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Forgive Me Twitter, For I Have Sinned
Bless me Twitter for I have sinned. *Pulls curtain closed* It has been years since my last confession… I have used the bluebird’s name in vein, I have unfollowed people, coveted another’s tweet and retweeted a post from my timeline without reading it. There, I said it. I am a social media sinner. Let me back […]
A 12 Step Approach to Procrastination
Procrastination is an addiction. “Oh, I can do that tomorrow,” or “I’ve got plenty of time left to get that project done,” are the Procrastination Addict’s go-to excuses for putting off the inevitable. Procrastination is an insidious disease, an infliction that begins in our early years, when we were tardy for that god forsaken math class. […]
Who’s Living Under Your Bridge?
Bridges and those who dwell under them. Bridges are strange little things, when you stop and take a moment to consider them. Bridges force you to take a narrow path, over some (usually man-made) inconvienence to get to that special place you need to go. The route is direct, quick and utterly devoid of character […]
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 […]
James L'Etoile 