What is Cadence? To me, it’s Like Porn, in that it’s not easy to define, but I know it when I see it. Webster did manage to define it though (which makes me want to look up ‘porn’): Though Webster wasn’t talking about writing in the above definition, he came close. To me, Cadence […]

I have heard other authors discussing their experience with assistants, and frankly, some of them were horror stories. I wasn't even clear on what an assistant did, much less being able to assess if I needed, or could afford one. When my friend, Susan Squires, raved about a new assistant she hired, Kelly Oakes, I […]

  I'll admit to being 'adverb adverse'. It’s one of my reading pet peeves  I’m reading along, immersed in the story when I start to notice them. And once I do, every one becomes a drop of water on my forehead, drip, drip, dripping until I want to heave the book.  They irritate me enough […]

Some brilliant authors I know began a blog some time ago, called Book Pregnant, to document their travels (and travails) as their first books were born into the world. They’ve moved on to other things, but if you’ve just made your first sale (or published on your own for the first time), the wisdom is […]

My favorite quote is from Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture (if you haven’t read that small book, you should - it’s incredibly inspiring). “The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we […]