Reading, wRiting, and Roaming with Author Valerie Biel

June 15, 2017

 

 

 

 

 

 

Using a period of time (or life moment) to begin outlining a novel

It’s summer. In between picnics, parties, and vacations, who has time to write? I certainly struggle to meet my page goals during the warm months. So, in honor of the hot-and-busy season, I’m offering a three-part series designed to assist not so much with writing as outlining. Outlining is as important as writing, yet I neglect it. I’d much rather develop characters than plot points. But this summer, instead of writing pages, I will... Continue Reading

June 6, 2017

I found some stellar books in May, from time travel to a dystopian series called the Gender Game, which is described as like Hunger Games or Divergent. I’ll also admit why I’m critical of a best-selling historical fiction novel that I should have liked way more than I did and gush about two titles by Angie Stanton.

 

 

 

 

I happened up on the Gender Game series by Bella Forrest via a Facebook ad. You’ve all seen them. They proclaim similarities to other popular series and attempt to draw us in. This one worked on me!... Continue Reading

May 30, 2017

In my journey through the steps of independent publishing, refining my writing skills, and most recently completing a successful agent search, I’ve come across some excellent information, tips, tools, and shortcuts that I think would be beneficial to any writer. Once a month, I’ll share the “best of” information and news from the publishing industry as well as feature other authors and writing instructors with tips to share. I am incredibly thankful for the assistance and advice given to me from writing and publishing professionals and am happy pay that forward.

Book News & Events

At the end of April, Green Bay hosted the newly created “UntitledTown Book and Author Festival”. I was unable to go, but from social media posts attendance... Continue Reading

May 25, 2017

I’m so pleased that middle-grade author K.W. Penndorf has stopped to talk about her writing adventure with us. I've read the first book in her Freya series, Freya and the Dragon Egg and give it an enthusiastic five-star review! This Saturday is the realease date for the second book in the series, Freya and the Battle at the Aal Thing. If you're in the Appleton, Wisconsin area you can take part in the release celebration at 1 pm at the Barnes & Noble at 4705 W. Grande Market Drive, Grand Chute. 

ABOUT BOOK ONE: Freya's family is wonderful. Just not to her. After all, her older sister loves to talk about "pulling a Freya" - a term for any... Continue Reading

May 16, 2017

 

 

 

 

The strength of patience, gentleness, and intuitiveness.

She’s a badass. The phrase has become shorthand for describing female protagonists in books and on screen. The term has its purpose. It implies strength, power, and an ability to punch out opposing pressure, whatever form it may take. For me, however, the word “badass” and its masculine overtone has become overused; it’s jumped the shark. It made the leap when a fashion blog I read began describing every shopper-mom contributor as such. My question is this: What else is she? Further, what about her feminine traits? Why aren’t they highlighted? Does their... Continue Reading

May 9, 2017

My April reads were mainly done on my trip to Spain . . . and mostly during our airplane adventures. (You can read more about that in last week’s post if you missed it.) I can give an enthusiastic thumbs up to three of the four.  So why mention the fourth book at all?

If you’re like me, you buy a lot of books and that can add up. I appreciate very much some of the daily deal type newsletters I subscribe to that give me a list of low priced or free titles each day. My favorites are BookBub, The Fussy Librarian, and... Continue Reading

May 3, 2017

It’s been twelve months since I’ve typed those words and shared an interesting travel experience with you. This little adventure to Spain also fulfills April’s “Never done THIS Before” Challenge. Initially, I expected my new experience to include viewing the Semana Santa (Holy Week) processions and relying on my Spanish to navigate. (I was attempting to use English as little as possible.)  But, boy-oh-boy-oh-boy, we got a little more “experience” than we expected.

Here’s the short story: 

STORMS > DELAYED FLIGHTS > FULL GROUND STOP IN ATLANTA > MISSED FLIGHTS > NICE AIR FRANCE PEOPLE > LOST BAGS > MISSED TRAIN > MEAN TRAIN PEOPLE > NICE HOTEL PEOPLE > CLOTHES SHOPPING > TEARS... Continue Reading

April 25, 2017

In my journey through the steps of independent publishing, refining my writing skills, and most recently completing a successful agent search, I’ve come across some excellent information, tips, tools, and shortcuts that I think would be beneficial to any writer. Once a month, I’ll share the “best of” information and news from the publishing industry as well as feature other authors and writing instructors with tips to share. I am incredibly thankful for the assistance and advice given to me from writing and publishing professionals and am happy pay that forward.

Book News & Events

Indie Bookstore Day is Saturday, April 29! Plan to support your local indie bookstore this... Continue Reading

April 25, 2017

Are you the kind of writer who says, “Yay, editing!” or are you slightly less enthusiastic about the process? I think my main reason for enthusiasm, at least at first, is that I’m celebrating the completion of a rough draft.

I remember finishing the first draft of my first book. I was slightly in shock that I had actually written something that was book length. In fact, it was kind of long . . . at least 25,000 words too long, and I knew it was time for some editing. But I didn’t know where to begin. I knew I need to read through to search for typos and identify the sections that didn’t move my story forward, but I didn’t have a step-by-step approach.

Over the years and through five book-length manuscripts and... Continue Reading

April 18, 2017

 

 

 

 

 

The rainy days of April are here, bringing time and reason to write. Sprinkles outside mean I’m at my keyboard inside. Who doesn’t find satisfaction in writing while listening to rumbles of thunder? Rainy days are great for working on writing problems, and I’ve developed two specific prompts for cloudy afternoons. The first prompt is, An Oldie but a Goodie: Avoiding Clichés. The second is, To Boldly Go: New Verb Frontiers.

An oldie but a goodie: Avoiding clichés

There’s no time like the present to learn to avoid clichés. If you’re an unrepresented writer and querying agents, it’s better to be safe than sorry! Do not send a cliché-filled... Continue Reading

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