I’m hitting the beach for Shark Week – I mean, Fourth of July. Expect less in the way of posts, (but you never know – I miss you guys.) I have a cool cookbook that’s 4th of July related; maybe I’ll run it on sale for 99 cents. If I do, the only place it’s […]
One of the instructors at the Florida Writer’s conference was Molli Nickell, She’s a scream. VERY funny lady, and very talented. Molli worked for 30 years as a Time Life Editor and publisher. She was the one making the decision about which writers received the “thanks but no thanks” rejection letter! She’s doing a free […]
I was reading a blog by a writer I really don’t like (Yeah, I know, WHY do I do that???) and he was being self-important for a moment (which is part of why I don’t like his blog) and he gave out some stats to bolster a point about why he can’t reply to every […]
You see conferences posted all the time, and a lot of them just seem like a way to separate you from your money. And pry you out of your writer hole to interact with other human beings. The horror. Occasionally, though, there are some good conferences that are worth attending. We’ve discussed other author events, […]
Recently we talked about writing better stories (HERE) https://atomic-temporary-57188753.wpcomstaging.com/2015/06/07/writing-better-stories-part-1/?preview_id=784 But sometimes you just write crap! You read it, and it’s terrible. You’re one of those people now. “Yesterday, I wrote the same paragraph over and over until it was perfect. Today I looked at it and it was shit.” What then? I actually had that […]
The other night as I was trying to fall asleep at 3 AM after a huge writing binge (of which I’m particularly proud), there was a commercial on TV for some old ‘60s records. Maybe they were ‘70s I don’t know. Oldies though. They played a snippet of a song that I never really knew […]
I have no idea what this is. I mean, I know it’s when a writer can’t write, can’t think of what to write, or whatever, but I have never had it. I hear everyone gets it… So I don’t hold myself out as special, I just wonder WHAT IS IT? Maybe everyone doesn’t get it, […]
On occasion I’ll share a critique or a letter from a critique partner. The names of the writer and the story have been changed so I don’t have to give them credit for writing my blog for me. Learn about why you should join a critique group HERE https://atomic-temporary-57188753.wpcomstaging.com/2015/05/24/why-you-should-join-a-critique-group-you-arrogant-sob/ Dear Dan, Some of my […]
People ask me all the time, “Should I Hire An Editor?” Yes. And no. There, that’s settled. Different people have different needs, so let’s explore the options. You and another author friend are coming up on your editing phase, and both of you want to hire editors – which is a decision I respect. A […]
As part of her Father’s Day Special, Sara Given asked me and some other authors to make quirky captions for dad-related pictures. Sara is known for mocking the idyllic family images often used in ads to set unrealistic standards for normal people.) You can check out the rest of them here. Mine got 60 Likes […]
DAN ALATORRE