Straight talk from the sisters about blood, sweat and ink
It’s Archive Revive Day! I’m swamped with gymnastics coach training this month, so this re-post is appropriate… Originally posted on Feb. 10, 2014. Updated Oct. 5, 2015 I had two childhood dreams – be a novelist and be a gymnast. I was a strange juxtaposition of sedentary nerd kid lying on the couch reading for …
Continue reading “What Gymnastics Taught Me About Writing”
I began the “Reading For Writers 101” blog series (for a full summary of posts, click here) because I believe writers can learn so much from reading books. Well, the same goes for watching television shows or films. Hence, a new series: Welcome! Today we’re going to learn how to effectively use flash forwards. A …
Continue reading “Watching for Writers 101: Flash Forwards”
Happy Archive Revive Day! It’s always helpful to refresh what we know about writing by digging up past posts and updating the information a bit, so here we go… Originally posted on Oct. 7, 2013. Updated Sept. 21, 2015 I learned this method of outlining at Ryerson University. My screenwriting professor called it a Step Outline. …
Continue reading “Outlining – Method 2: Active Beats (aka “Show Don’t Tell”)”
If we were having coffee, I might actually be drinking coffee instead of tea because I need the extra boost after a hectic week! You sip your hot beverage of choice and look at me quizzically. What happened? You thought I was pretty much done the video game script and I’d be focusing on my …
Continue reading “Weekend Coffee Share – The Month of New Beginnings”
September is always a time for self-reflection. In a way, the start of the school year makes it feel like the end of the year, though not quite. I find myself thinking of the goals and deadlines I set for 2015. Back in January I wrote a post called The 7 Deadly Do’s and Don’ts …
Continue reading “Deadlines: Helpful or Harmful?”
One of the benefits of being a freelance writer is making my own schedule, and having the flexibility to change that schedule if I want to. For instance, I am not a morning person, and in fact joked that I’m part vampire in this post here because I write best after sunset and terribly at sunrise. Luckily, …
Continue reading “5 Excuses to Protect Your Writing Time”
Since I’ve begun listening to audiobooks, I’ve noticed that not all books convert well to the audible format. So I started this little series: Audiobook Pitfalls. The sale of audiobooks is on the rise, and most new releases (not just bestsellers) are now made into audiobooks as well as e-books and print books, so it’s …
Continue reading “Audiobook Pitfall: Scene Breaks”
This week while flushing out my novel’s outline, I decided to track where I raised and answered questions in the story. Why? Because questions are crucial to a good story; they ensure it has enough intrigue and suspense to keep readers reading. Have you ever set down a book and not been compelled to pick …
Continue reading “5 Reasons to Track Questions & Answers in Your Novel”
I began listening to audiobooks a few months ago. Though if I’m honest, it all started with the SERIAL podcast. Unable to resist the hype, I jumped on that bandwagon and was not disappointed – great storytelling! After it was over, I was in the habit of listening to something while I did dishes every …
Continue reading “Audiobook Pitfall: Lack of Dialogue Tags + 1st Person POV”
If we were having coffee, I’d lament that it is already August. How is that possible? Didn’t the summer just start? I seriously do not understand how time passes so fast. My mom used to say that time passes faster the older you get, but I didn’t really believe her until I hit my 30s. …
Continue reading “Weekend Coffee Share – Bike Raving”