Some highlights from the past 8 years

It's less than five hours before this post goes live, and I'm undecided over what to write. No good topic comes to mind, so I'll link some of the popular blog posts from over the years. Feel free to pick and choose what you like.

Beginning writers might find Showing & Telling and The Snobbish Rules of Fiction helpful.

If you're new to critiques, try What's a Critique? It includes a list of abbreviations and critique lingo.

Do you struggle with info dumps?

Would you like to write faster?

What is author intrusion, and how do you avoid it?

This post was about my experience with plotting.

For those who need to brush up on grammar, try this page. It's a list of links to all the Grammar Police posts I made.

Here's a post with plenty of tips for surviving book signings.

This was a fun one on how to catch skunks.

If you know any readers who want to support authors but are reluctant to review the books they read, send them here: How to Write a Book Review.

Thanks for visiting. 

I hope you and yours are happy and well.

Pub & Promo Help from L. Diane Wolfe

L. Diane Wolfe has formatted for me in the past. She's professional and talented, so when I heard how the pandemic had hindered her ability to earn a living with in-person classes, I offered to help her get the word out about her webinars. For a very reasonable price, you can learn about publishing and promoting your books in the safety and comfort of your own home.

How to Publish Your Book Now (Publishing 101) is now a double webinar.

Register at https://www.eztalks.com/r/950554940 for May 19 – part 1 and at https://www.eztalks.com/r/938209289 for May 21 - part 2

Stay home, stay safe, and join me those two nights!

How to Promote Your Book Now (Publishing 102) is now a double webinar.

Register at https://www.eztalks.com/r/956771777 for June 9 - part 1 and at https://www.eztalks.com/r/978993990 for June 11 - part 2.

Stay home, stay safe, and join me those two nights!


Consider signing up and helping a talented, deserving member of the writing community. If Diane is behind it, you know it'll be good.

The things we take for granted

Being stuck at home on my days off has given me time to do some cleaning. I came across a little comb-bound booklet that was given to me by my mom and one of my father's cousins. The booklet, titled This I Remember, is a collection of details my paternal great grandfather remembered from the early years of his life in the late 1800s.

I blogged about my great grandfather a few years ago, when I related the story of his elopement. William Edgar Whitten (Nov. 1875 - Apr. 1975) was a hard-working gentleman who achieved much in his life with only an 3rd-grade education. Though he eventually settled in South Texas, he grew up "a farmer's son in the piney woods and rock hills of Georgia."

I decided to blog about some of the things he remembered. When I start feeling like my life is difficult, it only takes reading something like this to make me realize just how easy I have it.

From This I Remember, by William Edgar Whitten:

NEW RELEASE! The Dragon's Heart by David Powers King

One of my favorite writing friends has a new book! David Powers King, co-author of Woven and contributing author to FULL DARK just released The Dragon's Heart.

The Dragon's Heart is well-paced fantasy with charming characters that will suck you in and hold your interest. It's available from Amazon. Consider buying a copy to show your support.

For more info about the release and David's upcoming projects, click here.

FULL DARK got a facelift

What do authors do when they're stuck at home?
They write and dust off when-I-have-time projects.

The FULL DARK anthology authors and I decided to give the book a new cover. Author Carrie Butler was kind enough to make and donate a new one. She did an awesome job, don't you think?

Hunkered Down in Houston

Well, Katy, Texas, actually. A smaller city right on the western edge.

And I'm not exactly hunkered down. Only on my days off. Despite my county's 'stay-at-home' order, I can't. I'm a nurse, so that makes me an essential employee.

I wasn't sure what to post today, or even if I should. I decided to keep my promise to myself to blog at least monthly, despite the pandemic.

There's enough scary news bombarding us, so I'll keep it upbeat.

BDSM for Christians

Okay, so I sensationalized the title a bit.
What kind of writer would I be if I didn't try to hook you. :P

I came across something a while back that completely blew me away. I was reading a book review that mentioned 'domestic discipline.' I had never heard of the term, so I promptly looked it up.

Domestic Discipline (DD) relationship is one in which one partner is given authority over the other, and has the means to back up that authority, usually by spanking.

Yeah. I know. Stay with me.

NEW RELEASE - About Us by Elizabeth Seckman