Being a Writer in New England
My output is amazing during the winter. For me, cold, dark days are conducive to hunkering down and writing as is the soggy, cool springtime. But once warm, sunny, blue skies roll around, it is so hard to keep my…
Tag: Grub Street
Value Your Writing (cause no one else does*)
Grub Street’s Muse and the Marketplace conference is this weekend. It’s always a good time of the year in Boston. Hundreds of writerly folks gather to talk craft, to talk publishing, to talk to each other, and to drink (because…
Six Tips for Building a Fantasy World
Every novelist builds a world, but if you’re writing fantasy or science fiction, worldbuilding is a bigger job—one I’m often tempted to skimp on. It’s great fun to think about magic in a new world—not so fun to figure out…
YA Wednesday: Three Things for YA Writers to Keep in Mind, 8 Habits of Successful YA Authors, Music to Avoid in YA, and a Politically Correct Lord of the Flies
This is the time of year that makes us wish we were back in school. Not because we want homework or tests, but because we want back to school clothes, back to school shoes (black patent leather ones, please), stacks…
Last Minute Tips Before You Head to the Writers Conference
Here in Boston, GrubStreet’s Muse and the Marketplace conference is about to begin. I look forward to the Muse every year. What could be more fun? It’s like day camp for writers. Conferences are amazing places where writers can recharge,…
THIS DRAFT SUCKS
It’s the first afternoon of the Novel Incubator Alumni Writing Retreat in Jackson, NH. From my room up in the eaves, I read over the last chapter of the latest draft of my novel, attach the whole thing to an…