I missed my Friday post deadline because I went on vacation. My family and I drove down to see family that just moved to North Padre Island. It was a strange vacation with masks and distance. The kids did great wearing their masks everywhere. The family we went to see is family we’ve already been in contact with several times since my step dad passed away in May. My niece and brother in law taught us how to surf and boogie board. The kids loved the boogie boarding more than the surfing. My sister is more of the surfer. I just enjoyed the sun and the company. We also learned what a Blue flag at the beach means: Marine life. In our case…Jellyfish! I got stung 3 times. My sister and her kids got stung too. They don’t feel very good. May I recommend if there is ever a blue flag at the beach, go another day!
The Book of Dragons Book Review & 5 Qualities of a Good Short Story?
I saw this anthology on Netgalley and hello…dragons…so I was all in! The release date on this book is July 7th 2020. As I read this book, I thought a lot about what I like and don’t like about short stories. This book contained a few that I didn’t care for and several that I loved. All were well written of course, but some stood out above the others. So I analyzed them and came up with 5 things I believe make a good short story. I’m sure these are not all the qualities of a good story though. You might like short stories for another reason. If so, let me know!
6 Ways You Can Begin a Story
How do you begin a story? Not in the sense of create, but where do you start? I was always told to start in Media Res. Latin for in the middle of things. There are countless ways to start a story. I'm going to talk about a few ways to start, but this is by all means not exhaustive. When I'm wanting to strengthen a skill, I look to mentor texts. So let us take a look at some excellent stories and see how they begin.
Quintessence Book Review
I have however read several REALLY amazing books lately! Quintessence is one of them! I gave it a 5 star review on Good reads, which I rarely do. Alma moved 3 months ago and has had trouble adjusting. She's been having anxiety attacks and doesn't really feel like herself. She finds a telescope and through it sees a star fall. This is not a normal star though; it looks like a girl. Alma joins an astronomy club to learn more about this. She and her new friends begin a journey of self discovery and healing like none I've ever read.
25 Books to Read by Authors of Color
“Empathy is seeing with the eyes of another, listening with the ears of another and feeling with the heart of another.” – Alfred Adler This is a good time for reflection. I've done a lot of that lately. I have taught ESL (English as a Second Language) for the last 18 years. Yet, I am … Continue reading 25 Books to Read by Authors of Color
90 Days to Your Novel Book Review
I saw that an Instagram friend of mine was doing a 90 Days to Your Novel challenge thing, based on this book. I was intrigued. I mean, who wouldn't want to write a whole novel in 90 days? Can you really do that? Would it be any good? I know there are indie authors out there that crank out 4-5 novels a year. Something I've learned in the last year is that consistency and frequency really help when it comes to growing a following. For example, I started this blog in August 2016. Then, I decided to start grad school to become a librarian. So, from June 2017-Aug 2019 while I was in school and working full time as a teacher, I posted infrequently. Since August, I have (for the most part) posted every Friday. The number of followers since then has nearly doubled and views on the website are way up. I expect by the end of 2020 the views will more than double from last year. BUT that is not nearly important to me as quality content. I try to be consistent. But sometimes I've got stuff going on in my life (my MIL and my Stepdad passed away in the last 9 months) that prevent me from writing quality content for you, so I skip a week or two. Maybe that hurts the SEO, but I refuse to put junk out there attached to my name.
From Rough Draft to Published is Published!!
I’m almost at a loss for words right now. For the last few days/weeks/months all my time after work has been on this project. One of the major things I set up was a Writer’s Resources Vault for people who get the book and sign up for the blog with their email address, they can access a vault full of resources I mentioned in the book. Such as these documents that I’ve created…
From Rough Draft to Published Cover Reveal & the Cover Design Process
Today is the day! You get to see the cover of my new book! I can't wait any longer, so here it is!
Save The Cat Software Review
I read the Save the Cat! Writes a Novel book a few years ago. I liked it because it approached story in a very logical way, which appeals to me as an outliner. It works like The Hero's Journey and many others--it takes the major story twists and turns and lays them out in a flexible pattern. You do not want to use this as a formula, or your story will become stilted. Many people argue against using "formulas" such as these but these guides are merely a tool and any tool used incorrectly can be bad. Used correctly this book can be very helpful, especially for new writers. When I first started writing short stories I used a tool like this to guide my plot and keep the story tight. After a few dozen stories, it became ingrained in me and I don't need to use that guide as much.
Writing Health
Lots of people have talked about the mental toll this pandemic quarantine is taking on them. It has been pretty brutal on most everybody. I'm not going to talk about that though because I can't add anything to the conversation that hasn't already been said. I will however, talk about the physical toll this pandemic has taken on me and probably many others.
Quill and Books 
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