Point of View

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

POINT OF VIEW: Winning the Draft

by
editing - pixabay

I’m in my happy place. 🙂 I just finished the first draft of “Dropnauts: Redemption Book One” (I know, this one has had more names than Diddy) last week. I’m in the middle of the second draft, and that’s one of my favorite parts of writing. Why, you ask? Because: I don’t have to push my poor little writer’s brain to be extra creative and come up with all sorts of new things, like I do in first draft. The story is still fresh to me – in fact, it’s the first time I actually get to take a step … Read more

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

POINT OF VIEW: Setting Goals (And Making Them)

by

I am both immensely thrilled and a whole lotta stressed today as I write this. I set myself two missions at the start of this year – one, to get into the Science Fiction Writers’ Association (SFWA, pronounced Siffwuh) by writing and selling a qualifying short story. And two, to take steps to snag an agent for what I hope will be the next step in my writing career. Well, missions one accomplished. This week I got not one but four rejections from the major sci fi magazines to which I have submitted. I know, that’s totally not where you … Read more

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

POINT OF VIEW: Immersed In Another World

by
immersion - deposit photos

I’m writing as much each day as I have at any point since Nano four years ago. When I get this deep into one of my stories, I start to practically live in that another world. I’m approaching the end of my latest novel, a solar punk sci fi tale that blends gee-whiz tech, epic scenery, crazy twists and turns, and a pervasive sense of hope I feel like we sorely need right now. I’m writing 1200-2000 words a day, and the story and its characters are on constant rotation in my head. All throughout the day I notice little … Read more

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

POINT OF VIEW: The Power of Downtime

by
lazy - deposit photos

Everyone needs downtime. Even writers. I know this, and yet I am spectacularly bad at actually letting myself enjoy any of it. Writer brains, as any writer will likely attest, are strange creatures. Mine is a magpie, flitting through life and chasing whatever is bright, shiny, and new. The other day, we had lunch with friends, and one of them comes from a family of K’s, where every sibling’s first name starts with “K.” And then she mentioned that one of their daughter’s names started with an “E.” And off my little writer brain went. Families with kids whose names … Read more

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

POINT OF VIEW: Writing at a Dead Run

by
run - pixabay

I’m writing my ass off. Seriously, I haven’t written at this brisk a pace since NaNoWriMo back in… 2014? 2015? I have the wind at my back. Or maybe it’s a pack of snarling wolves. Or perhsps just the fear of not making it – never quite getting to where I want to be as an author before I die. Hitting your fifties encourages a whole lot of “what have I done with my life” soul-searching. Those who follow me (thanks to both of you!) know that I am gearing up to find an agent, to take the next step … Read more

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

POINT OF VIEW: Rewriting the Past

by

I’ve been in the process of re-releasing a number of my older works. It’s funny to think I’ve been published long enough to actually have some older works. LOL… In the process, I’ve had a chance to see how my writing has changed over the years. Most recently, I updated “The Homecoming,” coming out this Wednesday in eBook and (for the first time) paperback! The story itself held up remarkably well – I even had a few of those “damn, I actually wrote this?” moments, which is always nice for an author. *grin* But there were a few things I … Read more

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

POINT OF VIEW: Here We Go

by
rocket - pixabay

So things are a ‘changin for me. I have finally completed the two trilogies I’ve been working on for the last two years (well, four years for Oberon) and I am looking ahead to what’s next. I have decided to take my shot at the bigtime. I have discussed this with my current publishers – the wonderful folks at both Mischief Corner Books and Dreamspinner Publications – and I am going to try to get an agent for my next book. My ultimate goal is to break into one of the big publishing houses to see where it might take … Read more

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

POINT OF VIEW: When Things Are hard

by
fork in the road - deposit photos

Let me start by saying that this is not one of those “pity the poor writer” columns. But this is an acknowledgement that I am in a rough place right now. It’s been an amazing two weeks, and a really tough two weeks. Davis Pride, where our local author group had a booth, was very nearly rained out by a huge unseasonable storm. We pushed through it, and it was a successful event, but it was hard going filled with uncertainty. Then we had a great reading at the Lavender Library, but aside from our own “writing family,” only two … Read more

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

POINT OF VIEW: The World Needs to Calm the F* Down.

by
crazy - pixabay

Pride Season is upon us, and with it, so many things I have to do, and so little time to do them. We have two readings in Sacramento this week (thank you Jeff Adams for managing one of them!), two pride celebrations, an author lunch, and that’s just the stuff on my local author group plate. The world outside our doorstep seems to be spinning out of control, my writing is on hold until I can find time for it, and somehow I have about ten times as many things to do as I have time to do them. So … Read more

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

POINT OF VIEW: Squeeze Reading

by
Squeeze - Deposit Photos

For years, I have maintained that I simply had no time to read. My days are so tightly scheduled that I couldn’t even think about picking up a new book, let alone diving in with the intent to finish the whole damned thing. That changed this last month. Not because I suddenly had a lot less to do. No, it was thanks to the humble porcelain toilet. Really. See, I figured out that do have a batch of otherwise unstructured time. I am sorry if it offends anyone’s delicate sensibilities, but bathroom time is also the perfect reading time (as … Read more