Ask me what my favorite Pixar movie is, I'd say The Incredibles. Twist my nipples really, really hard and I'll tell you it's Ratatouille. Hey, I like food movies. But Ratatouille really is a grand film, and one of the reasons is the way it sets up, and knocks down, its opponents. I thought of … Continue reading Ratatouille: How to Write Good Opponents/Villains
Ever notice how something can get so bad that it achieves a life of its own and gets exponentially worse the longer it goes? I'm sure it has a fancy, scientific name, but I call it "Compound Suck." The more crap there is in a book, the more that crap starts to link together, each … Continue reading “Compound Suck,” and How to Avoid it In Your Writing
I love my own writing. No, seriously. I LOVE it. When I'm editing my own work, there are times I get excited to get to a certain point, or to read a certain phrase. I've lost track of how many times I've made myself laugh. Is that arrogance? It can go that way, certainly, but … Continue reading Be Your First Fan
Dear readers, you've been with me through the good days and bad. This day could be most aptly described as "FELRKLHGIOEH!!" That's the scientific term. First... It began with my brain doing its normal thing, which is hating my guts for no apparent reason. "You're kind of worthless, you know? Not a very good writer, … Continue reading A Creator’s Journey #18–An Artistic Assault on All Sides
"Noooo! No! No! Nononono, NYOOOO!!!" I wailed. My toddler son stared in confusion. What had caused his poor father to cry out in utter dismay? I was reading a novel, and two young-adult characters had just met and just started bickering. It was going to be one of those novels. And I was a contest … Continue reading Fighting vs. Bickering in Romance Stories
As a writer, there's a certain hierarchy of awesome when it comes to readers. Tier One: Buy the book. Thanks for the money! But you're going to read it, right? ...right? Tier Two: Read the book. That's better. You took time out of your life to read my work and I appreciate it. Fist bump. … Continue reading A Creator’s Journey #17–The Best Thing You Can Do For A Writer
Romance is like Horror. Everybody does it, but not everybody's good at it. Plus, it can make you gag. I don't speak as some multi-award-winning romance writer or anything like that, but I'm a guy who's edited a lot of books, read a lot more, and seen countless romances in movies, TV shows, even video … Continue reading 3 Tips For Writing Good Romance in Any Medium
In five days, my novella, Ferryman, will launch. It will be available in print and multiple e-formats. I will be delivering free copies for those who supported me in creating this book and those who are subscribed to my newsletter. It will be out in the world. And yeah, that terrifies me. Creation is a … Continue reading A Creator’s Journey #16–Scared Spitless
Ah, the good ol' days. Artists could get patrons who would pay them to make art, giving them regular or partly-regular income for their craft because art is awesome. And then stuff happened. What stuff? I don't know, centuries of stuff. Look, I'm no history buff, I just know that patrons don't exist anymore, not … Continue reading A Creator’s Journey #15–Why I Launched Patreon
The other day, I announced that Ferryman was available for pre-order, so I should be focusing on that, right? Ha! You mistake me for someone who has control over himself! No, I've been working on a totally new and unrelated novel. Well, I was until I hit a wall. Twelve characters enter a room. All … Continue reading A Creator’s Journey #14–The Creative Power of Absolutely Nothing
Fencing With Ink 