“If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.” ― Toni Morrison
After the dreaded Hell Bent, I considered myself done with Doctor Who. I still watch reruns, read books featuring past Doctors, and listen to Big Finish audiodramas. But that thirst to see more? That urgency to find out what is in store for one of the best characters in science fiction? That is gone. Hell… Continue reading Doctor Who Christmas Special: I’m Cautiously Optimistic
A fair amount of people are giving JK Rowling grief about constantly making amendments to the Harry Potter series. While I can understand where they are coming from (and heartily disagree that Hermione and Harry should have gotten together), I can't entirely blame her for not wanting to leave the Wizarding World forever. I mean,… Continue reading JK Rowling and the Inability to Let Go of Harry Potter
Does anyone else have a difficult time writing on Sunday? For me, it's one of the most grueling days to get any work done. Here I am, in a cafe, sitting in front of a laptop with a Pages document open to a story I've been writing for God knows how long, and all I… Continue reading The Dreaded Sunday Slump
I've noticed something a bit startling about myself: I am prone to ranting. However, I like to think of my rants as well-constructed and justified. More often than not, they spawn from a place of righteous indignation about things of no real consequence. Most of my rants revolve around terrible writing in the plethora of… Continue reading You Are The Ranting Queen
A friend of mine recently introduced me to British comedy, Black Books, which stars Irish comedian Dylan Moran. It's a show about a combative and anti-social bookstore owner in England and the strange adventures he gets into with his posse of misfits. As a fan of English comedy, I fell head over heels in love with Black… Continue reading Opinion: Comedies Are Terrible Now
A few weeks ago, I was given an assignment to create an autobiographical piece for my documentary class. No big deal, I thought. I talk about myself on my blog all the time. Producing a 10 minute video over a subject I know intimately should be no struggle. It is such a struggle. I've amassed… Continue reading This is a Story about YOU: a Documentary
I see tweets all the time about writing goals. Goals are good. Goals help motivate. But I've never been good at them. Deadlines help but I still struggle to meet them. A friend of mine gave me a deadline for two weeks and I think I emailed her the finished project about a month later. Word… Continue reading Word Count Goals
Growing up, it was difficult to find people who loved to read as much as I did. Or people who read at all, really. I've always baffled by people who claim reading is boring, and yet spend hours and hours in front of the TV watching reality television. "How can you read so much?" they… Continue reading Being a Reader in an Unliterary World
I am happy there is someone who is willing to give me their honest opinion of my work. It can be difficult to a) find someone who is willing to read anything, let alone something I wrote and b) find someone who will not pull punches when it comes to problems with plot, story, characters,… Continue reading Letting My Friend Break My Kneecaps, or Getting Constructive Criticism
I love historical fiction. Especially novels that take place around the Victorian or Regency era. I realize I'm romanticizing a period of inequality, poor hygiene, and convoluted social rules, but dammit if they didn't look good in those waistcoats. What I don't love (well, besides everything I listed above) is all of the research that… Continue reading Research, Write, Repeat: Historical Fiction
The Crooked Pen 