Category: Creative Writing
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The stories we tell ourselves
I recently wrote character spotlights of King Rexson’s three sons: Valkin, Neslan, and Hune. Before The Magic Council: The Fight for Home starts, the princes are kidnapped by a group interested in the politics of magic and in advancing magic’s cause politically. While they are held captive in Ursa Hincken’s basement, Ursa’s sister August tells…
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“Magic Council” Excerpt: The Prince Who Wasn’t
I’m so excited to share the prologue of The Magic Council: The Fight for Home with you today! You’ll meet the princes I’ve spotlighted over the last few days. If you enjoy, please share the word about this upcoming release and the first book of the series, which is currently available on Amazon, including for…
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Eucatastrophe: the literary device I picked up from Tolkien
Tolkien is the GOAT of fantasy. His works are complex, deep, powerful in ways I can only dream of imitating. He was a genius in multiple areas, I’d say. Now that it’s clear that I don’t mean to compare myself to Tolkien here (lol), I’m super grateful for Tolkien, not only for how his works…
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Rewrites versus Revisions
I’ve been shocked over the past year to learn that a fair number of writers choose to rewrite a first draft from scratch rather than revise it. That’s because to rewrite a first draft would never occur to me–not unless I’m trying to work with, say, the failed draft of my very first novel that…
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“Beauty and the Beast” and influence on Herezoth
I always say Beauty and the Beast is one of my 3 favorite films of all time (the Disney classic animation). Casablanca is my favorite film. I also love Newsies. Beauty and the Beast had two major influences on the Herezoth trilogy, I think. The first was unconscious. It’s Belle’s “provincial town.” Belle may hate…
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My characters are like old friends at this point.
One could argue I should not have waited 12 years to get an editor, buckle down, and put out second, definitive editions of my Herezoth trilogy. But (including some time away from my fiction to focus on more important things) I have spent twelve years in Herezoth, with the Crimson League, and their families, and…
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The fine line you have to walk when writing fiction
There is a fine line any author needs to walk. To a real extent, this applies to writers of nonfiction as well, but it’s true of fiction in a unique way. This “fine line” is one of the major reasons we all need beta readers and editors, because it’s hard, if not impossible, to tell…
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Dialogue that I love has these characteristics
I generally love great dialogue more than just about anything else in a story, especially as a viewer (I love classic Hollywood movies for the dialogue!) and as a reader. While there is plenty of action in Herezoth, my novels tend to be dialogue-heavy because dialogue is my strength as a writer (as I’ve been…
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My least favorite things about KDP Select
Yesterday was the positive. Today, the negative. I’m happy, as an author, to be enrolled in KDP Select, and I don’t have any plans to disenroll at this time. That said, there are things I don’t like about it. The main thing I don’t like is the Countdown Deal–the option to lower the price of…
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My favorite things about KDP Select and Kindle Unlimited
As an indie author, I’m enrolled in KDP Select. My favorite things about KDP Select from Amazon fall into two categories. For those who don’t know, KDP Select is a program that authors can enroll in for a three-month period, then either renew or cancel. Basically, Amazon gives you some things in exchange for making…
Creative Writing with the Crimson League 