Congratulations to my Grand Prize Winner, Charlene Lutes, who won a Hattie doll and an autographed copy of Hattie On Her Way; and to Connie Saunders who won an autographed copy of the book. Thanks to so many of you who entered this giveaway. Make sure you check out Clara's blog for a wonderful writerly giveaway! *********** I… Continue reading Shared WIP Tag IV: Questions on Writing
Congratulations to Joan Edwards who won a critique from Gayle Krause from last week's blog. ******* You pick up a book at the library or bookstore and start reading it. Maybe it catches your interest, maybe it doesn't. But one thing is for sure, if you're not a writer, you have no idea how much… Continue reading Re-Vision
Last week I pressed send. Not to an agent or an editor. But to 10 beta readers. I finally have a draft of Half-Truths, which is ready to be critiqued! Eight years ago Joyce Hostetter challenged me to join her in NaNoWriMo. I'd been thinking about writing a novel and had a rough idea what… Continue reading Marking a Milestone
Some of you will remember my interview with one of my writing students, Sydney Kirsch, which I posted at the beginning of November. Please welcome her back for Part II. Carol: How did you fit NaNoWriMo into your homeschool curriculum? Sydney: Being in high school, I do have a lot of work to do on a regular… Continue reading A Lover of Words: Sydney Kirsch, NaNoWriMo Teen–Part II
Today I'm pleased to bring you a distillation of Susan Campbell Bartoletti's excellent key note, "The DIY Home Guide to Repair for Your Story." Her lecture was rich and I can only touch on some of her presentation--but look for a future book review that will use additional material from her talk. In preparing for… Continue reading Susan Says: Summer Camp at Highlights Part IV
Congratulations to Judy Penz Sheluk who won the second critique from Joan Edwards. Thank you to everyone who left comments. *********** Raise your hand if you remember this commercial: If so, then you may understand how I felt three weeks ago when my mentor, Rebecca Petruck, wrote: Omigosh, I'm really liking the look of this outline!… Continue reading 2016 Challenge: Focus!
I recently submitted the fourth draft of Half-Truths to Rebecca Petruck for her critique. In a future blog I'll clue you in on my marching orders for Draft #5, but today I'm sharing a specific part of her feedback about writing scenes. This is a longer blog than normal, so grab your favorite beverage and… Continue reading Mississippi Trial, 1955: A Book Review and a Writing Exercise
Congratulations to a new blog reader, Chris Hoerter of Chapel Hill, NC, who won the autographed copy of The Nine Pound Hammer. He attended John Bemis' class at Central Carolina Community College last year and now will have one of his books! ********* Warning: Reading this blog may get the tune, "Climb Every Mountain" the the… Continue reading Mark Every Milestone
Congratulations to Kathy Weichman who won Beginnings Middles & Ends by Nancy Kress. Thanks to all of you who contributed to the this series. You can find the previous posts here: Part I and II included General Advice; Part III was on Deep Point of View; and Part IV was on Story Making. ******* "During my time as a facilitator of various writing… Continue reading Writing Tips #5: Nuggets of Wisdom on Editing & Revision
Congratulations to Ellen Sepnafski who won Eleanora Tate's book, "Just an Overnight Guest." ******* For those of you who are writers, no doubt you have parried the question which friends and relations pose: "What's taking you so long to finish your book?" This question, often accompanied by skeptical looks and eyebrow raises, may or may… Continue reading Psychology 101, Dominoes, and Answers to the $64,000 Question