“If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.” ― Toni Morrison
Neil Gaiman's law- being that no matter how much a book is proofread, upon opening a printed copy for the first time, the first thing you'll see is a typo. I wasn't sure I believed in Gaiman's law until I submitted a short story to a competition the other day. I reread it a hundred times.… Continue reading Gaiman’s Law, Typos, and Pain
Thick grey clouds blotted out the night as a man and woman tread through the tall grass. The woman clutched her threadbare shaw about her shoulders, a poor shield against the bitter cold. A harsh breeze cut through the air, whipping her red hair in front of her face and cutting off her vision. The… Continue reading “Skin to Skin”-a Short Story
In my middle-school and high school days, I was a huge fan of bands like Fall Out Boy and Panic! At The Disco. Not only were the beats catchy and the lead singers ridiculously talented, the lyrics for the songs themselves were like puzzle-boxes to open. I spent an embarrassingly long time going over each… Continue reading I Stopped Caring About Fall Out Boy and All I Got Was This Stupid Post
Writing the first draft for a novel is hard. Writing the second draft is harder. As a notorious quitter with a graveyard of W.I.P.s on her laptop, I was surprised when I actually wound up completing the first draft of my passion project. Considering how often I become overwhelmed by the prospect of cramming all… Continue reading W.I.P Novel Draft 2- Electric Avenue: The Emotional Stakes Are Higher
I have had this blog several years and, in the early days of its evolution, I wrote "writing advice." Yes, the girl who had yet to be published or showcase her writing on any sort of platform thought she would grace the world with her wisdom on writing. Since then, however, I've mostly shied away… Continue reading Most Writing Advice is Bad
I don't think it is unusual for creatives to experience dry spells. Especially those of us who work full-time jobs and can only create during those precious rare moments we have to ourselves. For me, however, the dry spells have become disconcertingly common, to the point where I wonder if this is my new normal.… Continue reading “F-It Bucket” Stories, or How I Got My Story-Writing Brain to Work Again
Writer's Block is easy enough to understand. Writer's Guilt, however, is a bit different. Writer's Block passes—sometimes like a kidney stone, but it passes. But Writer's Guilt lingers. At least it does for me. Writer's Guilt is when you, as a writer, find yourself in a rare moment of calm, of relaxation, of repose, but… Continue reading Writer’s Guilt: You Should Be Writing….or Should You?
I think it's no secret to anyone that has followed this blog for any length of time that I am not always the best at updating.....ever. While, on occasion, I'm seized by the writing bug and punch out a couple of blog posts a month, other times I do well to publish one in six… Continue reading Blog Update, Or The Author Details Her Intentions
I think most of us are guilty of uttering the phrase "that person has too much time on their hands." It could be prompted by any number of things: a Youtube video that splices clips of a politician's speech so they are speaking the lyrics to a pop song, an exact replica of Denmark made… Continue reading Too Much Time on Your Hands: A Mini-Essay
Author's note: I have been wanting to write a bit more on the nature of critique and the relationship writers have with critics for some time now, but I have realized it will likely take more than one post in order to properly articulate all my feelings on the subject. As such, I will do… Continue reading Writers v. Beta Readers: Critique Series Part 1
The Crooked Pen 