Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “One Writer’s Journal”
Sometimes a writer gets something fun in the mail – a letter handwritten in an envelope with a stamp on it that lands in said writer’s mailbox. Years ago when I was writing books for younger readers, it wasn’t unusual to find one of those letters in my mailbox. I exchanged letters over several years with a young girl …
A few years ago, I planted some morning glory seeds beside a trellis in my yard. When I did I had to think my father would have wondered if I’d lost my mind after the way we’d always had to fight what he called morning glories in the crops and garden. In fact, I’ve probably yanked out no telling how …
Let us never know what old age is. Let us know the happiness time brings, not count the years. ~Ausonius I just had a birthday. They have a way of coming around faster than they used to. When I was waiting to finally be a teenager, the year seemed to go on and on. I’m long past the teenager years. Going …
Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do. Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children. ~Alex Haley Did you know this Sunday was Grandparents Day? It’s not a day that has caught on with special advertisements for grandparent gifts or cards to send or visits to make. But it’s still fun to have a day …
“Good books don’t give up all their secrets at once.” ~Stephen King Maybe neither do titles of those books. But a book needs a good title. Maybe even better than good. Something catchy. Something that makes a reader wonder and yet know at the same time. The right title can entice you to open the cover. I’ve had over forty …
“Farming is not just a job, it’s a way of life.” – Unknown For most people, Labor Day is a holiday when you don’t have to work. You have the day off. You can go on a picnic, go fishing, read a book, visit family, have some fun. That might be true for me now, but that wasn’t always the …
“A cloudless plain blue sky is like a flowerless garden.” (Terri Guillemets) Ah, the beautiful sky. And what can make the sky even more beautiful? Clouds, of course. And their shadows floating over the mountains. Just as a sky needs clouds, so do stories. Beautiful blue sky and fluffy cloud scenes are good in a story. But wait. A story …
As those of you who read my blog posts here and have read my novels already know, I’m not a writer who sticks to one type of story or theme. Most publishing experts would tell me that’s where I go astray. Readers like to know what they’re getting. I should pick a “brand” and stay with it to attract more …
One more post about my Shaker book, The Innocent, since there are only a very few days left of the book’s 99 cent e-book sale on Amazon. Always be sure to check the price before you click the buy link to be sure you’re getting the price you’re expecting. Those prices can change in a flash. I shared this post …
An oxymoron – a figure of speech in which opposite or contradictory ideas or terms are combined. (e.g., thunderous silence, sweet sorrow, Shaker romance) I always do seem to do things the hard way. Let me explain. Many years ago when I started writing, romances were the thing. You know what? Romances are still the thing. People love reading about …