over the first. Let the cake set for 15-20 minutes between coats of icing.
After applying the second coat of icing to your cake, smooth the cake with a spatula. Then place a small round tip (number 4 or smaller) in a decorator bag and fill the bag halfway with white frosting. Pipe small dots on the sides and top of the cake. The lighter the pressure, the smaller the dots. If your dots have peaks, smooth them with your fingertip dipped in cornstarch.
Use pearls, beads, Jordan almonds or ribbon to create a bottom border for your cake. Then, if using artificial flowers, pipe a mound of icing in the middle of your cake. Arrange the flowers in the mound. This makes the flowers stand up better and also facilitates removal with a spatula before serving.
If using fruit, arrange it artistically on the top of your cake. Some suggestions: kiwi, banana, apple, pineapple, strawberries, grapes. Be sure to dust fruit with sugar before putting it on the cake to prevent it from turning brown.
Use your ribbon to make small bows to go on the sides of your cake or to be draped down the sides from the top of the cake like fondant bows. If you’re using flowers, make sure your ribbon is in a complimentary color.
How you display your cake is another important part of its appearance. Gold or silver foil doilies on a cake plate are always a good touch for the holidays.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
How Do You Grow Your Series?
On Saturday, I attended my first meeting of the Chesapeake Chapter of Sisters in Crime. Donna Andrews was kind enough to drive, and she brought along her neighbor, the superb Barb Goffman, Program Chair for Malice. We picked up Sandra Parshall en route.
I’m thrilled to belong to a chapter with so many multi-published authors. There’s so much to learn from them. For example, chapter member Marcia Talley (the national president of Sisters in Crime) spoke at the meeting about her most recent novel Without a Grave. She decided on the setting in the Bahamas and her protagonist’s temporary job (communicating with the other islanders by radio) as a way to avoid the dreaded “Cabot Cove Syndrome.” That’s author-speak for the unfortunate fact that anyone who lived within spitting distance of Jessica Fletcher always wound up dead!
That made me think about Kiki Lowenstein, and the deaths/crimes in my novels. I’ve spent a good part of today, Sunday, thinking how I can artfully manage to have people die—and to have Kiki care about these deaths—without knocking off everyone in her immediate zip code. In part, we authors have a contract with our readers. You KNOW we’re going to bump people off. It’s our job. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be thoughtful about who, what, when, where and why.
After the meeting, we were getting on the elevator, and Donna said something about a scene and how it occurred to her. That scene set the direction for the book she just turned in. “So that’s how you work?” I asked. “You get flashes of insight?”
“Sometimes.”
I turned to Sandra Parshall and asked her how she works. Sandra says she sits down to write and sees what she gets. Her process is more organic.
All this was wonderful, powerful stuff to consider. After all, Sandra and Donna have both won Agatha Awards. Marcia has been an Agatha Award nominee and received the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award for Best Contemporary Mystery.
My editor told me last week that Midnight Ink is interested in more Kiki Lowenstein books, and I’m the type of writer who likes to work ahead. (I’m 47,000 words into Book #4 and it isn’t due until March 2010.) So, while I have a character arc (a trajectory of personal growth) for Kiki, today was a day for thinking ahead to future books.
But this morning, I just couldn’t get my brain to function. Finally, seeing what a lovely fall day it was, I took the dogs for a long walk to the local dog park. After being jumped on by a pit bull, my head cleared. (Maybe a Chihauhau would have had the same effect. Who knows? I guess I owe that pit bull a debt of gratitude.)
How do I plan my books?
I start with what I know. I know where I think each important character is heading in his/her life. I know what special events/places/activities in St. Louis I want to feature. I have a file of interesting “stuff.” I have ideas about why people would kill each other.
And I also consider the timing issue. I want each book to move Kiki and her daughter Anya’s lives along…slowly. I put that all in my mental hopper.
By the time I turned the key in the lock of the front door, I was ready to write.
I’m thrilled to belong to a chapter with so many multi-published authors. There’s so much to learn from them. For example, chapter member Marcia Talley (the national president of Sisters in Crime) spoke at the meeting about her most recent novel Without a Grave. She decided on the setting in the Bahamas and her protagonist’s temporary job (communicating with the other islanders by radio) as a way to avoid the dreaded “Cabot Cove Syndrome.” That’s author-speak for the unfortunate fact that anyone who lived within spitting distance of Jessica Fletcher always wound up dead!
