The Key to Writing an Inherently Episodic Story… Effectively

Unless something really cool or scary happens, a novel about what happened on your summer vacation probably isn’t going to work. Yes, “Summer of ’42” (a film based on a memoir by American screenwriter Herman Raucher) was a modern classic.  But really, did you fall in love with a married hottie like Jennifer O’Neal during […]

What Has Your Publisher Done For You Lately?

  Here’s what mine did recently…  a mass mailer.  Thought I’d share it… ’tis the season. Thanks!   “An absolute must read, DEADLY FAUX is guaranteed entertainment.” —Robert Dugoni, New York Times bestselling author of THE JURY MASTER     “After half a century of being on the lookout for a crime fiction writer with a […]

On The Industry: Two Must-Read Articles

Regardless of where you stand on the self-publishing vs. traditional publishing issue, there’s no question the landscape is shifting beneath our feet.  There has yet to be a definitive source of wisdom on this, leaving us to sift and hash through the opinions of those engaged in a deep-dive into the swirling morass of op-ed, […]

Another Take on The Most Critical Thing You Need to Know about Writing a Novel

You’ve read this here before, and it bears repeating because the entire enchilada of effective storytelling is embraced in these few lines: A great novel is not just ABOUT something… a theme, a time, a setting, a situation, or even a character.  That’s a great start, but it’s rarely a great novel if that’s the […]