Authors should never stop learning (at least that’s what I think). and last year I bought a copy of a book called Take Off Your Pants. Now if you’re puzzled by the title let me say it’s all about plotting and it’s one of the best I’ve ever read on the topic. I enjoyed…
Author: This Writer's Life
Monday Motivation-Courage
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” ― Winston S. Churchill I thought this quote from Winston Churchill can be applied to the writing life. Sometimes we fail, we write terrible first drafts, the muse is lost and we get rejection letters. However, it’s having the courage and…
Friday Ramblings From An Author-What Your Eyes Tell You
Happy Friday everyone. You know you’ve been working too hard, staring at the computer for too long when weird things start happening to your eyes. That’s what happened to me on Sunday evening and it scared me so much that I went to the eye doctor to get things checked out. It turns out…
What Writing a TV Pilot Has Shown Me
Most of you know I’m working on my first TV pilot. I’ve been an author of novels and short stories for longer than I can remember but this new experience has shown (and is teaching) me new things about the writing process. I thought I’d share these five insights with you here… Go Outside Your Comfort Zone…
Guest Bloggers Welcome
First of all, a big thank you to all the wonderful guest bloggers who have helped create content for This Writer’s Life. I’m about to post a new sign up form and thought I’d share it with my followers first to give you an opportunity before I send it out to writing groups. This…
Wednesday Writing Prompts-First Flight
For this writing prompt your character has received a gift certificate for a flight in a hot air balloon. Some questions to ponder before you begin writing… Have they ever been in one before? Who gave them the gift? Do they hate heights? Do they have a fear of flying? Do they overcome their…
An Interview with Rhonda Penders Editor in Chief of The Wild Rose Press
Ten years ago, I got the call…well actually it was an e-mail, that every writer hopes for. The one telling you a publisher would like to offer you a contract for your book. I’ll always hold a special place in my heart for The Wild Rose Press. I told Rhonda when I contacted her about…
Monday Motivation-Reward Yourself
Sometimes it’s hard to stay and meet your goals so when you do reward yourself. What do you enjoy doing? What have you given up for a few hours while you write? Is it watching your favorite show? Is it going out to dinner with friends? Maybe spending less time on a much loved hobby. After…
Friday Ramblings From An Author-A Teacher to Watch
Happy Friday everyone. I’ll start this Ramblings with some good news. This week I got an e-mail from Skillshare telling me I’ve been named a teacher to watch. It’s a platform I love offering my classes on so it meant a lot to me. And thank you to the students who have taken my classeses because…
An Interview with USA Today Bestselling Author Dianne Harman
I’m happy to announce my author interviews are back and if you’re a fan of cozy mysteries my first interviewee needs no introduction. She’s topped the bestseller lists on both Amazon and USA Today. Say hello to Dianne Harman… This Writer’s Life (TWL)-You’ve had lots of careers, art appraiser, yoga instructor…what made you one…