Eh, I didn’t mean to write this.  I just ended up writing in the comments of someone’s FB post anyway: Carry a small notebook for book recommendations and a to-do-when-you-get-home list that you can take, unobtrusively, to meals.  Wear the comfortable shoes unless you’re pitching, because this isn’t ACTUALLY a corporate job interview and the […]

Ray, my daughter, had been in the hospital since Friday.  She’s feeling better (and is home now), but I spent most of the first few days feeling drained and brain-dead and reading the Belgariad:  comfort food.  And watching cartoons:  more comfort food.  I think I’ve overdosed.  Nevertheless, I’m not up for anything stronger.  I tried

Cold Turkey by Carole Johnstone I received a review copy of this ebook in exchange for a review.  Available via TTA Press, with additional links as I get ’em. Okay.  So there’s a short story in Stephen King’s Night Shift called “Quitters, Inc.”  I like it.  It’s about a guy who quits smoking. I thought

One:  Plotto is a book.  It contains plots.  1,462 plots.  It is the TVTropes of plot books. Two:  Don’t get the ebook.  Just don’t.  You will need all ten fingers and several bookmarks to read this book. Three:  This book is madness.  Or a meditation.  Or both. Four:  This book clearly states that it does

This is another Tim Waggoner-sparked post. I was on a panel last night where we were trying to define horror.  My definition? Horror is a violation of reality. I disagreed, because, well, that’s what I do when this kind of thing comes up, and made a brief response, which then got me thinking… And what

(Here’s me messing around with a cooking book idea.) So I’m standing in front of a full fridge again and going, “I don’t want any of this stuff.”  I used to do this with closets, too:  a closet full of clothes and nothing I wanted to wear.  Or I’d be at a restaurant, looking at

Tim Waggoner said something the other day on Facebook: Because stories are about people dealing with problems, the most important things to know about a character are how he/she responds to obstacles and handles stress. Even if you know nothing else about a character, knowing these two things will allow you to plot your story.

There’s a house in your dreams, THE HOUSE.  It isn’t the same house, except it is.  Although sometimes it’s a submarine or a skyscraper, or, in my daughter’s case, a spaceship.  There is a story that has to be carried out, in this house.  Everything that happens there, you seem to be an outside observer,

Now available at Amazon, Smashwords, Gumroad, and Kobo, with Apple and this time Barnes & Noble coming in hindmost this time. Ep #1: blog, Amazon, B&N, Kobo, Smashwords, Gumroad, Apple, and more.  Free at the blog, Kobo, and Smashwords links; the others will follow. Ep #2: Amazon, B&N, Smashwords, Gumroad, Apple, Kobo, and more.     “You don’t even know what Latitude and Longitude are!” Ina exclaimed. “I do so! Latitude