I’d taken a break from this blog at the end of 2019, as I struggled to think about what my next writing project would be. My novel was under consideration by agents but wasn’t getting traction. And I was flailing around a bit as to what to work on next. Do the next novel in …
In my last post I explored the emotional motivations of a character I was developing, putting meat on the bones. As I’ve worked the last month to continue to develop my new book project, I’ve given more thought to character development, realizing that I had more to say on the topic. I can know something …
I confess, this sounds like the start to a horror genre post but it’s not, despite my residence in Stephen King country. No, the image that popped into my head as I was beginning work on a new novel was a scene at the beginning of the visually compelling SF movie The Fifth Element in …
My wife and I have run The Maine Review for the last three years and had a wonderful time doing it, publishing some great work and learning a ton. One of our editors has stepped up to take over the magazine, making it her own, and we’re thrilled for the transition. I’m in the middle …
I’d posted on Instagram two months ago after I finished the final draft of my novel and was re-shelving my books. At the moment it felt great; I was entering the next phase of my writing life, floating the little messages in a bottle that are query letters. And I got to return to research, …
I absolutely love research. But reflecting back on how much time I spent on it for my novel, I now feel like I have a better sense of how much is enough to get the job done. No question, research is an excellent inspiration for a novel, especially one set 30 years in the past, …
How shall I thank thee, let me count the ways. OK, horrible pun/misquote, but this was the first major work of mine in which I used beta readers, and I’m so grateful. I know there are a ton of different opinions on how to best leverage them and when in your writing process they are …
I recounted in my last post a comment from an agent about the historical setting of my novel. She didn’t understand why it was set in 1990 rather than the present day. As with much of her other critique, although I didn’t agree, it did make me examine the “why” of my creative decisions. When …
I had the opportunity to attend Grub Street‘s wonderful yearly writing conference, Muse and the Marketplace, last week. I participated in their Manuscript Mart program, in which you provide your query letter, synopsis and first 20 pages to an agent or editor. It’s a great program, one I’ve participated in both in 2018 and 2017 …
There’s a scene in an early season of Mad Men in which the character Kinsey, staying all night in the office, has a great idea while drinking, then wakes to find the idea gone and nothing for his pitch to Don Draper. “I had an idea and I lost it,” he admits. In a moment …