Category Archives: writing tools

Wets Talk about Webby Witing:
Pantsers, Planners, and Plotting

Posted on by

The argument begins like this… “When you write intricate plots, you always have to change things and rewrite and it’s hard to just write that story straight through.” “Not for me,” says the irritating pantser who goes from start to finish. You’ve probably guessed I’m not a pantser, but a planner. While I do allow creative things to take over, and do embrace that happy accident that solves a plotting problem, I am, at the heart of it all, a technical writer. I’m also whole-brain, and often my right brain and left brain are embroiled in hand-to-hand combat. While those … Continue reading →

Bitch-Slapping Google Docs:
Indie Authors Beware of editing in Google Docs

Posted on by

here’s a warning to all other Indie authors. Be aware that Google Docs might create this issue with your manuscript as well. I won’t be using that again.

Continue reading →

Workspaces & Tentacle Sex

Posted on by

Since my surgery at the end of May, I have had to accommodate my recovery, while still getting my work done. The whole thing has made me feel old and decrepit. Our bedroom is now in the living room because it was just easier to put everything in one room. Especially after we realized the landlords weren’t going to cut down the dead trees and falling limbs just outside our wall of windows in the bedroom. We didn’t feel safe there, so the living room became our new bedroom. Only recently, could I sit in a desk chair as I … Continue reading →

Thoughts from a Literary Contrarian

Posted on by

Let’s face it: the fairy tale never happens like that in real life. So if it’s not naïveté, then it’s compliant escapism; and what a sad commentary on a life, that one would need such callow, fanciful stories to avoid being present in it. I enjoy the commonality and compatibility in my current relationship. (Wait. Current relationship makes it sound temporary. It’s not. Let me give that another go: I enjoy the commonality and compatibility with my love, my life, my lovely wife. (Better). Anyway, we have this ritual of reading every night before sleep, if not also in blocks … Continue reading →

Space Invader

Posted on by

[Blast from the past–from April 8, 2004] It started out with me on my way to the grocery store, having awakened with no coffee in the house-a tragedy all on its own. I thought of that little coffeeshop down the street and thought maybe I’d stop in to check it out, so I brought what i lovingly refer to as my Tippi Tap Typer just in case. Roscoe’s Music and Espresso Cafe was a tiny establishment, but intriguing. It was time I tried to get out of the house a little and use my new toy in a different environment. … Continue reading →

Indie Overload

Posted on by

Being an independent author and publisher has its perks, like creative control and higher royalties, but it also has its headaches. For instance, I have to do the job of about 12 people most of the time. I have to be a writer, editor, graphic artist, publisher, indexer, typographer, secretary, publicist, agent, personal assistant, accountant, shipping manager… and anything else that might arise. Managing all of the inherent details of such an endeavor is a monster-job, but I have found it difficult to explain to others why a computer crash is such a stressful tragedy for me.  My writing directory … Continue reading →

New Videos of Supernatural Hypocrisy

Posted on by

I have posted a widget to show my videos of my 6-volume book, Supernatural Hypocrisy: The Cognitive Dissonance of a God Cosmology on my blog for that project–the other blog is at the link. I hope it will be a more accessible way for those busy-bees among us to enjoy the content. As for the book itself, it has become such a Magnum Opus. I am considering breaking it into several volumes. But even if I do that, it is still taking more time than i like to complete. The reference section alone is up to 20 pages. So I … Continue reading →

Mapping your Settings

Posted on by

I have always been a stickler about authentic detail in my writing. This trait has forced me to find innovative ways to make that happen. Google Maps is one of those tools I use. Novelists have to deal with many details while composing their books. One of the most challenging, if you are concerned about verisimilitude–an air of authenticity–is setting. Many times I have set my story in a place I’ve never been. Then, as the story evolves, I find that the logistics of moving characters around becomes problematic, because I’m not sure where one location is, in relation to … Continue reading →

Writer’s Block UNblocked.

Posted on by

  Most writers eventually ask the question: “I’m really stuck with the plot/storyline of my novel. Do you know of something that will help me?” Here’s a list of things you can do to get unstuck. 1. Research. One thing that has always worked for me is new information. Do some reading about elements of your story. I’m not talking about style–I’m talking about research. For instance, read information about the city in which you’ve placed the story. Location can often become somewhat of a character in its own right. Read about any of the other elements in the story–like … Continue reading →