When you’re cleaning up your house, do you ever skip over the same things over and over again?  If something is out of place but it stays in the wrong place for [...]

Ain’t misbehavin’? Not in South Carolina. If you haven’t heard about South Carolina governor Mark Sanford and his secret, six day trip to Argentina to meet with his mysterious lover….well, it’s probably because [...]

Hi everyone! I’m guest-blogging today (well…is it technically a ‘guest blog’ when you’re on the rotation?) at the InkSpot blog for Midnight Ink writers. And you know you want to find out what [...]

I’m making some new resolutions. Why not? Why make January 1 the only date where we impose formidable goals for ourselves? Besides, I’m tired of the January resolutions (that maybe didn’t work out [...]

I know you’re waiting with bated breath with a burning question—how have I banished clichés from my writing? This post is not; in any way, shape, or form; intended to be a bone [...]

Writing an argument occasionally becomes necessary. I’ve got suspects who argue with police and suspects who argue with each other. The funny thing about writing arguments is that they’re not at all like [...]

I think I’ve mentioned before how much easier it is for me to describe people and settings when I have pictures in front of me. I’m a pretty visual person. I like pulling [...]

It’s a day of celebration for Americans…..and I think I’ll use this chance to celebrate the folks who help me out each day. My husband. Also known as my artistic patron. Our son [...]

I wasn’t cool in….well, ever. I was on the newspaper and literary magazine staff. I hung out with people in high school that are now architects, IT people, CPAs….but definitely not whatever the [...]

Okay, y’all, this is an oldie but goodie from author Libba Bray about how similar your typical love story is to writing your WIP. The whole post is clever, but here’s some excerpts: [...]

Sometimes it’s hard to get started writing. Or blogging. Or even (as is the case with me this morning) getting dressed and ready to take on the day. I’ve wandered around in circles [...]

There are good things and bad things about the immediacy of social networking. On the good side, Twitter and Facebook are useful networking tools. Now writers can easily interact with their readers, booksellers, [...]

I love subplots. I love reading them and writing them and watching them on television. I think they should be approached with a degree of caution; you don’t want to distract from the [...]

It’s that new-release time for me again and I need to get my rear-end in gear. Publicity in even the most casual way (giving someone your card when they ask about your book) [...]

Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella, Snow White, Harry Potter…and it’s not just in children’s literature that there are absent mothers/fathers/wives/husbands. If you think about it, many novels (except, maybe, ones that are specifically focusing [...]

Soooo….I’m editing. I’ve got this 70,000 word document on a computer screen that needs to be assessed, reorganized, and added to/subtracted from. I wrote it primarily on my laptop (although sometimes notebooks were [...]

I’m from the American South, so it should be cussin’. Basically, I’m covering profanity here, and am curious to poll writers’ and readers’ thoughts. Generation X, including yours truly, had a certain amount [...]

I’ve gotten to that part of the manuscript. You know the part I’m talking about.  I’ve written the first draft from beginning to end, and now it’s time to make some assessments. Where [...]

Sometimes when I’ve got my writer hat on (conferences, signings, publicity things), I’m asked to look over someone’s draft, short story, or manuscript. If I’ve got the time (and usually I try to [...]

I was part of a writers’ conference this past weekend and talked about developing characters for mysteries. The audience was attentive, the library that hosted the event was gracious, and my topic seemed [...]

Sometimes life happens to a writer and they get behind. Not me, of course! I’d never do that. But some writers do. If you’re one of those writers (poor things), here are some [...]

I’d just like to check and see if anyone else is in the same shape I am, memory-wise. It seems that my head is so full of imaginary friends (and I do mean [...]

We all need a little help. I’ve been the recipient of a great deal of help the last few days—in the form of my twelve-year-old son. We were at Walmart and he wanted [...]

Today was my first day to blog at InkSpot—the blog for Midnight Ink writers. The topic I wrote on was “Information Dumps”—you know, when you dump a whole bunch of information, usually backstory [...]

I’ve always been fascinated by different perspectives (like the optical illusion on the left. Do you see the young woman with her face turned away? Do you see the hag with her chin [...]

I don’t know about you, but the site that I use most frequently is Google. I have it set as my home page now, since I bring it up so much. There are [...]

Lately, my characters want to make disparaging comments on the state of their 401Ks, the economy in general, and rising gas prices. I tell my characters to put a sock in it. If [...]

I’m part of a panel of mystery writers that’s teaching a writing course next weekend. I usually don’t have any trouble talking about my assigned topic, but whenever I’m asked for advice on [...]

The other day, my college roommate sent me an email.  She was going to the beach house on Sullivan’s Island, SC (near Charleston)—did I want to come? Of course, I had no business [...]

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 in actual, printed books (because Mom [...]