My Desk, Three Months Before Deadline

 Even the dog bed is askew. Pictures of my characters. Manuscript pages everywhere. Almonds to snack on. Hand lotion for my weary fingers. My singing stuffed warbler, sent to me by a reader, sits in front of my printer. I can squeeze him whenever I need a bit of June in the midst of February. Thich Nhat…

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Heat Seekin' Again!

Welcome UK readers!  I was thrilled when my publisher released The Lost Daughter (known in the US as The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes) in the United Kingdom last year. It was embraced by so many new-to-me readers and made #1 on the Heatseekers’ Chart. The Heatseekers’ Chart in the UK contains books by up…

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De-Trite-Us

One of the worst crimes a writer can commit is to be predictable in his or her storyline and characters. This holds true even in genre fiction, where a certain formula is generally followed: In a romance, boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy and girl reunite forever. In a mystery, a crime occurs, there…

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The Writers Walk the Plank

Ahoy Matey! Prepare for a curmudgeonly post! You know, I really don’t know how pirates came by their cute, fun, and harmless image. Little kids (boys, especially) seem to love all things pirate these days. Just check out the toy aisle of your local Target or WalMart. But there’s nothing cute about piracy. Not on…

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What's Your Quirk?

Today I was twice reminded that I have a quirk. This morning, I received a request to speak at an event and had to ask my standard question: “Can you describe the venue to me, please?” Here is my ideal venue in which to speak. It’s a large, low-ceilinged room, perhaps a meeting room or ballroom…

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Resolution Time!

I’m a believer in resolutions. I don’t always keep them, but there’s something about that “fresh start feeling” that has great appeal to me. I have a slew of resolutions this year. Here goes: -Work at writing as though it’s a 9 to 5 job.  This may sound like a no-brainer, especially to those of you…

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The Pledge: Where Did Day Four Go?

I truly don’t know what happened to today. I got up early with great plans, but one thing led to another and the day disappeared with only two pages in the can. I accomplished non-writing things, but that wasn’t part of the pledge, was it? And tomorrow we leave, so I doubt I’ll get much…

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The Pledge: Back Slidin' on Day Two

Well, I woke up today with a small health crisis. Not a big deal, but big enough that it couldn’t wait until I get home, so I spent the morning searching for a clinic where I could be seen and remembering why, although I adore being far away from home on an island,  there’s a lot…

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A Pledge to Myself

December has been a fascinating month–so fascinating that I’ve gotten almost no writing accomplished. I had some health challenges, followed by fairly minor-ish surgery, followed by some more health stuff, all of which resolved beautifully and I am well, or as well as someone with Rheumatoid Arthritis can be. Then the holiday preparations hit. The…

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