I met Kim randomly on Facebook, and found out that we live really close to each other. I’m excited to go to her book launch for SOMETIMES WE TELL THE TRUTH on September 11, but until then, here’s a taste (and a giveaway if you pre-order by September 6!). Jeff boards the bus for the […]
Since I focused on pacing in novels last time, this week I decided to hone in on pacing in life. Too often, people can feel like they’re behind where they want to be, especially when things don’t always turn out the way they’re planned (or expected). Sometimes, this can feel like a hamster wheel–you work, […]
I met Kim Culbertson during Barnes and Noble’s Teen Book Festival in June, and she gave a great writing workshop that transformed my writing process and how I thought about craft. Her newest book, THE POSSIBILITY OF NOW is out now from Scholastic: Mara James has always been a perfectionist with a plan. But despite […]
Pacing. Le sigh. It’s always been one of my challenges. It’s especially hard to master in the beginning of a book, when you have to include enough clarity and detail to keep the reader interested, while not bogging them down with so much detail that they’re like this: I’ve gotten feedback, time and time again, […]
I had the fortune of meeting Lisa Manifold at this year’s UTOPiAcon. I was immediately intrigued by HEART OF THE GOBLIN KING, the first in her The Realm Trilogy series, especially the large cardboard cut-out of The Goblin King by her booth! See below for more: Brennan,the King of the Goblin Realm finds himself facing his greatest […]
I didn’t know Alyson Noel had a new book out (shame on me) until I saw her at this year’s Bay Area Book Festival. I bought it right away, and devoured it immediately. UNRIVALED, the first in the Beautiful Idols series, takes a unique look at the darker side of Hollywood, fame, and partying. Here’s the […]
I first met Jadah at UTopYA, and got to know her more at this year’s UTOPiAcon. We bonded first over our common last name (even though McCoy is my married name) and I was excited to buy her book, ARTIFICIAL, the first in the Kepler Chronicles, at the Curiosity Quills Press booth. It has an amazing […]
That moment when…your novel tells you it’s a short story and that 15,000 word project tells you it’s a novel. That happened to me last week, after I finished first-draft edits on the novel, which was, as all first drafts are, a hot mess. I realized that there was nothing holding it together, because there […]
I was so intrigued by the premise of this book that I had to get it immediately. It even has a great heading at the beginning: “The Night That Started Out Normal.” Have a look for yourself: When Cedric, crowned prince of Caelum, and his fellow royal friends (including his betrothed, Kat) find themselves stranded […]
Insomnia. The joys. In case my sarcasm isn’t already apparent, it’s 5:49 AM and Microsoft Word 2013 won’t open because Windows 10 is being an asshole. So now, you get me, venting to the ether, because I really want to finish my novella and my computer is like, “no.” Kind of like this printer: [youtube […]