Blog

On Reading, Writing and Smiling at Hamsters

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08 Jul 2010
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Miscellanea today because I’m busy and scattered and not feeling any word love. TAOS, HERE I COMEI’m trying to wrap up some urgent work stuff before I head to the Taos Summer Writers’ Conference next week. My instructor assigned some reading – short stories in an anthology edited by author Joyce Carol Oates. I enjoyed all of assigned stories. One, in particular, is probably one of the best short stories I’ve ever read. Ever. Incarnations of Burned Children by David Foster Wallace drew me in and twisted my insides out. If you read it, let me know your reaction. BEING...
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When Safety Becomes Dangerous

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01 Jul 2010
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My friend Wendi e-mailed me a list of 50 quotes associated with risk taking that she found on BusinessWeek.com. I’ve culled the list to the six that resonate. “Security is mostly a superstition. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” —Helen Keller “If things seem under control, you are just not going fast enough.” —Mario Andretti “Don’t be afraid to take a big step. You can’t cross a chasm in two small jumps.” —David Lloyd George “Do one thing every day that scares you.” —Eleanor Roosevelt “The dangers of life are infinite, and among them is safety.” —Goethe “And...
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When Preciousness Gets in Your Way

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29 Jun 2010
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One of the hardest things an author does is let go of something personal – like a title of a book. For many, many months, I’ve stuck to one working title: God Doesn’t Like Sweet Cornbread (and Other Things She Told Me). The title comes from my favorite chapter in the book. I became so attached to the title, the words became precious and sacrosanct. I think I became attached to its differentness, its cleverness. God and cornbread? God’s a She? When I thought of changing the title before, I became defensive and sought out opinions that mirrored mine. This...
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When Roadrunner’s Anvil Hit Mandy’s Noggin

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28 Jun 2010
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I hate traveling.I hate hotel rooms.I hate conferences.I hate conference food (i.e., rubber banquet chicken, too much sugar and caffeine). So, there. You’re prepared for the state of mind I’m in while writing this blog entry. When traveling, I usually bring a magazine for the flight. Something light since my laptop already weighs a ton. I decided to bring a flat, little book titled The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. The quote on the cover from Esquire: “A vital gem. A kick in the ass.” I’m still at the ‘kick in the ass’ part. Wow, holy crap and all...
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Miscellaneous, Caffeine-Induced Thoughts

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25 Jun 2010
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No one theme for this morning’s blog. Just felt like writing. Imagine that! Could it be that I eat chocolate-covered espresso beans with my DECAF coffee? 1. FINALLY decided to open a Twitter account to follow agents, publishers and other stakeholders in the publishing industry (in addition to The Onion and People magazine, of course). When agents tweet about reading queries or partial manuscripts (sometimes at coffee shops and sometimes by the pool!), it kind of makes my head hurt wondering when they’ll get to mine. Their personal tweets, though, make them seem so much more human (and so much...
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Offering Your Egg to the World

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24 Jun 2010
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Today, I ran across an interesting blog post from author Mary DeMuth. This paragraph has stayed with me:It’s time we step out of the shadows of fear as writers. It’s time we view our art not only as art, but as a risky gift. Something that costs us. Something that worries us at night, makes us tremble in the day. Breaking the mold and innovating involves that kind of sacrifice. The question is, are you willing?While writing Cissy’s story, not once did I think the story shouldn’t be told. Yet, after finishing it, I wondered if the themes were too...
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Humanity Is Not Always Pretty But It Binds Us

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21 Jun 2010
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I read an interview in the Boston Globe with Michael Zadoorian, author of The Leisure Seeker. He said that 16 agents turned down the book, mainly because it was the story of a couple in their 80s, one dying of cancer and one who has Alzheimer’s. The couple yearns for one last adventure and takes off in their ’78 Leisure Seeker RV along Route 66 to Disneyland against the wishes of their grown children and doctors. One agent wanted him to make the couple younger. After all, aging and death are not sexy. As a society, we do everything in...
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On Being Sufficiently Enthusiastic

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20 Jun 2010
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I was intrigued by your query but not sufficiently enthusiastic to ask for more. This is the latest rejection to my book. I’d be more upset except that I love the phrase ‘not sufficiently enthusiastic’ and can add it to my repertoire of comebacks.Andy: Would you like to see a movie?Mandy: I’m not sufficiently enthusiastic. In all seriousness, I’ve queried 12 agents and received six rejections. For a while this week, my gmail account (the one set aside only for my writing life) became a sinister boogie man. My heart would race every time I checked the account, fearing another...
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LINKS FOR WRITERS
   
WRITING RESOURCES
  • “On Writing,” by Stephen King
  • “What If? Writing Exercises for Fiction Writers,” by Ann Bernays and Pamela Painter
  • “250 Things You Should Know about Writing,” by Chuck Wendig
  • “Unless It Moves the Human Heart: The Craft and Art of Writing,” by Roger Rosenblatt
  • “The Fire in Fiction: Passion, Purpose, and Techniques to Make Your Novel Great,” by Donald Maass
  • “How to Grow a Novel: The Most Common Mistakes Writers Make and How to Overcome Them,” by Sol Stein