You don’t have to spend a lot of money to become a better writer. That’s a good thing because most writers don’t have a ton of money to throw around. The library has [...]

Time for all the year-end retrospectives. I sort of like them…but sort of not. So mine is more of a recap of things I learned this year and resources I gathered. January—I discovered [...]

I’ve frequently been guilty of tunnel vision. I’m very Type A, and to me, staying the course sometimes means completing a project or train of thought. You’ve sent me a Christmas card? You’re [...]

Have you ever watched something unexpected happen? My now-8 year old daughter was a cute baby. She was roly-poly and liked singing to herself in baby babble. Her hair stuck straight up and [...]

            Cool: Tell your friends your mother writes books. Have them convinced you’re a liar. Have Mom verify later she actually does write. Maximum impact! Your name is [...]

This post functions as a follow up to the last one. What if you do need your protagonist to go down into a dark basement? I think most readers agree that one thing [...]

What makes a good protagonist? This is a pretty subjective question since different readers like different types of heroes and heroines. But I see some common traits among the protagonists I admire: They’re [...]

Like many writers, I’m a huge fan of books. If I hear a recommendation, I’m there. The library has made it so easy for me—simply sign in online, request a book, and go [...]

I think back to why I became a writer to begin with. It all started with a germ of an idea…multiplied by a hundred. Two hundred! Notebooks full of ideas: good ideas, rotten [...]

I’ve gotten a lot more comfortable leaving my comfort zones in the last couple of years (especially concerning public speaking, signings, appearances, etc.) And then I just got satisfied with where I was. [...]

Someone wrote a wonderful post on gift wish lists and what our characters might want for Christmas. I hunted through blogs on my Google reader, but couldn’t find the link. (Getting even foggier [...]

Somewhere in the Southeast I am being unusually low tech. And probably feeling a little anxious. I’m on the Christmas tour—seeing friends and family before heading back home for the big day. My [...]

I’d promised my daughter I’d take her to the mall, one of her favorite places. I wonder sometimes if the stork brought me the wrong baby; she and I are so different. I [...]

I’m always looking for something for my 7th grade son to read. He gobbles books up instead of savoring them. And—he’s a picky reader. He’ll read 30 pages and, if he isn’t grabbed, [...]

Wednesday afternoon, my daughter finished her math homework, started her spelling, then completely lost her focus. I decided she could take a one hour play break (she’s only eight) before picking it back [...]

I think that mystery writers must have a very carefully suppressed criminal mind. Apparently I look like a really innocuous person. Plus, maybe, a little foggy. I’ve ordinarily got my mind on other [...]

I’ve always taken gender stereotypes with a grain of salt. I was tempted, even, to claim that gender roles were determined primarily by socialization and environment. Keeping this in mind (and also having [...]

The biggest moment in my writing career came with the realization that I wanted to be published by a traditional publisher. Once you realize that you really want to take that step…what do [...]

Every day the online community of writers amazes me. I get so much encouragement and inspiration from the blogs that I read and from the wonderful commenters on Mystery Writing is Murder. Among [...]

I’m getting the most interesting reader perspectives from my new book club. At first, I had no intention of joining this club. As a rule, I don’t join clubs. I’m not really sure [...]

I’ve been reading a lot lately about problems that happen when we try to be perfect or apply Type-A standards across the board in our life. I’m definitely Type-A. Sometimes perfectionism goes along [...]

I’d had a wild day but was on-time, no…early!…for a play that my daughter’s friend was in. I parked the car, opened the door, and—“Oh shoot! We were going to pick her up [...]

My son told me on Monday that he might “ask out” his friend Mimi. Once I picked up my jaw from the floor (and tried to banish the mental image of me chauffeuring [...]

I was busily writing at home last week when my husband called me up and asked if I wanted to meet him for lunch. I hopped in the car and drove the 25 [...]

My husband spent five years working at Microsoft (the North Carolina division) before switching to his current corporation. It’s easy to get burned out at Microsoft. I’d drive out there once a week [...]

Saturday evening, my daughter’s Brownie scout troop drove to Huntersville (about 45 minutes away) to tour a historic home dating back to 1797. Latta Plantation was having a Christmas celebration, so we were [...]

I’ve had a couple of questions about revisions, so I thought I’d share my revision process for a problem that was really getting on my nerves. (Boring post here! Most of us don’t [...]

There’s an interesting phenomenon that happens at the pool or the playground. One child calls, “Mom!” and about ten women swing around. Not a good thing to have in our books, though. It’s [...]

After I write this (right now it’s Wednesday morning), I’m going to knock out revisions on two separate books, then get back to writing my second book of the Memphis Barbeque series. This [...]

I was Christmas shopping for my family last month when I saw an interesting looking top—for me. Since it was on sale, I went ahead and grabbed it. Nothing like shopping for yourself [...]