The Business End of a Pen
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Crossing the (genre) streams
The Nov/Dec 2021 issue of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine featured one of my short stories–“The Debtor,” a crime story set during Christmastime in New York City. (I don’t know what it is about New York City that has inspired me to base all of my crime fiction stories here–maybe it was one too many Law & Order marathons–but here you go and there you have it.) It’s a significant publication for me, not only because of the publication itself (EQMM has been publishing award-winning mystery/crime fiction for 80+ years), but because crime fiction is not my usual genre. And I am almost more proud of that than for the accomplishment…
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On the other side of our long, dark winter
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Farewell for now, Superstars 2020. See y’all in 2021!
I slept 14 hours last night. It was not the sushi coma from the mountain of sushi I ate first-thing after I got home, it was the Superstars coma from the firehose of information I ingested. This year, I went to Superstars thinking I needed a break from it because Kristine Kathryn Rusch broke my brain during one of her infamous craft workshops the week before, and I had a crap-load of work to do. (Happily, mind you, because her workshop was insanely insightful, and I am anxious to do the work. But there is still work to do. And if there’s one thing I’ve never been afraid of, it’s…
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And That … Was That
A couple of my Salt City Scribes once asked me, “Hey, you have a lot to say during our group meetings. Why don’t you ever speak at these writing events you’re always telling us about?” I told them, “Because I’m not credentialed enough.” They asked, “Does it matter?”
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Scholarship applications are now open for Superstars Writing Seminars 2018!
I have raved about the Superstars Writing Seminars before, which I attended for the first time in February. Created by Kevin J. Anderson in 2010 , it’s a “business of writing” type of seminar that focuses more heavily on how to turn pro than on craft (although there’s some craft type of stuff, too, including a whole Craft Day). If you are serious about a writing career, I highly, highly recommend attending this seminar.
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“Writing Enchanting Prose” Workshop – Lessons Learned From David Farland
If you’ve never heard of fantasy author David Farland or taken one of his workshops, you may want to start Googling now. Or I’ll save you the trouble: visit My Story Doctor and sign up for one of his classes or workshops — particularly his “Writing Enchanting Prose” workshop, a 5-day intensive that he conducts live with a class of ~10 students. At the very least, sign up for his #WritingTips newsletter. It’s been 20 years since I last workshopped in a formal environment. While I loved earning my degree at UCSD’s literature and writing department and their courses were fantastic, Farland’s class was hands-down the best for practical application.…
