Did you ever come across someone and there are just so many coincidences you can't help but acknowledge and celebrate them? Not only was I a reader of Patti Callahan Henry's books, but then I found out we had the same publisher. And the same editor. And that she was born in Philadelphia, like me. So, how could I resist another opportunity to share Patti with all of you, to celebrate her eleventh … [Read more...] about Author Interview: Advice From New York Times Bestselling Author Patti Callahan Henry: “Understand Why You Are Telling This Story”
writing advice
Guest Post: Author Eleni Gage’s Four Fabulous Tips For Writing About Someone You Know—And Surviving!
You've read the title of this guest post and I feel the universal cringe! If one of your fictional characters is inspired by someone in your real life, either a lot or a little, you're bound to wonder WHAT WILL THEY THINK? Or even better (worse?) WILL THEY RECOGNIZE THEMSELVES. I don't base characters on real people, but I do cherry pick bit of people I know, and people I see out in the wild and … [Read more...] about Guest Post: Author Eleni Gage’s Four Fabulous Tips For Writing About Someone You Know—And Surviving!
How to Write When You Don’t Have Time (or have had too much egg nog—or Hanukkah gelt)
It’s the most wonderful time of the year, right? It’s cold, wet, gets dark at 4:30, and most of us have no time or energy to write. Let me explain. We're entranced during this season. I don't even celebrate Christmas, and Hanukkah/Chanukah/Hanukah is technically classified as a festival, and while important, it does not, in any way, have the heft of, let's say, Passover or Yom Kippur, yet it gets … [Read more...] about How to Write When You Don’t Have Time (or have had too much egg nog—or Hanukkah gelt)
Guest Post: Naming Your Fictional Characters by Lynn Kanter
Last week we pondered picturing our characters, and today we're noodling about naming with author Lynn Kanter. How do you name your characters? Mine tend to arrive with name tags, meaning, I don't get a choice. It was like that for Noah, Izzy Lane's five-year-old son in The Good Neighbor. It was that way for Izzy's eighty-five-year-old next-door-neighbor, Mrs. Feldman. But Izzy's name was chosen … [Read more...] about Guest Post: Naming Your Fictional Characters by Lynn Kanter