Taking part in NaNoWriMo? Been writing every day? Congratulations. You’re now over the half way point. As we don’t have a guest blogger today, I thought I’d take this space to give you a mid NaNoWriMo pep talk to help you make it across the finish line. Just think how proud you’re going to feel…
Tag: Plotting a Novel
Friday Ramblings From An Author-Short Work Day
Record breaking highs today so I’m getting all my work done this morning so I can finish the workweek at noon today. Am I going outside just to soak in the last of the warmth? Only wish I was! More leaf raking to do and probably the last for the year. Rain and possibly snow…
Friday Ramblings From An Author-Happy Halloween
Almost the end of October. Classes end today and two boot camps kick off on Monday. My first time teaching two boot camps in one month. It will also be the last time I’ll be teaching classes in their current format. So, if you want to learn how to plot a novel or write a…
A Major Reason for Getting Rejected
No Tuesday guest blogger this week so thought I’d address a topic that’s been on my mind for several months. While I haven’t done as much reading over the summer as I’d hoped, I have read the beginning of many stories and chosen to pass on them. They might have been great stories but they…
Upcoming Writing Classes and A New Format for 2021
No, Tuesday guest blogger this week. The last session of the summer writing retreat is over half way done and after a week break, I’ll then be back to focusing on teaching the last classes for 2020, two of them will be regular workshops, while the other four are boot camps. I usually tell…
Friday Ramblings From An Author-Happy May
Welcome to May. Some people thought April moved along slowly but for me, it flew by. I couldn’t believe that I was already posting a final message to my April students. Plotting Your Novel boot camp kicks off on Monday. We still have some spaces open if you’re interested. We decided to cancel…
How to Fix a Sagging Middle
Do you often suffer from a sagging middle? I know that sounds like the beginning of an ad or sales pitch for some miracle weight loss or exercise cure but it’s a huge problem for authors. And no, not because we sit on our butts a lot. I’m talking about the story that starts perfectly…
Free Class and Previewing the Writing Retreat
I’ve been working on the lessons (and gift) for the upcoming free class I’ll be teaching so thought I’d post something about it here along with more details about the retreat I’m offering next summer (and just in case you don’t take the class). Both the free mini-retreat and summer retreat are exclusive to…
Do You Have a Plotting Problem?
I’m teaching a class on plotting a novel and while I was putting together notes for the first lesson, something dawned upon me. I shared it with the students and I thought maybe you’d like to hear it too. I always hear people say their biggest problem is plotting but I don’t think that’s always…
Plotter vs. Panster or How I Became a Plotser by Judy Penz Sheluk
Not sure if you’re a plotter or a punster, author Judy Penz Sheluk might have the solution… As a pantser (someone who writes without an outline, outside of a rough idea of where the story might be going), I’ve always envied plotters (someone who actually knows where the story is going before they begin to…