I'm thrilled to announce that I have signed a contract on one of my short stories. Yes, it's my first professional sale!The actual publication of that story is some months away, so more on that as it develops. Call it professional superstition, but I don't want to jinx the deal before a word appears in... Continue Reading →
Converting to Scrivener -or- Getting Tired of Pages on the iPad Eating my Work
The cloud is swallowing words. I had to stop using Pages on the iPad. Even after a call to Apple Care, where they assured me that all I had to do was close a document after working on it and it would save to the cloud, neat as you please. I'm sure they wanted to... Continue Reading →
A Readercon Redux
Ahhh, Readercon. The many authors and experts. The endless variety of panels and readings. The bookshop that sets my head spinning with so many beautiful books. The over-abundance of air conditioning and under-abundance of dining options. For the aspiring author, it can feel a bit like high school. The authors are teachers, sharing their wisdom.... Continue Reading →
Readercon, here I come!
I love Readercon. And this year, I NEED Readercon.I need a big kick in the pants to get my writing back on track. I got so busy with work and getting ready for a (fabulously successful!) Uptown Express show that I basically took a month off of writing. I didn't even get as much editing... Continue Reading →
On the Right Track?
"If you want to publish short stories, definitely write short stories.... if you want to write novels, you should go ahead and write novels. Lots of people sell their first novel without a significant record of short stories." - James Enge, in an interview on the Adventures in Sci-Fi Publishing podcast.Well, crap.If he's right, I've... Continue Reading →
How Many Revisions is Too Many?
Conventional writing wisdom says there's a time to stop tinkering and send your fiction babies out into the world. But conventional wisdom is withholding on when exactly that time is. So I'm taking advantage of the fact that I'm an unpublished writer. Let's consider this a case study in my evolving abilities as a fiction... Continue Reading →
Resolutions?
No, not really. I'm not a Resolutionary kind of guy. I certainly don't follow an annualized goal-setting calendar. Rather, I go through motivational peaks and valleys. I happen to be cresting as the year transitions, and I intend to make this momentum last. So, what's got my gears spinning these days? Writing I'm on a... Continue Reading →
The problem with change.
Everyone says change is scary. “What’s so scary about change?” Brad asked himself rhetorically, then looked back at HIS ENTIRE LIFE and replied to himself, “Oh, shit!” Yeah. Change is scary. Even when you tell yourself it’s not. Even when the change seems so small. Case(s) in point: This weekend I had a terrible argument... Continue Reading →
Caffeine-free Creativity?!?
I've had stomach issues for most of my life, which has required me to let go of caffeine more than once for an extended period. I haven't had to do it for a while, and found this latest bout to be the hardest to accept. Late in 2011, I was finding that I could no... Continue Reading →
The Revelation Before the Revelation(s)
I had a "Eureka!" moment today, that I hope will lead to many more eureka moments to come. Frequently in my life I have gone through "quiet periods" in my writing, where I flounder between a lot of projects, not knowing which one to pursue next. Right now, for example, I have two active novels... Continue Reading →
A lifetime of creativity 