Category: Writing Life

  • The Green Herd Grows

    Some of you may have noticed that I have an affection for vintage sewing machines, and that I particularly like the green machines. Just to recap the rest of the Green Herd, here’s the Arrow and here are the Singer 185, the Elna Supermatic (actually there are two Elna Supermatics, but only one is green)…

  • Rituals

    This weekend, I finished Murdoch and Isabella’s book, THE RENEGADE’S HEART, and sent it off to my editor. I’m hoping that she’s not too backed up, and that she finds the ms pretty clean, and that we can still get it published this month. Fingers crossed! But finishing a book means rituals for me. There…

  • Happy Anniversary

    This week, one of my assigned exercises in The Artist’s Way is to create a list of creative accomplishments. (This is a variation of a wonderful exercise that Julia Cameron calls the Ta DA! List. Not many of us instinctively make this list – we go with the To Do list – but we should…

  • Flummoxed

    Isn’t that a great word? I’ve always wanted to use it, and now would be the time. I have a group of letters in my in-box (both the real one and the virtual one) from aspiring writers, asking for advice. The letters are sitting there unanswered, because I don’t know what to say. Once upon…

  • Keeping the Faith

    One of the things that is very frustrating as a writer is having a publisher lose interest in books in a linked series before that series is completed. From a financial perspective, it’s easy to understand why publishers do this. They have bought and launched a series, but sales aren’t as good as they had…