People are always surprised when they find out book titles are often not the title the author used. Looking back, my publisher changed the title of five of my nine books. And that’s okay! I’ve long since learned not to get attached to my working title, and often I’ll...
Think of all the ways to spread an idea and you'll probably get a consensus that one of the most difficult ways is to write a novel. To express through character, emotion, and story that big idea you have. So many people tell me they've always wanted to write a book....
This month marks a momentous anniversary: in March 2003 I typed the first words of my first novel. I had no clue what I was doing at first. I never dreamed of being a writer, nor did I know anything about the art of writing itself. But twenty years ago I was...
A book comes alive in editing. Unfortunately, editing sucks.Editing is the time where you have face hard truths about your book, and as tempting as it is to tell yourself, ah, it's fine, the reality is without putting in serious post-first-draft work, your book will...
Back in September I asked you all to suggest a topic for my newsletter, and a reader said they wanted to know what my fears are. Well, number one on that list is a fear of my cat taking over my newsletter (and based on the number of emails I got, Guff has a lot of new...
It's November, so that means it's time for the Halloween Scream Reel. I revealed in last month's newsletter that my theme this year was Disco Inferno, so basically I transformed my garage in a dance club located in hell. The main attraction was the...
It's that lovely time of year ago when thoughts turn to scaring the hell out of little kids. Halloween!For my newer subscribers, you should know I'm kinda into this holiday. I remember, when I was a little kid, there would always be that ONE HOUSE that was the crazy...
I was interviewed the other day in a writers' workshop, and the topic was newsletters. I was asked how long I've been writing mine, and I answered three years. After the workshop, I went to check. And you know what? As of this month, it's been FIVE YEARS. I was...
I have eight books published, and they are all standalone thrillers. By standalone, I mean none of my books is part of a series (though The New Neighbor and The Dead Husband have very direct ties to one another.) In case you haven't noticed, series...
Do writers socialize? Hell yeah we do!Writing seems like such as solitary thing. There's the image of the novelist walking in the snowy woods to the single-room cabin, outfitted with only an ancient typewriter, a fireplace, an endless supply of coffee, and, of course,...
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