O is for Outlines #atozchallenge

OK! We’re on O! Two posts today to catch up, but hopefully you all don’t mind too much. So, let’s get into Outlines. (OMG Outlines!) Outlines were a process that, early on in my writing efforts, gave me anxiety. All I could think about when outlines came up was Roman numerals and capital letters and…

N is for Necessary and Unnecessary Evils #atozchallenge

Ah N… I’m still a little behind, but catching up! I thought about N for NaNoWriMo, but I honestly talk about it so much that maybe talking about something tangentially related would be better! Let’s instead talk about Necessary and Unnecessary Evils. By Necessary and Unnecessary Evils, I mean the things you have to let…

M is for Mood, Motivation, and Moving #atozchallenge

I was doing so well and then I lost a couple days there. But, I’m going to just get back on the horse and catch up. So for M, I’m going to talk about Mood. When mood and writing comes up, I think of two things: the mood to write and the mood you’re conveying…

L is for Libraries #atozchallenge

I figured I’d talk about one of my favorite places today. A place once known for being a temple to the divine word, which, at least at my local branches, is also a community center for all ages. Today is the letter L and, for me, L is for Libraries! I don’t know about you,…

K is for Kissing and Romance #atozchallenge

We’re onto Kissing and Roooomance! Oooooo! A and Z are sitting in the tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G! Ok, not quite what I mean, but I couldn’t resist. So, why am I talking about kissing and romance? Kissing and romance isn’t a writing thing. Well, they kind of are a writing thing. Romance as a genre is often looked…

J is for Just Write Already! #atozchallenge

We’ve made it to J, and to be honest, I had a bunch of “what the heck starts with J that I can write about?” moments. After playing with jargon and jokes and jumping-jacks… I realized that I just needed to write already. I dislike the word “just” in most of the ways it appears,…

I is for Inspiration and Ideas #atozchallenge

Let’s talk about all the fun of Inspiration and Ideas! These two are inextricably linked in my mind because often my inspirations are the seed and fertilizer for my ideas. And often my ideas keep me inspired through the writing process if I can keep those ideas in mind. The novel I’m working on right now…

H is for Hooks #atozchallenge

I hadn’t really planned on spending the day I was going to write my post for H evading a party of hover-board riding hippos, but sometimes well laid plans are just hijacked by high kicking hippopotami. Luckily, I’ve managed to snag some peace and quiet to bring you this post. H… is for Hooks! Now,…

G is for Goals! #atozchallenge

We’re at G! So we’re talking about one of those awesome things that keeps us all going… GOALS! Touchdown! Wait. No. I mean, personal goals! Those! Less of the beefcakes running around in layers of padding and tight pants. Back to writing! Currently I have several goals writing-wise. But my biggest goal is to level…

F is for Fear (brrr!) #atozchallenge

Oh boy, we’ve gotten to F. So, I’m going out on a limb here, and am going to write about the big F… FEAR. (brr!) In this case, I’m focusing on the fear that surrounds the act of writing novels rather than the emotion of fear as it shows up in stories. One of the biggest things…

E is for Emotion! #atozchallenge

Popping along in our alphabetic tour… we’re on E! So let’s talk about that thing that helps keep a reader’s attention… Emotion! This is one of those story elements that is both super obvious and super difficult to tackle. On one hand, I’m sitting here nodding and thinking “yes, of course my story needs to…

D is for Diverse Books and Making Steps in Writing Thoughtfully #atozchallenge

I cannot believe I’ve made it to day four! Today’s letter is D, and I’ve decided to address a topic dear to my heart that I care a lot about… Diverse Books. A quick note at the beginning here to say… I am a white woman who is making an effort at writing about the…