BLOG CHAIN–What happens after you die? Um, what happens to your writing, that is.

Shannon really hit us with a FANTASTIC question for this round of the blog chain! Imagine this: when you’re gone, readers will remember your writing most for just one of these things: your characters, your plots, your settings, or your style. Which one (only one!) would you prefer over the rest? Why? Wow, this is [...]

Read Full Post »

Mental Health Monday–Get Your Rest!

How many of you have wished you could take a nap at work? Show of hands, please. Come on, don’t be shy. We’ve all fallen prey to the afternoon slump, right? Well, guess what? Companies just might be encouraging you to do just that in the near future (read that again–NEAR FUTURE. NOT now. NOW [...]

Read Full Post »

Blogfest–Creating Compelling Characters

Elana Johnson (OMG, Have you seen her book cover for POSSESSION?! GORGEOUS!!!!!!!!) is hosting a blogfest today about writing compelling characters. Check out this link to read the other posts of some fantastic writers and bloggers! You know what? I’m still working on how to create compelling characters. You see, my characters are pretty well-formed [...]

Read Full Post »

Sisterhood of the Traveling Blog/I Think I Can

Anyone who has experienced the joys of writing knows it’s quite common to get sucked into a story, only to have several hours pass without even realizing it. Seriously, I get so immersed in a project that I become detached from my surroundings and almost BECOME part of my characters’ world. That level of commitment [...]

Read Full Post »

Mental Health Monday–Daydreaming is required for good brain functioning

On August 30, the LA Times reported the importance of daydreaming. Here’s the full article. The gist: You know that running commentary going through your mind day in and day out? Well, neuroscientists are finding this “idle chatter” is very important. So important, in fact, that it’s been given its own term–”default mode network.” This [...]

Read Full Post »

Flake-out Friday–Sinbad

Chocolate is a big part of the writerly life. So are Twizzler’s, Doritos, chips, Starbucks fraps, Dunkin Donuts mocha iced coffees… *drools* Ahem. Sorry. Got distracted. With all the sweet and salty treats to aid with revisions, edits, and first drafts, what’s a health conscious writer to do? Do alternatives exist? Let’s listen to Sinbad’s [...]

Read Full Post »

Sisterhood of the Traveling Blog/Writer Quotes

(Illustration by: Dave Donald) ‘The writer who possesses the creative gift owns something of which he is not always master – something that at times strangely wills and works for itself.” –Charlotte Bronte “And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination [...]

Read Full Post »

Mental Health Monday–Multiple Personalities

Kathee Jantzi requested information about multiple personalities, specifically any books about the subject as well as how someone with multiple personalities goes about getting better. Check out her blog, Quill or Pill? She also had a short story published on RomanceFlash! The DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV) categories various forms of dissociation (a disruption [...]

Read Full Post »

Females in Fantasy–Guest Post by Cassandra Jade!!

Let’s give a warm welcome to Cassandra! We’ve traded guest posts today, so she’s posting here and I’m posting about my writerly schedule on her blog, Cassandra Jade in the Realm. She’s on a blog tour for the whole month, so be sure to check out her other fantastic posts!!! Females in Fantasy Thanks Laura [...]

Read Full Post »

Flake-out Friday–Tension makes all the difference…

What are the elements of tension? A confrontation. Impossible circumstances. Angst and emotion. Suspense. This clip captures tension…er, sort of. Maybe this one’s better? Hmm, maybe a little too technical? How about this one? The narration is great. I think we have a WINNER!!!

Read Full Post »