Today is my first day of actual story brainstorming (a combination of plotting, doodling, and talking to myself) on The Emerald Sun. (Reading and noting is done with the books and sticky notes. Brainstorming requires your butt in the chair and your fingers on the keyboard with a sketchpad on the desk in front of you — at least if … Continue reading →
A couple of things have changed in my life recently, one of which has been the writing of Dead Man’s Party, my demo novel for the writing class I’m currently building, How to Write a Novel. I’ve been dedicating one concentrated hour or so a week to the writing of the first draft (and a bloody awful first draft it … Continue reading →
A long time ago (back in 2006-2008), I wrote two novels I loved and younger readers loved. The Ruby Key: Moon & Sun Book 1 The Silver Door: Moon & Sun Book 2 I’d started work on the third one, The Emerald Sun: Moon & Sun Book 3… And then Scholastic told me they weren’t going to continue the series. … Continue reading →
So. Just now the first draft of The Owners Tale, the LAST episode in Tales from the Longview. Wrote the final thousand-ish words this morning and part of this afternoon, and for now, at least, I like the ending. I’ve printed off the manuscript (in 12 point Courier, double-spaced and with large margins, of course) where it will sit on … Continue reading →
I didn’t want to say anything about the fact that I was pursuing the removal of the non-compete clause from my contract until I heard one way or the other. I got the news today. The non-compete clause for my Scholastic contract is dead, and I’m now free to write stories in that world again. So now the issue becomes … Continue reading →
I’ve been nearly invisible here for ages because migraines left me with barely enough energy to keep courses running and get some writing done. But a low-sodium diet is proving to have a 1:1 correlation with the migraines—if I accidentally eat something high in sodium, I pay for it with three days of migraines, starting within 24 hours of whatever … Continue reading →
Getting the whole month of December off didn’t quite work out. But I am taking off the rest of the month. I don’t remember ever having been this tired before, but I now have a chance to rest. Mostly. Sort of. UNTIL MONDAY, JANUARY 7th, I’ll do Student Support on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. It’s just me in there. Margaret … Continue reading →
My most frequently asked question on THE MOON & SUN series is “When are you going to do the next book?” So I’ll answer that one now. I’m doing it next. When I come back to work after my break in December, I’m putting together the rest of the Create a World Clinic, and will use The Emerald Sun as … Continue reading →
Back at the end of June, 2011, I read a book that succeeded because of a lie, and I turned my entire life upside down as a result of that lie. The book was, of course, John Locke’s How I Sold 1 Million Ebooks in 5 Months. Like a lot of other writers, I let myself be suckered in. I … Continue reading →
The migraines and vertigo are back with a vengeance, and I’m stuck in horizontal mode (laptop propped on lap and lying down as I write this, in fact). So Saturday, I dragged out some cotton string (a very nice German variegated yarn), and needles, and did one of the few things that doesn’t make me feel worse when this gets … Continue reading →
