By Sharla Rae In my first blog on place descriptions, Place Descriptions: It’s about Atmosphere Not A Travel Log, I promised to deliver more place descriptions. Today’s list is about waterways, lakes, oceans, rivers, and seas. I was very tempted to list all kinds of boats and ships and marine life. I had to remind myself […]

by Fae Rowen Okay, I never wrote about that Middle East trip to Dubai, Egypt, and Jordan. There were reasons, okay? Today, I'm prepared to tell you about my four days and three nights in Dubai.  On my own.  Well, with my friend who has long, naturally blonde, hair. The only Arabic phrase I learned […]

by Fae Rowen When Laura Drake originally suggested this topic months ago  I knew I would be on the "don't know" end of the throwdown.  Everyone else at Writers in the Storm writes about what they know.  With Sharla Rae's historicals, she researches and researches until she has notebooks filled with information.  Jenny Hansen writes […]

By Sharla Rae When I first started writing, the one thing my critique partners complained about most was my lack of descriptions. I hated doing them. Only the action and characters interested me. Who cares what color the sky is? Who cares if the river was muddy or sandy? Just tell the reader where the […]

By Sharla Rae Let’s face it, mining for the best expression of emotions whether it’s body language, gut reactions, internalization or dialogue can be like panning for gold. A lot of useless grit is sloshed around before you hit pay dirt. Picture this: You’re sitting at your computer; the sun is shining through the window […]