This has no specific connection to historical fiction, but it might be worth thinking about anyway in this month of NaNoWriMo, when we’re all pushing ourselves to write as if the devil were at our heels. Is it possible to be too productive? I think it is, and I may have broken that sound barrier lately… to my detriment. A Case of Logorrhea We all know the cardinal rule of writing: butt in chair and fingers on keyboard. This sort … Read More »

I’m a bit of a research geek. I love learning new things. Facts. Theories. I don’t get it when a writer complains about all the research that has to be done. But I’ve found that researching the stuff I don’t know is easier than researching what I do know. Because it turns out that many things I know are simply wrong. For a story about 17th century Ireland, I huddled over maps, read the histories of the region, the politics … Read More »

I’ve gone home from the Florida Writer Association’s Royal Palm Literary Award banquets with an armful of trophies and I’ve gone home empty-handed. Both euphoria at winning and a tinge of disappointment over not are valid emotions. But there is another set of powerful feelings that I have discovered that transcends my own personal outcomes in the contests. These I would describe under the banner of  “satisfaction.” When I look around the room I see hope in the eyes of … Read More »

An image on Facebook prompted me to write this post. The caption read: “A writer is working when looking out the window.” “That’s me!” my mind shouted. (I would have shouted out loud, but I was at work and being on Facebook during office hours is frowned upon.) Conscientious employee that I am, I logged out and began my other work, but my mind kept returning to that statement. Does a writer’s brain have an off switch? (Just for writing/creative … Read More »

On January 22, 1999, I attended a writerly event at the University of Central Florida: “Distinguished Author Series: Margaret Atwood.” Yes, THE famous Margaret Atwood. You may know that Atwood, a Canadian, authored the best-selling, horrifying, dystopian novel, The Handmaid’s Tale (1985), which television producers — with their sights on America’s currently inflamed neurosis — are feeding the airwaves as a television series for all the world to watch. But in 1999 when I was standing in the aisle to … Read More »

Exceptional writing. It is the level to which all of us aspire. We want our thoughts and ideas and words to inspire, move, and touch our readers. Exactly what does it take to reach that level of performance? A deep understanding of grammar and language?Vivid vocabulary? Writing classes to help understand the craft of writing? Creativity? While all of these things are critical to being successful as a writer, the easiest answer comes down to one word: practice. The more … Read More »