Archive for Writing

The Ten Commandments of Writing

Sep 13, 2010 No Comments by

Richard Bausch is a well-respected writer who serves as the Moss Chair of Excellence in the Writing Program at the University of Memphis.  He has written ten novels, including Rebel Powers, Violence, Hello to the Cannibals, and The Last Good Time, which was made into a feature length movie.  Bausch’s most recent novel, Peace, debuted [...]

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Five Parts to A Good Short Story

Aug 27, 2010 No Comments by

One of the panels I attended last weekend at the Killer Nashville writers conference was on writing and marketing short stories.  The panel was moderated by Claire Applewhite.  Claire is a writer from St. Louis whose work includes two mystery novels, The Wrong Side of Memphis and Crazy for You. The short story panel was interesting to [...]

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Nine Steps To Writing A Novel

Aug 25, 2010 No Comments by

Author Jeffrey Deaver was the keynote speaker at last weekend’s Killer Nashville writing conference.  Deaver writes the Lincoln Rhymes thriller series (The Burning Wire, The Broken Window, The Cold Moon), the Kathryn Dance thriller novels (Roadside Crosses, The Sleeping Doll), as well as other stand alone thrillers. In his presentation, Deaver made it clear that these [...]

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Killer Nashville 2010

Aug 23, 2010 No Comments by

I attended my first writers conference this past weekend.  Killer Nashville is a writers conference geared primarily to writers of mysteries and suspense/thrillers.  There was a big mix of writers that write in genres that touch mystery, but might not be considered strictly mystery.    Honestly, talking about genre with a writer can sometimes be [...]

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I’m Going Back to School (Maybe)!

Aug 18, 2010 1 Comment by

As I detailed in an earlier post, I have been floundering around for several years chasing money.  I’ve run a successful business that I really don’t like, and I’ve started another business that has the potential to be very profitable, but which I have no passion for.  Rather than continuing to chase the money, I’ve [...]

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My Love/Hate Relationship With Writing

Aug 06, 2010 3 Comments by

The way I see it, it’s like a movie.  A bad movie.  A romantic comedy where: Boy meets girl, Boy and girl are attracted to each other, but each fights the attraction, Wacky hijinks ensue and finally, Boy and girl fall in love, living happily ever after In this scenario, I’m boy and girl is [...]

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Shut Up And Write

Jul 15, 2010 2 Comments by

When it comes to writing, I think I may be the king of excuse making.  I can usually find a dozen or more reasons not to sit down and write.  None of the excuses are good, mind you.  But that doesn’t stop me from making them. One thing I’ve learned about writing is that you [...]

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Trying To Explain The Inexplicable

May 13, 2010 No Comments by

I write a lot.  I’m currently writing four different blogs, I recently finished a book of short stories, I’m several chapters into a mystery novel, and I spend far too much time writing comments on other blogs and posting thoughts on forums. I enjoy writing.  Sure, it can be frustrating at times, but I really [...]

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