Category author
Power Your Rewrite
To Rewrite, Rewire or Rip Out… In the process of making a stab at rewriting my latest work in progress, I had an epiphany, of sorts. Well, not a lightning bolt to the temple kind of moment, but more of the rub your socks on the carpet kind of jolt. Enough to get my attention, […]
Summer Road Warriors
The Road of the Damned Sounds like some Trucker Noir, novel, doesn’t it? A lonely truck driver makes one last run to pay off a shady loan shark or lose his rig… While that might be a pitch for a new pulp fiction series (It would have to be in audio book format, because truckers can’t hold […]
A Hypochondriac’s Nightmare
I’m gonna let you in on a little secret… I suffer from Selective Squeamish Disorder, or SSD. This “condition,” let’s call it that, has no telethon with dancing bears or a single late night television commercials with that Harbinger of Sadness, Sara McLaughlin, to draw attention to our plight. Ours is a pain to be […]
What The Hell Was I Thinking?
So you typed the words, The End Remember that first manuscript you finished? The one you thought was going to rocket to the top of the bestselling lists? Sure you do. I remember that day. Queries went out and I sat back waiting to watch the big 5 publishers fight over the rights to the book. The […]
Character Interventions
Addictions and Interventions They come in different packages. In a dream, I find myself entering a uncomfortable, but familar room, a windowless basement. In this dank space, ten other slack-jawed, baggy-eyed people sit in a circle and stare at one another, each waiting for the other to break the silence. Their faces turn as I take […]
Writers With Issues?
Who doesn’t have issues? We all got ’em. Take a good look in that mirror and if you’re human you’ve got your share (some more than others) of quirks, habits and flaws. Collectively, these are your “issues.” They aren’t all bad, don’t get me wrong. That mix of psychic stuff is what makes you – you. […]
Let Me Enjoy My Happy Place
The Time In Between Writing Projects I’ve found that sweet spot, the one right after you finish reading a good book, and wrapping up the revisions on a manuscript of your own. A warm glow spreads from the center of my being. Could this be contentment? This vaguely familiar feeling smells of an overheated computer […]
Timing is Everything
Timing is everything. Timing and fate seem to stroll hand in hand down the pathways of life. The two forces push and pull, a rip current of influence, moving us to some unseen script, a story that hasn’t been finished yet. But timing and fate can only go so far. They provide a nudge in one direction […]
Do You Suffer From Revision Brain Syndrome?
Revision Brain Syndrome (RBS) RBS is destined to be added to the list of serious psychological maladies in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – 5th edition (DSM V) as a condition plaguing millions of writers. (cue Sarah McLachlan sad puppy music here) Self-diagnosis is difficult and I’ll warn you now to stay […]
A Survivalist’s Guide To Writing
Survive You need to think like a survivalist when you start out on a writing adventure. The only goal in this first draft is to survive. The key to surviving your writing project is all in the preparation. Traditional survivalists are a sturdy lot who know what they are getting into before they step out into the […]
James L'Etoile 