Writing while stressed-out is a real drag.
Category: Writing
The Trouble With Tropes
As a reader of romance, both contemporary and historical, I am completely okay with the use of tropes. What's a trope? It's a commonly used literary theme or motif like 'city girl moves to the country and falls for its native son.' As Ecclesiastes says "There is no new thing under the sun." You could … Continue reading The Trouble With Tropes
Bonus! Alt Chapter One From The Broken Trail
Here it is folks, the alternate first chapter to The Broken Trail. If you haven't read the book, click the pic for a great deal, not just The Broken Trail for an amazingly low price, but six other full-length, Contemporary Christian Romance novels. It's free on Kindle Unlimited too. These two scenes were eventually deleted … Continue reading Bonus! Alt Chapter One From The Broken Trail
The Pain of Having a Real Life Backstory
Backstories, we've all got them. When writing a novel I give a backstory to all my characters, even the secondary ones, even if the information never makes it to the page. I want them to feel like real people, and real people interact with others, based in part, on their past experiences. If those experiences … Continue reading The Pain of Having a Real Life Backstory
The Joy and the Terror of Feedback
After battling a nasty virus I am back at the keyboard working on book three. Over the last few days, I’ve been able to have a range of folks read the early, un-edited chapters. I noticed that about half the people were tripping up on the same, small detail. I gave Annie, the female MC, … Continue reading The Joy and the Terror of Feedback
Snowflakes Welcome Here
November was rough. Actually, it's been a rough Autumn. I utterly failed to do NaNoWriMo, I didn't meet my exercise goals, and I didn't get a job I really wanted. There's no point into relating the trash-fire that is our political system here in the States so let's just move along. I'm not sorry to … Continue reading Snowflakes Welcome Here
Interview at Jodie Wolfe’s Blog
Hey folks, Check out this interview with yours truly at Jodie Wolfe's website. Check it out.
Time Wanted & Wasted: A Writer’s Lament
As some of you folks may know, I am on a sabbatical for the summer and working on several projects. The first is my health since sitting at a desk for the last two decades has left me in dire need of exercise. The second is our house. We’ve decided to put in a new … Continue reading Time Wanted & Wasted: A Writer’s Lament
Writing Advice: The Good Stuff
Looking for writing advice? The internet has a ton waiting for you. You'll find the good, the bad, and the downright odd a Google search away. My favorite odd advice? Edgar Alan Poe suggested that a writer better the story this way - "Include a beautiful woman with raven locks and porcelain skin, preferably quite young, … Continue reading Writing Advice: The Good Stuff
A Pitch for Forgiveness
In the business world as well as the creative industries there's something called the 'elevator pitch'. It's a way to summarize your project for a prospective customer/agent/publisher/producer. The idea is to make the pitch concise enough to fit the length of a ride in an elevator from one floor to the next. It's something that writers have to develop … Continue reading A Pitch for Forgiveness
Christa MacDonald 