That made me think about Kiki Lowenstein, and the deaths/crimes in my novels. I’ve spent a good part of today, Sunday, thinking how I can artfully manage to have people die—and to have Kiki care about these deaths—without knocking off everyone in her immediate zip code. In part, we authors have a contract with our readers. You KNOW we’re going to bump people off. It’s our job. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be thoughtful about who, what, when, where and why.
After the meeting, we were getting on the elevator, and Donna said something about a scene and how it occurred to her. That scene set the direction for the book she just turned in. “So that’s how you work?” I asked. “You get flashes of insight?”
“Sometimes.”
I turned to Sandra Parshall and asked her how she works. Sandra says she sits down to write and sees what she gets. Her process is more organic.
All this was wonderful, powerful stuff to consider. After all, Sandra and Donna have both won Agatha Awards. Marcia has been an Agatha Award nominee and received the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award for Best Contemporary Mystery.
My editor told me last week that Midnight Ink is interested in more Kiki Lowenstein books, and I’m the type of writer who likes to work ahead. (I’m 47,000 words into Book #4 and it isn’t due until March 2010.) So, while I have a character arc (a trajectory of personal growth) for Kiki, today was a day for thinking ahead to future books.
But this morning, I just couldn’t get my brain to function. Finally, seeing what a lovely fall day it was, I took the dogs for a long walk to the local dog park. After being jumped on by a pit bull, my head cleared. (Maybe a Chihauhau would have had the same effect. Who knows? I guess I owe that pit bull a debt of gratitude.)
How do I plan my books?
I start with what I know. I know where I think each important character is heading in his/her life. I know what special events/places/activities in St. Louis I want to feature. I have a file of interesting “stuff.” I have ideas about why people would kill each other.
And I also consider the timing issue. I want each book to move Kiki and her daughter Anya’s lives along…slowly. I put that all in my mental hopper.
By the time I turned the key in the lock of the front door, I was ready to write.
News and Appearances
All the Killer Hobbies Blog Sisters are excited about our online Writers' Workshop Week, starting Nov. 16. Join us for lessons on developing characters, writing a scene, plotting, point of view, getting the most from a critique group (featuring special guest Becky Levine), and setting. We'll be taking YOUR questions throughout the week. Be sure to share the event with all your friends! Why not suggest they click the "FOLLOW" button to make it more convenient?
Starting the week of November 23, we'll share How We Celebrate Thanksgiving--a mix of recipes, guest lists, and so on.
On December 7, we'll start our annual Last Minute Homemade Gifts parade. Be sure to join us for gifts you can create from your heart and hands without dipping too far into your wallet.
On December 14, we'll discuss Favorite Gifts for Crafters including a peek at gifts we could have lived without...
Monday’s author, Joanna Campbell Slan, is hoping to read some, write some, and buy mattresses for her second guest room today.
On November 13-15, she'll be appearing at Murder & Mayhem In Muskegan MI.
On November 18, at noon, Joanna'll be teaching a mini-album class at the Washington County Free Library, 100 S. Potomac Street, Hagerstown MD. Call 301-739-3250 x 186 for details.
You can always follow Joanna's appearances by logging onto http://www.booktour.com/ Put "Joanna Slan" in the SEARCH box.
Tuesday’s author, Camille Minichino (Margaret Grace) will be at the Livermore library on Sunday, November 8, at 2 PM with Ann Parker, Sophie Littlefield, and Juliet Blackwell.
Wednesday's author, Monica Ferris, tells us that next Saturday she will be speaking at the Public Library in Ortonville, MN, from 1 to 3 pm. Her books will be offered for sale, too.
On June 12 and 13 she will be at a grand quilt show in Duluth. The show, Great Lake, Great Quilts, is sponsored by Minnesota Quilts, Inc., and will take place at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center (DECC) located right down on the harbor. Lessons, exhibits, merchants -- and our own Monica, signing books!
