What would life be like without music? It’s arguably the highest form of human expression that exists. From the time I started taking piano lessons during the summer before I started kindergarten, I’ve always considered myself to be a musician. Reading music came before reading words, which seemed to be a source of pride for… Continue reading If not much else, I’ve got a head full of tunes.
Tag: from writing to publishing
My favorite word I love and hate
Much like the two fictional families in my novel “I Knew Men,” the Fraziers and the Newmans, my own family enjoys hanging out, especially when food is involved. Recently, when I was with my two daughters and a good friend, playing cribbage and sharing a pina colada bowl, our conversation turned to guessing which words… Continue reading My favorite word I love and hate
12 years is a long time to complete a novel — or is it?
In his book, “On Writing,” Stephen King said, “I believe the first draft of a book — even a long one — should take no more than 3 months.” Given that it took me 2 years to complete mine, does it come as a surprise that it took me 12 years to complete the editing… Continue reading 12 years is a long time to complete a novel — or is it?
Cut? But I love this part so much.
So many words! So many words! Turning one novel into two helped to solve my giant word count problem, but I still had a long way to go to get “I Knew Men” into shape if I wanted to pursue publication. There were scenes and experiences that I had thrown my heart into, that I… Continue reading Cut? But I love this part so much.
Whose head is this? The POV lesson
When I received the initial manuscript review of “I Knew Men” from Marg Gilks 12 years ago, I felt both encouraged and discouraged. She gave me confidence about the story itself, but serious editing was needed if I wanted a chance at living the author’s dream. I didn’t have resources to pay for anything beyond… Continue reading Whose head is this? The POV lesson
261,007 words. It’s a magic number – not.
Writing “I Knew Men” was so much fun! The epic story flowed from my brain to my fingers, and once again I was grateful that my parents gave me piano lessons. I can type very fast, to the tune of 261,007 words! What I didn’t know at the time is that the typical novel averages… Continue reading 261,007 words. It’s a magic number – not.
I wrote a novel. It was accepted. Now what?
“I Knew Men” was inspired during long cold winter nights in northern Minnesota where one of my good friends and I would play “Last night I had a dream” – trading dramatic stories starring ourselves as ‘Cinderellas’ in the arms of whoever the 1970’s teen idol of the day happened to be. I’ve been reading,… Continue reading I wrote a novel. It was accepted. Now what?