Point of View

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POINT OF VIEW: After the Fall

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hope - pixabay

Anyone who read my column last week knows how devastated I was to find out someone I used to be close to had been killed eight years ago, and I’d only just found out last week. I’ve spent the last week and a half processing this. I’m a writer – that’s what we do. Now I am starting to emerge on the far side. I want to thank my friends and family for rallying around me, and I want to acknowledge the pain of those who were much closer to Damon than I, and who lost so much more with … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: He’s Gone

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damon-blurry

WARNING: This is a bit raw and intense. Read at your own risk. He was the first boy I ever wanted. He was the first boy who wanted me. He was my first. On October 23rd, 2009, Damon Nicholson was brutally murdered by a man who had slept with him the night before. He was beaten with a baseball bat in his own home so the man and his accomplice could take his electronics and sell them for drug money. I didn’t know this. I had been thinking about him for the last few days, and last Saturday I decided … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: A New Start

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Scott 2018

Welcome to 2018! 2017 was a mixture of highs and lows for me and for us: –In January, the worst President of my lifetime entered the White House after the best one left –Mark and I also launched QueeRomance Ink –In February, my first novel “Skythane” came out, to great reviews –In March, I got to hang out with some of my best friends at the Dreamspinner Retreat in Orlando –Over the summer and into the fall, our health care was threatened numerous times –In September, we launched Other Worlds Ink, our author support company, starting with book tours –In … Read more

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Point of View: Writer’s Wait

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Writer's Block - Pixabay

Hey all, I just spent the last three weeks agonizing over the plot for “Ithani” – the last book in my Oberon Cycle trilogy. I’m dealing with eight major characters, trying to deliver on the romance piece for a third time, and planning wrap up all of the loose ends by the end of the book. I’ve sat down to outline things on a couple occasions, and nothing felt quite right. It’s like trying to stuff yourself into a pair of jeans that’s three sizes too small–it felt forced, and just sat there on the page, taunting me with its … Read more

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POV: Writing Down the Bones

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Scott - Writing Down the Bones

Even authors need occasional refresher courses and inspiration. On those occasions, there’s one book I’ve had for a long time, that I like to dip into to remind me why I became a writer, and that suggests little exercises to do to train my writing muscles. It’s called “Writing Down the Bones,” by Natalie Goldberg, and it’s full of great musings on writing and things to try to free up your creative reflexes. A random selection of chapter topics: Fighting Tofu We Are Not the Poem Writers Have Good Figures Don’t Marry the Fly Blue Lipstick and a Cigarette Hanging … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: Plotting My Revenge

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Scott - Muwahahaha

* maniacal laughter in background * Hey all, Okay, so my next novel, “The Rising Tide,” is now out the door to the publisher. Which brings me to my strange new year, in which I will be writing the third and final books for not one but two trilogies – “Liminal Sky” and “The Oberon Cycle.” Final books are where everything gets accounted for… all the little loose threads must be identified and wrapped up, the good guys get their win (usually), and the bad guys get what’s coming to them. I am diving into Ithani this week (the final … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: Things I’m Thankful For

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Thankful - pixabay

Hey all, In light of the fact that Thanksgiving has just come and gone, I thought I would reflect on the things I am thankful for as a writer. First and foremost, my husband Mark, who has always been supportive of my writing, and who gave me the kick in the ass to get things going again, back in 2013. Love you! Second, I am grateful that I somehow was given the talent to write, and that the ideas don’t stop coming. I am grateful for my wide circle of writerly and readerly friends, especially my QSF co-admins Angel Martinez … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: A Good Beta

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beta reader - 123rf purchased

Hey all, I just got the last of my beta reads back for “The Rising Tide,” the sequel to “”The Stark Divide.” If you don’t know what a beta reader is, it’s someone who reads an author’s story and gives it a critical review before the author submits the book to the publisher, giving us the chance to fix any egregious errors or plot misfires before the editors see the story. I love my beta readers. I hate my beta readers. It’s a private joke between Angel and us that, just once, I want my beta readers to all agree … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: Sometimes I Want It Sweet

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sweet love - pixabay

I write all kinds of things. OK, basically three kinds of things: –Sci Fi –Fantasy –Contemporary Magical Realism I am well-known for always wanting my contemporary to have a little extra something. The magical medallion in “Between the Lines”, the Freaky friday situation in “The Bear at the Bar”, and the sparkles in “River City”. Even my holiday tales have been affected. “A New Year” features an elf from Faerie, and last year’s Christmas tale “Wonderland” had both zombies and a post-apocalyptic Earth. But sometimes I just wanna go sweet. So this year, for the first time, I’ve penned a … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: Zombies in River City

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zombies - pixabay

Hey all, I am working my way through my consistency edit for “The River City Chronicles.” Yeah, I know, hobgoblin of little minds, and all that. But in a work of fiction, consistency is king. And in a serial story, it can be especially difficult to maintain, because a) it’s written over a relatively long period of time, and b) each chapter is published and essentially set in stone almost right away, so it’s harder to go back and fix things. And for me, c) I jumped into this too quickly, didn’t get a good head start, and took lousy … Read more