One question I’ve seen phrased a lot of different ways is about writer routines. The general assumption seems to be that we find one pattern and that doesn’t change. I think new writers especially fall into this trap. You start writing and figure out a plan that works great at priming the writer brain to make the words…but then it stops working for whatever reason. Oh no, writer’s block. No. Writer brains are fascinating things that always change as our world and families change. Just the people in our heads shifting to a new character can throw a wrench in the mix. So change with the brain. Don’t fight against it. When I first started writing, I worked first thing […]

The short answer is no. The long answer is that it depends on your definition of writer’s block. My brain is a three-ring circus that we’re currently auditioning ringleaders for but no one wants the job. So while I’m left to be the one in charge, we jump from act to act and see what’s going on in every corner of the circus. I know some authors are very linear and have everything they’re doing planned out. That will never be me even though I’m pretty sure that would make me a lot more successful in the long run. I always have one main project I’m writing that actually has an editing date planned out and at the very least […]

The answer is…very random places. My head is a crazy busy whirlwind that’s hard to describe, but have you ever seen videos of busy farmers’ markets where everyone is bustling around and vendors are calling out to each other? Like Pike’s Place Market where they throw the fish? You know there’s a method to the madness but it feels chaotic? That’s my brain on a good day. News clips. Random things my kids say. Song lyrics. Bits of weird conversations I overhear… There’s always a spark that starts the opening line of a book. One time it was a song lyric about secrets in the dark and that got my brain wondering about what they were doing in the dark […]

What’s a tool you can’t live without as a writer? This is something authors ask each other a lot. It gets phrased in a lot of different ways, but it all boils down to wanting to make sure you’re not missing out on something that would really help. Every author would answer this differently, and on some days, I’d tell you it was my little electric tea warmer (basically a hot plate for a teacup). It’s amazing and makes sure that when I forget my tea I don’t come back to a yucky cold cup. Most of the time, I’d say it was an add-in for Word that does a countdown timer or a word countdown (ishouldbewriting.net). I love it. […]

I do understand that your favorite author might not be me and you might’ve just accidentally stumbled upon this random website. In that spirit, I will do my best to write objectively (and just keep my fingers crossed that I’ll be your favorite soon). We’re going to ignore the obvious like buy the book or borrow the book from Kindle Unlimited…because, duh. I’m also very sure we know about how wonderful libraries are and how bad pirated book sites are. I think we can skip over those too. Right? So you love the book and want to support your favorite odd introvert? -The first thing you can do is to find a way to tell them that they’re your favorite…or […]