On October 3 Monica will be debuting the thirteenth Betsy Devonshire needlework mystery at "Gaylaxicon," a science-fiction convention in St. Louis Park (a suburb of Minneapolis). Details to follow.
Thursday's author, Linda O. Johnston is busy being ordered around by her dogs, but reports these special appearances: On Saturday, October 17, Linda will be on a panel at the Bonita Branch of the San Diego Library on Chick Lit, at 2 PM
On Sunday, October 18, she'll be at the Los Angeles Romance Authors Book Fair at noon, at the Barnes & Noble at the corner of Ventura Boulevard and Hayvenhurst in the San Fernando Valley.Please go see her!
Friday's author, Terri Thayer, is probably quilting.
Saturday's author, Betty Hechtman, is busy writing and crocheting.
Visit us every Sunday for updates and news. For specifics or to contact any individual author, click on our personal websites listed in the sidebar. Thanks for stopping by--and be sure to sign up to follow us as we have all sorts of fun adventures planned for the future!
Starting the week of November 23, we'll share How We Celebrate Thanksgiving--a mix of recipes, guest lists, and so on.
On December 7, we'll start our annual Last Minute Homemade Gifts parade. Be sure to join us for gifts you can create from your heart and hands without dipping too far into your wallet.
On December 14, we'll discuss Favorite Gifts for Crafters including a peek at gifts we could have lived without...
Monday’s author, Joanna Campbell Slan, is hoping to read some, write some, and buy mattresses for her second guest room today.
On November 13-15, she'll be appearing at Murder & Mayhem In Muskegan MI.
On November 18, at noon, Joanna'll be teaching a mini-album class at the Washington County Free Library, 100 S. Potomac Street, Hagerstown MD. Call 301-739-3250 x 186 for details.
You can always follow Joanna's appearances by logging onto http://www.booktour.com/ Put "Joanna Slan" in the SEARCH box.
Tuesday’s author, Camille Minichino (Margaret Grace) will be at the Livermore library on Sunday, November 8, at 2 PM with Ann Parker, Sophie Littlefield, and Juliet Blackwell.
Wednesday's author, Monica Ferris, tells us that next Saturday she will be speaking at the Public Library in Ortonville, MN, from 1 to 3 pm. Her books will be offered for sale, too.
On June 12 and 13 she will be at a grand quilt show in Duluth. The show, Great Lake, Great Quilts, is sponsored by Minnesota Quilts, Inc., and will take place at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center (DECC) located right down on the harbor. Lessons, exhibits, merchants -- and our own Monica, signing books!
On October 3 Monica will be debuting the thirteenth Betsy Devonshire needlework mystery at "Gaylaxicon," a science-fiction convention in St. Louis Park (a suburb of Minneapolis). Details to follow.
Thursday's author, Linda O. Johnston is busy being ordered around by her dogs, but reports these special appearances: On Saturday, October 17, Linda will be on a panel at the Bonita Branch of the San Diego Library on Chick Lit, at 2 PM
On Sunday, October 18, she'll be at the Los Angeles Romance Authors Book Fair at noon, at the Barnes & Noble at the corner of Ventura Boulevard and Hayvenhurst in the San Fernando Valley.Please go see her!
Friday's author, Terri Thayer, is probably quilting.
Saturday's author, Betty Hechtman, is busy writing and crocheting.
Visit us every Sunday for updates and news. For specifics or to contact any individual author, click on our personal websites listed in the sidebar. Thanks for stopping by--and be sure to sign up to follow us as we have all sorts of fun adventures planned for the future!
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Halloween Report
Another Halloween is over. Once again, I was the sole door answerer. This year I was smart and during the prime tricker treating time, had a stool by the door. At first it seemed like there were fewer tricker treaters out, but I think they just got a late start. The street out front got so clogged with people you couldn’t see across it. And groups of five and ten at a time started showing up.
I was interested to see what the costumes would be this year. I’d heard Michael Jackson costumes were supposed to be a big deal. I only saw two kids dressed up as him. I thought there would be lots of vampires considering how popular everything vampire is. I also thought I’d see some Twilight characters. No Bellas and the three vampires that came to the door were closer to Bela Lugosi than Robert Pattinson.
