I’m struggling a little with the current draft of my novel. The novel is written from four perspectives: two younger women named Rachel and Hannah, one younger man named Billy, and an older woman named Greta. I’m happy with the four characters and how their stories compliment each other. Now that I’m getting down into […]
Writing
Knowing Your Characters, Knowing Yourself
Sometimes I find it interesting to apply writing advice to real life. Here’s a meaningful one: Get to know your characters before you write. The story will write itself because the characters will tell you what they want to do. Isn’t that a great metaphor for real life? If you get to know yourself well, your […]
If You Love It, Time Will Come
People sometimes ask me how I find time to keep a journal, write a novel and keep a blog. Part of that is simple: I AM on maternity leave, so I have more flexible hours than someone who works full time. But I found time to do all of those things while I was working, […]
3 Tips For Starting A Journal
Often in conversation with people, I mention that I keep a journal. Invariably, the response is, “I should do that.” I’ve been keeping a journal since I was about fourteen (with a brief hiatus in my early twenties) and I can’t tell you all the great things it’s done for me. It’s helped me clarify […]
Babies Boost Creativity!
Yesterday I was paging through Stumbleupon.com (a useful and fun website that generates web pages you might like based on your interests) and found a BBC article on Five Ways to be More Creative. The first recommendation in the article is to change your routines. They suggested changing the way you do little things, such as make a […]
The Non-Writing Writer
Back in December, in my post Finished, I said that the hardest part of writing my novel, completing the first draft, was over. Well, I was wrong. Turns out the hardest part is re-reading that first draft, considering what needs to be edited and fixed, and realizing that one possible solution involves removing one or two of […]