Hi there folks! I did finally finish my vocalization of The Killer and The Dead today, and many improvements have been made, and a mere thirty two notes to self generated. You know, changes, continuity checks, questions for proofers and beta readers, that kind of thing. I’m still a few steps away from hitting the …
Category: Encouragement
The Writing Life: Momentum
Another rapid freehand blog today. Which means five plus edits after publication - my apologies to those of you who get version one mailed to you! My face is hot. I think because I've been talking for hours. To myself. I've been reading The Killer and The Dead aloud, and I'm here to say (thankfully …
The Writing Life: Trust Your Editor and Yourself When Dusting Glass Tables
Hello, and Happy New Year, folks! (I'll do a New Year's thought another day.) The copy edit of The Killer and The Dead continues in my basement of dust and glass tables. It ain’t for sissies. But the book is awesome, if I say so myself. I have continued to do 10, or 20, or …
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Why I Write Fantasy: Hamster Wheel Edition
It’s been a while since I’ve had the time to crank out a blog of an evening. I completed the line edit in double time, missing deadline by a day, but I’ll take it, and my editor is a forgiving soul, for which I am grateful. The essential truth of why I write fantasy – …
The Writing Life: Facing Uncertainty in Editing
This is definitely a doubt based post. Unofficial doubts part 6, but for the fact that I've accepted what I'm worrying about, and am going to bulldoze on anyway. This is, admittedly, a newer one for me, but a variant I think on what I have been through in the past and led me to …
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The Hammer and the Fall
In creative life, many do not appreciate the time taken between the hammer and the fall. Now I’m going to be all metal and talk about hammers and striking and forging, but the metaphor could just as easily be the time taken between the seed and the flower, and be about soil and water and …
Why I Write Fantasy: To Hit Deadlines
Yep, I have one week to deadline on getting my manuscript to my editor for the developmental pass. This means I have a liquid eff ton of work to do in the next seven days, five of which I will be working. Oh yeah. I got a lot done this past weekend, enough so I'm …
Why I Write Fantasy: The Illusion of Control
Last week I was going to write this column, but got distracted by a blogging landmark. So here we go! Now I’ve always wanted to write fantasy. I have a few memories of my life before I wanted to write tales of magic and wonder, but there aren’t that many of them. One is of …
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The Writing Life: Sometimes Sleep is the Answer
The list of things to do in the writing life never seems to get smaller. Not only that, but as you move forward and learn more about what you can do to improve your writing and further your career, you can’t help but run into things you probably should have done earlier. Much earlier. It …
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The Writing Life: Feeling the Fear, but Still Having Time for Fun
I’m beginning to feel the fear. In a good way. I have deadlines looming, and many miles to go before dawn. Right now there is actual uncertainty about whether or not I’ll get everything done on time. This is okay. Not the idea of missing a deadline, but feeling the fear early enough that I …
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Roderick T. Macdonald 