Tag Archives: writer’s tools

Don’t be too ambitious……

Learned a lesson again, yesterday. I’m in the midst of a first edit of an upcoming novel, tentatively titled Coup de Grace. Work stuff is closing in, so I realized I’ve got to floor it or the editing won’t get done … Continue reading

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Committing to paper: draft 2

After 6 months of steady writing and editing, I finished. I wrote the original draft, then edited the entire thing again. That was the original plan, and I did it. It’s time to commit to paper. Large principle of editing: … Continue reading

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Imagination shakes hands with reality.

I’ve written a complete first draft of a story set in a small town. I used my imagination, and a healthy dose of Google map to figure out the logistics. And then I decided to visit. What a weird trip. … Continue reading

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Editing, dummies for dummies

The editing process has several phases. Once the manuscript has been accepted, there’s a close read for plot and its problems. The details have to be right. Right? In our case, we’re working from a Word file and ping-ponging it … Continue reading

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Marketing a book: in with the old & in with the new

As you probably know, marketing of a book is a very big deal. In some ways, like the  music industry, the marketing can be a bigger deal than the work itself. It’s also the most difficult for most authors. I … Continue reading

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Editing the book: getting it “righter”

Let me spend a few words on describing what happened once Bitingduck accepted my manuscript. Editor-in-chief, Jay Nadeau, once the contract was signed, asked me to work on some initial revisions. Now, instead of just one set of eyes on … Continue reading

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Rejection slips, God’s rude angels (Floating the duck, part II)

(Photo borrowed from “Duck of the Day“) But by this time, I had met a novelist, and he offered to read the first 35 pages of my story for free. He also explained how important those first 35 pages were. … Continue reading

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Sit on your eggs

Many people don’t believe their thoughts have any value. When these people have an inkling, an idea, or some other great mental event, they shrug it off and forget about it. Thoughts, for me, are like eggs. Many times, I … Continue reading

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Don’t be perfect: the janitor approach

Today’s note is about one of the big barriers that keeps people from writing: perfection. Many folks believe that writing has to be right when it gets typed in, or at least they act that way. I don’t know if … Continue reading

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You still are the biggest tool around, when it comes to the writing process. As I’ve been suggesting, one of the most critical pieces of writing successfully is figuring out how you like to write. I can’t really tell you … Continue reading

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