Last Wednesday, I flew to Madison, WI, to meet up with Aimee Ogden so the two of us could undertake the 7 hour drive to Kansas City, MO. That meant I had to get up at 2:45 am for a 5:00 flight out of Boston, so I could get to Madison by 9:30 am, andContinue reading “WorldCon recap!”
Category Archives: Writing
Cold Turkey Writer
Here’s a thing you must do right now if you are easily distracted like me and can’t focus on writing: Go to Cold Turkey Writer and download the app. It’s free, unless you like it enough that you want the pro version. What it does is, when you open the app, it opens to fullContinue reading “Cold Turkey Writer”
Decreasing distractions
I just registered for World Con/MidAmeriCon II! The hotel blocks were released Monday, so I registered and got my flight. I’ll be flying out to my friend Aimee Ogden‘s place, then road tripping it the seven hours to Kansas City, MO. We’re going to be driving through a LOT of farm land. I hope weContinue reading “Decreasing distractions”
On unlikeable characters
I’m working on finishing up my most recent writing project, and as I wrote a scene today, I realized that one of the main characters in the novel is unlikeable. I knew this already because my writing group had mentioned having issues with her character, but it was only today that I began to figureContinue reading “On unlikeable characters”
See You Next Tuesday
There’s been some discussion today about a new app called Clean Reader, which will allow you to read your favorite ebooks with the profanity edited out. Not surprisingly, some authors are vehemently against the idea, seeing it as, at best, censorship of their work, and at worst, unlawful editing of a copyrighted text. Others pointContinue reading “See You Next Tuesday”
Talent is a myth
Late last week, an article on The Stranger made the rounds on Twitter, shared among furious writers of all kinds. The article, “Things I Can Say About MFA Writing Programs Now That I No Longer Teach In One” purported to have advice for aspiring writers, by a former professor who had seen it all. ItContinue reading “Talent is a myth”
Nanowrimo Now What?: The Synopsis
In the second part of my “Nanowrimo Now What?” posts, I’m going to talk about writing a synopsis. This might seem like jumping the gun; after all, you’re not going to be querying agents for this monstrosity you’ve written just yet. But a synopsis can be used for more than just getting an agent interestedContinue reading “Nanowrimo Now What?: The Synopsis”
A fresh start
I survived the end of December, although just barely. I got ridiculously sick on Christmas Eve and decided to spread the cheer by giving the cold to all of my friends and family. My New Year’s resolutions are, like every year, about writing. This time I’m being a little more concrete with my goals. TheContinue reading “A fresh start”
Nanowrimo Now What?: How to Critique and Be Critiqued
I got my laptop back from the Genius Bar 10 days ago, and the graphics card has just started to go again, so I probably only have another week or two before the whole computer dies a third time. In the meantime: the post-Nanowrimo entry that I promised! Writing groups are invaluable for authors. TheContinue reading “Nanowrimo Now What?: How to Critique and Be Critiqued”
Nanowrimo post mortem
Just a quick update to say I finished Nano: Which means: Also my laptop died a terrible death, so I’m on an ancient one with a dead battery that I’m constantly unplugging by accident. Tomorrow I take a trip to the Genius Bar and see what the verdict is. Happy December!
Bennett North 