The Things You Learn Doing Research

Guest Blogger: DP Lyle Writers are constantly doing research to make the story at hand more realistic, or at least more believable. That “willing suspension of disbelief” thing. One false move can yank the reader right out of the story and that’s never good. The reader loses confidence in the …

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Get Mind Blown

Guest Blogger: Donna Galanti In my paranormal suspense novel, A HUMAN ELEMENT, book 1 in the Element Trilogy, Laura Armstrong can perform telekinesis. What exactly is telekinesis? It’s the action of mind on matter, in which objects are caused to move as a result of mental concentration upon them. Is …

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ON RESURRECTING AN ICONIC CHARACTER

Guest Blogger: Eric Van Lustbader I wrote THE NINJA in 1980 and it became an immediate worldwide sensation, ultimately spending twenty-four weeks on the NEW YORK TIMES bestseller list. The book was picked up by 20th Century Fox to be made into a film. Five more novels featuring the protagonist, Nicholas …

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The Magic Pencil

When I was young, I’d look at a pencil and think it was magical. I imagined all the words the pencil could write, all the stories it could create. Then I thought of all the magic pencils out in the world and all the books they had written. I wanted …

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3 Writing Truths

There are no hard and fast rules in writing, but here are three principles I adhere to: 1. Write with your heart. 2. Edit with your head. 3. Tell the truth of the story.       Image courtesy of Stuart Miles/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net  

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5 Things to Inspire Creativity

There are so many things that inspire me. Some inspire me to work harder, others to play more, and some to be a better person. Inspiration comes in so many forms. Here are five things that inspire me and that can inspire you too: 1. Looking at Photographs — Whenever …

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5 Reasons Why I Love Libraries

1. One of my favorite memories from my childhood is of going to the library on Saturday mornings, checking out a huge stack of books, coming home and spreading them across the floor, deciding what order to read them, and then digging in to those pages that magically transformed me …

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4 Things Every Writer Needs

Every writer has his or her own needs. It could be a quiet place to write or music to inspire the words. It could be a pen and paper or a computer, or even a tape recorder. It could be a jar of M & M’s or a jug of …

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5 Best Books of 2013

There were a ton of books I wanted to read this year, but I couldn’t get to them all. Here’s my five favorites of those I enjoyed (in no particular order). 1. The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson — “Lennie plays second clarinet in the school orchestra and has always …

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7 Favorite Books on Writing

Most authors have a list of  their favorite books about the writing process that they’d recommend to others.  Here’s my top seven: 1. Writing the Breakout Novel Workbook by Donald Maass — via hands-on exercises and examples from successful novels, this workbook teaches authors how to “develop and strengthen aspects …

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