Category: Life
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On balance in life and writing
I have something of an addictive personality. And I really love writing. I don’t like leaving projects I care about half-finished (though projects I don’t care about, well, that’s a different story. One of my flaws that I’m working on). Of course, when you’re talking about a project the size of a novel, whether you’re […]
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On the value of steady, quiet loyalty
As I revise my way through “The Crimson League” once again (this time after editor’s notes, yea!) I realize I have come this past year to a great appreciation for a particular minor character I never gave much thought to. His name is Hayden Grissner. He is barely of age, and he joins the resistance […]
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Connecting with that minor character (lessons in charity)
Writing a prequel to my trilogy had some unexpected benefits for me as I am at the same time preparing my Herezoth trilogy for a second edition and re-release after I took it off Amazon years ago. Namely, I find myself relating to a couple of characters more than I ever did before. I understand […]
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Thoughts on freedom: dreaming of no day job
Yesterday I wrote of the role patience plays in creative writing, and how creative writing builds that virtue. Further reflection has me realizing how much I am yearning to be able to leave my day job behind and concentrate professionally on my fiction. Like all writers, I am a creative type. A dreamer. Head in […]
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Creative writing teaches patience
Patience is definitely one of the virtues I need to work on, though I certainly hope I have developed some other virtues to a greater degree. (Courage, too. I need to work on courage. I am a melancholic). As I return to creative writing, though, I’ve realized just how much my fiction is doing to […]
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When friends return (in life and in fiction)
I found out recently that one of my best work friends, who left earlier this year, will be returning. She texted me to let me know, and I was just SO excited. I can’t wait to have her back. I always felt comfortable sharing my concerns, triumphs, and frustrations with her because we were similar […]
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Why I didn’t like “The Sun Also Rises”
Recently, I wrote about the challenges that we as authors present our characters with. I talked about how it’s important to bring them face to face with the challenges they need, even if those are not the challenges they want. Reflecting on how facing challenges makes us (and our characters) grow reminded me of the […]
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Two things religious life taught me about creative writing
I am a practicing Catholic and was blessed to spend nine months in religious formation. I decided in the end that it was not my vocation, long before taking vows or even taking the habit, but as I return to creative writing after leaving, I’ve realized there are lessons to take from religious life and […]
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The challenges we need
Fiction can fall flat for all kinds of reason. One major factor in such a failure can be that we’re getting plot wrong, as the writer, because we aren’t giving our characters the challenges they NEED to grow and develop. As human beings, I think that acknowledging that we grow only through challenge–that is discomfort, […]
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Soundtrack to fiction
I don’t know how common this is among writers, but I imagine I’m not alone in linking music to my characters, to their relationships, and to particular scenes in my fantasy trilogy I’m hoping to re-release in a second edition next year. There are so many different associations. When I was in grad school studying […]
Creative Writing with the Crimson League 