Yes, it’s happening again. I’ve managed to work on the manuscript a little bit each day for the past several. At last, I wake up already immersed in the story. For me, that’s different from merely thinking about the story.…
New Focus
Thank God Dave’s review of my opener blew it all to bits. Before the explosion there was plenty of witty dialog, irony, nostalgia—even a dash of sexual tease. So what’s not to like? As written, there was nothing thrilling about…
Blow It Up
I’ve been away too long. That’s it. I’ve been longing to post this and dreading it for what seems like forever. I’m rewriting the front end of a book—creating a new premise. Getting rid of a blocky flash forward. I…
Are You Still Mine?
I recently asked my most trusted editor, collaborator and coach (aka my wife Pat) to read through the first three chapters of my second book as I was preparing to pitch it to agents at the upcoming Books Alive Writers…
Robert Frost and a Lump in the Throat
In a letter dated January 1, 1916 to writer and critic Louis Untermeyer, Robert Frost declares, “a poem is never a put-up job—it begins as a lump in the throat, a sense of wrong, a homesickness, a lovesickness.” I…
Authenticate the Moment
How do you bring a character to the edge—the breaking or turning point—a moment that is life changing? Let’s say our character has reached a moment that has been coming for a long time. Maybe today’s the day that…