Writing Blog
I’ve signed up for the Matera Women’s Fiction Festival
Last September, I went to my first-ever writer’s conference and I enjoyed it so much that I’ve signed up for this year’s event. The Ninth Annual International Women’s Fiction Festival will take place in Matera, Italy, 27-30 September 2012. The Fiction Festival is a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere, filled with writing workshops, brainstorming sessions, pitching sessions…
Read MoreKeeping the romance alive…
… for your writing, that is. I have other friends who write and share their experiences, so it’s good to see I’m not the only fickle one out there. Still, it’s frustrating that even when I love a project, by the time I arrive to the mind-boggling, head-scratching, going-blind-from-all-the-revisions stage, that I’m ready to toss…
Read MoreMy story will be published in the WriteFrance publication
A few weeks back, I saw a contest announcement for the WriteFrance spring competition. Hopeless Francophile that I am, I couldn’t resist the prompt to write a short story of up to 4000 words on a French-inspired theme. I have been writing a collection of short stories that take place in Italy, but I decided that the…
Read MoreBuilding up a writing resumé
Suddenly, I’m feeling like a teenager again. Alas, not physically, but mentally. At least when it comes to building up a writing resumé. Remember back when you applied to colleges and you had to fill out a whole application explaining why you were such an outstanding 18–year-old and why the college should select you over thousands…
Read MoreA sense of place
Maybe it’s all the fault of my travel addiction, but a sense of place is so important to me as an author. Also as a reader. As I wrote in a previous post, Context reading , when I travel, I make an effort to take along novels set in my destination. It helps the destination…
Read MoreKreativ Blogger Award
I’m honored! I’ve been nominated for the Kreativ Blogger Award by another aspiring author, Amy, blogging over at Amy author blog. Thanks so much, Amy! I’m glad you’ve enjoyed my blog as much as I’ve been enjoying yours. According to the rules for those nominated, I have to: Thank the blogger who nominated me for the…
Read MoreMy story won the 2012 SnoValley Writes! contest
I was very happy to receive the good news that my short story, Caves, won the 2012 SnoValley Writes! writing contest . This week, the peer writing group located in Snoqualmie Valley, Washington held their annual writing and jazz event and I was invited to attend to read my story to participants. If I weren’t…
Read MoreOn writing and procrastination…
As all writers worth their salt surely know, distraction lurks around every corner. That novel is simply begging to be finished, but everything seems to slow down its completion. It’s not just the demands of daily life, either. Many writers – myself included, I’m afraid – tend to favor the part of the writing process…
Read MoreGetting critiqued
At some stage, every aspiring writer has to take the plunge and find readers to critique his or her work. While your mom or best friend may be willing participants, they may not come back with the honest criticism that you really need. Sooner or later, it’s time to find a critique group. The idea…
Read MoreWhere do you write?
When I read articles or interviews about famous authors, I’m always interested to read about their writing routines. It seems that many have special places where they write for a set amount of hours. Most seem to crave quiet and an absence of distraction. I envy this. When I look at my own writing habits,…
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