When I begin to write a story, sometimes I have an idea of what my characters will look like, and sometimes I don’t. Sometimes, the vision that I have is only partial. Perhaps a key feature of the person I’ll be writing about, because it will matter a great deal to the plot. Other times, characters pop up. Sometimes they help move the plot along, the clerk at the shop, the barista in the cafe. Other times they appear on…
Do you ever write about the places you’ve been? Or, you know, real places? It’s a common question I hear, and the simple answer is yes— and no. It can be difficult to write about the places we know and not find ourselves overwhelmed and wrapped up in the most minute of details. One of the projects I’m currently in revision mode with takes place between two made up countries, and a real one. The real country just so happens…
Last month, I had so much fun sharing some of my favorite quotes with you, I decided it might be fun to share a few each month. This time, I have five quotes I want to share, and I’ve made them into little square images so you can save them if you want. I like to keep an entire file in my Notes app full of quotes, but it was getting difficult to navigate, so I created several more, all…
I have a love hate relationship with research when it comes to writing. I love learning small minute details I can slip in for the reader and wonder if they’ll catch them. I take great pleasure in wondering if they know a word was chosen for the exact correlation to a scene, or if the tiniest detail I worked in is one they will notice. On the other hand, I hate, which is such a strong word, when I realize…