A few weeks ago, a dear friend of mine and I decided the sting of our March birthdays could be made more bearable by celebrating them in New York City. We were right. We’d originally decided to go because one of our favorite playwrights, Tom Stoppard (Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, Arcadia, Shakespeare in Love, […]
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Ten Things Writers Never Want to Hear
My admin can type really fast, so we don’t need to hire a writer. I have a great idea for a book based on my life growing up as a middle child in an average family. Will you write it for me? I just got fired, so instead of looking for a new job, I’m […]
Why You Should Use Indents Instead of Tabs in Your Manuscript—On the RMFW Blog
If you’re using Tabs in your novel, short story, or nonfiction manuscript, your typesetter may not like you very much. It’s important to understand the difference between Tabs and indents. See my article about the difference between them (and how to fix your manuscript if you’ve used Tabs) over on the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers […]
Touching Down in a Foreign Land (Flamingo International Airport, Bonaire)
To step onto land unfamiliar is to invoke a kind of magic. It’s a magic of expansion—of the mind, of the spirit, of the air in my lungs too long compressed by stillness. It’s a magic of discovery, of anticipation. It’s a magic of hope. As I step onto that land, I pause, feeling for […]
How to Trim Those Filter Words from Your Writing – On the RMFW Blog
“Filter words” are sneaky words and phrases that drain the energy from your sentences, dull the tension in your scenes, and slow down your pacing by “filtering” the action through the thoughts or senses of your character. See examples of what I mean in my article on the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers blog here: “Filter […]
Cowboy Storytellers Weave Magic
What’s better than an old cowboy telling stories? Two old cowboys egging each other on! In October, I was in Oklahoma City to speak at the Women Writing the West conference. One of the best parts of the WWW conferences is the field trips they include, usually to museums or art galleries that dive into […]