Category Archives: writing

5 Ways to Start Your Writing Day Right

1. Start writing first thing. Okay, I eat first, and brush my teeth, things like that. But I don’t give myself a chance to see that the laundry needs to be done, or remember that I was going to buy … Continue reading

Posted in writing | 1 Comment

“Mama Tried” and Story Structure

One of my favorite songs as a kid was Merle Haggard’s Mama Tried, which was released in 1968. Recently, I listened to it again. And again. And realized how the complex structure of the song helped to tell a story … Continue reading

Posted in music, writing, writing craft | Comments Off on “Mama Tried” and Story Structure

Chris Boucher quote

One of my favorite quotes ever: “There are no good guys. There are no bad guys. There are only better guys, and worse guys.” —Chris Boucher I post it at the start of this year because one of my goals … Continue reading

Posted in quotes, writing | Comments Off on Chris Boucher quote

Happy New Year!

My goals for the year: Read. Write. Sing. Enjoy life. Be myself. How about you?

Posted in writing | Comments Off on Happy New Year!

Researching Asian Pirates

This post was originally written for Jeannie Lin’s blog. This is the story of how I did NOT use a great deal of my research. When I began writing The Duke and the Pirate Queen I knew that the heroine, … Continue reading

Posted in writing | Comments Off on Researching Asian Pirates

Writing Explicitly

This post was originally written for Kate Elliott’s blog. I think there are several keys to writing good explicit sex scenes. The first is to give up any pretense of hiding yourself. You can’t hide from the reader, and you … Continue reading

Posted in erotica, writing, writing craft, writing process | 2 Comments

"Writing Explicitly" at Kate Elliott’s blog

Today, I’m posting on “Writing Explicitly” at Kate Elliott’s blog – visit, comment!

Posted in erotica, writing | Comments Off on "Writing Explicitly" at Kate Elliott’s blog

Top Posts from 2010 (so far)

I like playing with the tracking on my blog sometimes. Here are the most popular posts on this blog, by month, for 2010 so far. It’s very interesting to see which posts seem to be of more general interest. January: … Continue reading

Posted in promo, writing | 2 Comments

Rear, meet seat; fingers, meet keyboard.

One of my favorite pithy sayings about writing is “ass in chair, fingers on keyboard.” It’s short and to the point. Unless you write standing up, or perhaps sitting on a rubber doughnut, it’s pretty standard for a writer to … Continue reading

Posted in quotes, writing, writing process | 2 Comments

Writing for Women, Writing for Men

I read about a workshop at the RWA Conference whose topic, I think, was writing for women versus writing for men. I didn’t attend, so the actual title didn’t stick in my mind. However, it sparked thoughts, and I of … Continue reading

Posted in business of writing, erotica, writing, writing craft | 4 Comments