Some costumes never seem to go out of style. I gave candy to quite a few Dorothy’s from the wizard of Oz. I don’t recall one Harry Potter showing up. There were quite a few lady bugs and kids in black with scream masks.
Some of the trick or treaters really pushed it age wise. Three boys who were way taller than me and probably over the border line of their mid teens showed up as Jesus, a rabbi and Barack Obama. The Obama said he’d say something clever, but he didn’t have his teleprompter. I think the gray haired man in scrubs was over seventy, but that didn’t stop him from coming to the door twice and on the second trip, he kept shaking his bag(it was a white garbage bag) wanting more candy after I’d give him a candy bar.
Quite a few people claimed to be gathering candy for someone at home. True, or were they just adults looking for some candy?
Around nine, it seemed to die down and I thought it was over, but a herd of little girls rang the bell. Their parents were in a car at the curb and driving them from house to house.
I have to say all the costumes were way above the cheesy kind we used to get at the dime store in a box. You put them over your clothes and they tied across the back. I think I went as a hobo a lot because all you had to do was wear old clothes. But then that’s ancient history, I guess.
In the end we went through four huge bags of candy and even though I didn’t keep tabs on exactly how many, I figured we had well over 300 hundred trick or treaters. I still don’t get what was up with the old guy in the green scrubs.
I was interested to see what the costumes would be this year. I’d heard Michael Jackson costumes were supposed to be a big deal. I only saw two kids dressed up as him. I thought there would be lots of vampires considering how popular everything vampire is. I also thought I’d see some Twilight characters. No Bellas and the three vampires that came to the door were closer to Bela Lugosi than Robert Pattinson.
Some costumes never seem to go out of style. I gave candy to quite a few Dorothy’s from the wizard of Oz. I don’t recall one Harry Potter showing up. There were quite a few lady bugs and kids in black with scream masks.
Some of the trick or treaters really pushed it age wise. Three boys who were way taller than me and probably over the border line of their mid teens showed up as Jesus, a rabbi and Barack Obama. The Obama said he’d say something clever, but he didn’t have his teleprompter. I think the gray haired man in scrubs was over seventy, but that didn’t stop him from coming to the door twice and on the second trip, he kept shaking his bag(it was a white garbage bag) wanting more candy after I’d give him a candy bar.
Quite a few people claimed to be gathering candy for someone at home. True, or were they just adults looking for some candy?
Around nine, it seemed to die down and I thought it was over, but a herd of little girls rang the bell. Their parents were in a car at the curb and driving them from house to house.
I have to say all the costumes were way above the cheesy kind we used to get at the dime store in a box. You put them over your clothes and they tied across the back. I think I went as a hobo a lot because all you had to do was wear old clothes. But then that’s ancient history, I guess.
In the end we went through four huge bags of candy and even though I didn’t keep tabs on exactly how many, I figured we had well over 300 hundred trick or treaters. I still don’t get what was up with the old guy in the green scrubs.
Friday, November 6, 2009
No blog
Sorry folks. I didn't really forget to blog. I forgot what day it was.
I'm at a writing class weekend with Donald Maass, author of the Fire in Fiction and Writing the Breakout Novel. Yesterday we had a session with author Nancy Pickard. Her latest book is The Virgin of Small Plains. A good read. We spent a lot of time dissecting the book and she talked about her process. Endlessly fascinating to us authors. The finale of the day was watching Donald Maass and Nancy Pickard brainstorm her next book. Wonderful to see the sausage being made.
Today was the first of a two class with Donald Maass. He asks us a lot of questions and we write most of the day. It's great fun and makes for some wonderful writing.
So sorry. I missed you all today.
I'm at a writing class weekend with Donald Maass, author of the Fire in Fiction and Writing the Breakout Novel. Yesterday we had a session with author Nancy Pickard. Her latest book is The Virgin of Small Plains. A good read. We spent a lot of time dissecting the book and she talked about her process. Endlessly fascinating to us authors. The finale of the day was watching Donald Maass and Nancy Pickard brainstorm her next book. Wonderful to see the sausage being made.
Today was the first of a two class with Donald Maass. He asks us a lot of questions and we write most of the day. It's great fun and makes for some wonderful writing.
So sorry. I missed you all today.
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