In his book, On Writing: 10th Anniversary Edition: A Memoir of the Craft (Affiliate Link), Stephen King talks about how he once bought the perfect writing desk — the kind of desk he always thought a writer should have. It didn’t work for him. * * * There are times I think about having “the […]
Archives for 2010
How to Deal With a Writing Rejection Letter
Monday Morning My week began with rejection. In July, I had a request to read the full manuscript of my current novel by one of the top agencies on my dream list. Naturally, when you get a request for the entire book, you hope for the best. It was a good rejection letter as far […]
How to Read Out Loud
In seventh grade, I had to read something out loud in a class. I hated it because I was never good at reading out loud. Shortly after the difficult slog through whatever I was reading, I was given two IQ tests. It was determined that I was intelligent enough; the problem was that I was […]
Monday Motivation: Influences
A couple friends in different cities in Texas recently saw the band, Rush. Rush is one of the bands I’ve seen on several occasions; when I was younger, they were one of my favorite bands. When I think about it, the band had just as much influence on my writing as the writers I’ve always […]
The Hell Comes With Wood Paneled Doors Podcast
The Hell Comes With Wood Paneled Doors podcast is live! Hell Comes with Wood Paneled Doors is the first novel I ever wrote. It’s a humorous coming-of-age story about a family traveling cross country in a possessed station wagon. In episode 1: When Michael O’Brien’s father, James, buys a new car just in time for […]
Banned Books Week
While I’m very opinionated, I rarely espouse my beliefs on The Juggling Writer. Not today… * * * “Where they burn books, they will ultimately burn people.” – Heinrich Heine * * * It’s banned books week, a week when all those evil, foul, and corruptible texts about gay penguins and other things get the […]
Monday Motivation: Rewrites
“I’m not a very good writer, but I’m an excellent rewriter.” – James Michener One of the topics that always seems to come up in the writing group I’m in is how much we don’t like rewrites. I’m the most tolerant of rewrites, having rewritten the novel I just finished four times, but I still […]
A Room of Your Own
All this week, I’m discussing writing vacations and writing-related things you can do on family vacations. Today: A Solitary Getaway. * * * If you’ve exhausted your vacation time and aren’t able to get away for a full week, consider a long weekend alone in a hotel. Maya Angelou keeps a hotel room when writing, […]
Road Trippin’
All this week, I’m discussing writing vacations and writing-related things you can do on family vacations. Today: Road Trippin’. * * * I grew up north of Chicago–my father lived in Kansas City. I looked forward to seeing him each summer, but almost as much as the visit, I looked forward to the road trip […]
Retreating
All this week, I’m discussing writing vacations and writing-related things you can do on vacations. Today: Your Own Writing Retreat. * * * Having trouble finding the right writing retreat? Not wanting to pay the cost of an expensive retreat? Why not pool your resources with other writers and create a retreat of your own? […]
Working on the Side
All this week, I’m discussing writing vacations and writing-related things you can do on family vacations. Today: A Working Vacation. * * * Many writers dream about traveling and writing. To see the world and write about it on somebody else’s dime would be as good as it gets. A new travel writer doesn’t stand […]
Find Your Inner Thoreau
All this week, I’m discussing writing vacations and writing-related things you can do on family vacations. Today: Finding your Inner Thoreau * * * In 1845, Henry David Thoreau left it all behind and retreated to the woods on Walden Pond. He had very little contact with others for two years. Thoreau wasn’t the only […]
A Sense of Place
All this week, I’m discussing writing vacations and writing-related things you can do on family vacations. Today: Creating a Sense of Place. * * * As writers, we want to create a sense of place in all we do that leaves readers thinking, “Man, it’s like I was right there!” It’s not a hard thing […]
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