Congrats to…

Congratulations to fellow ACFW/OCW member, Jill Williamson. for her one-sentence pitch winning in literary agent Rachelle Gardner’s contest – see full post here. Also, one of my fellow critique partners was an honorable mention! I’m so proud –...

Caution: Changes Ahead

Nothing is for certain. Except uncertainty. The same is true for the creative process of writing. In the past few weeks, I’ve received some reader feedback, critique group feedback and contest judge feedback. That’s a lot of feedback to take in all at...

Thoughts on characters

What makes a great character? The Elizabeth Bennetts, the Scarlett O’Haras, the Harry Potters…What is it that captivates the audience and molds those characters into literary history? My official conclusion: it’s the quirks. There must be something...

The English language is very precise…

“The English language is very precise.” It’s a phrase I’ve heard many times from my father-in-law to my husband. Usually it is in jest and has now become a running joke. But it is completely true. I’m launching a new website that will...

the joy of layout and design…

A few weeks ago, I helped map out the story selection and layout for my college’s alumni newsletter. It brought me back to the days of newsroom banter and magazine mayhem. Those late nights of caffeine highs and echoing laughter are a close, fond memory....

A note on revising

Revising. We all must do it. A writer’s work is never truly finished. Ask any author and I’m sure they’d agree. Lately I’ve been polishing up my manuscript from the NaNoWriMo. There is simply so much to do. However, with each new draft, each...