Tag: featured
Do You Feel Lucky?
Someone told me the other day that I’m lucky. I smiled and agreed. And then on the bus home I thought some more about luck; about what it is, if it’s in fact anything at all. And I realised that I’m no luckier than anyone else. It’s a choice. I choose to be lucky. I […]
The Big Day: Book Launch Tips
Imagine if you will, it’s the night before your big day. You run through your checklist, again, just to make sure you haven’t forgotten anything; dress–check, speeches–check, hair appointment–check, wine ordered–check, cake collected–check, guest list–check. Everything seems in order. Jittery, you decide to text a close friend you’ve invited to double check she’s still coming […]
How Counselling Helps Me Cope With Feedback
It’s taken me fifteen years to pluck up the courage to seek out a counsellor. My written escapades into fictional worlds could only hold the metaphorical demons at bay for so long. So here I am, six months into my journey, and I feel like a spinning top laced with hallucinogenic drugs. My brain feels […]
How to Determine Who to Ask for Feedback to Your Writing
Discernment can be defined as “the quality of being able to grasp and comprehend what is obscure.” This term, however, is most often associated within a spiritual context to obtain direction and understanding. But when you’re a writer, discernment is one of the most important, if not the most important factor in how you will […]
Why Bother Writing?
Imagine you are standing in front of a long, high wall built from giant moss-covered stone. Imagine that you want, more than anything, to get over that wall. The wall is festooned with ladders, allowing you to believe that getting to one of the ladders and climbing up and over the wall will be a […]
In Praise of Slow Writing (and Reading)
“[T]houghtful and quintessentially Southern … The Last List of Miss Judith Kratt unfolds like a magnolia, slowly revealing a languid beauty.” —Publishers Weekly In my household, we have pet snails. Around six common garden snails call our terrarium home, each the size of a dime, the first of which my nine-year-old daughter found in her fairy garden. […]
Write Here, Write Now
Turning something into a daily practice, be it writing or exercising or even flossing, can be a daunting process. In the case of writing, having a schedule is important. It’s also a good way to keep the writer sane. What do I mean by that? Well, a writer who is not working is a dangerous […]
HOW TO WRITE FICTION ABOUT THE UGLY PARTS OF OUR PAST
The first time I met him, my father-in-law Art regaled me with stories of the Spanish conquistador who claimed territory and opened trade routes for his queen before he traveled to California, married a local woman and sired Art’s family tree. His connection to this valiant man was a great source of pride, but what […]
Human: Know Thyself
I often wondered what would happen if I didn’t take a drink. Or eat a bag of cookies when I was stressed. Like 70% of the country, I use mildly destructive distractions to cope with everything from mid-afternoon boredom to my son’s impending puberty. I think for writers, the percentage is more like 100. Something inside […]
Colombia—Land of Magic and More Magic
“Excuse me,” I said, “I don’t believe I heard you correctly. We’re going where?” “Colombia,” my husband repeated. “Bogotá, specifically, but likely elsewhere in the country too.” “Are you out of your mind!” was my swift rejoinder. Back in 2009 drug cartels, kidnappings, and the like were synonymous with that country. It’s true that we’ve […]
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