We love our love stories. We love reading about someone lonely who finds someone in a tale that usually includes the words “unbridled passion” and “setting fire to my loins.” I’ve written plenty of those tales. However, that’s old hat. Some authors are writing love stories in the midst of dire situations where very few…
Category: The Writing Process
These posts are related to my writing. They could include excerpts from my published works, but they’ll definitely give you insight into what’s going on in my head as I write.
Sometimes stepping from the shadows is the only way to be a hero
We all love heartwarming tales. Whether it’s a hero saving the day or someone doing something that’s kind, we want somebody to root for, to give us motivation to keep listening, watching or reading. Of course, we also know that behind every great person, there’s usually someone else working in the shadows, providing support and…
Creative spark can become a flame with the right circumstances
We all have a creative spark somewhere that inflames us and causes us to do wonderful things. Sometimes, it’s getting that perfect photograph of a raccoon clutching a tree branch in the forest. Sometimes, it’s painting that perfect image of a bowl of fruit sitting on a kitchen table. It could be sewing the most…
Authors’ victories measured by leaving readers wanting more
Given the world that we live in, it’s not really a surprise that people escape into books. It’s easy enough to come up with fictional tales set in our world, but it can be even more fun to create an entirely new world and develop interesting creatures that inhabit it. Instead of putting on a…
Let the show begin and bring stories to life
I’ve been known as a book author for nearly 20 years, but before that, I crafted stories in a more theatrical style through plays. The writing bug hit me in my teen years, and after acting in some school plays, I decided to write my own stories through theatrical performance, and in 1993, my junior…
Favoritism not a factor when writing novels
Which of your books is your favorite? This question was asked of me at a recent vendor event for Fox Valley Pride. It wasn’t the first time I was asked the question, but like the other times, I didn’t have a satisfactory answer. It’s akin to asking a parent who their favorite child is. However,…
Sanitize your countertop, not literature
Sometimes I think I made the right decision by self-publishing my novels, and two recent incidents in the publishing world seem to back that up. A couple of weeks ago, I read online about the plans to change some of the text and situations in the books of Roald Dahl, including the classic “Charlie and…
When unbridled imagination strikes, chicken soup follows
Ideas for stories can come from the strangest places. If you don’t think that’s possible, keep reading. My sweetheart, Todd, and I had just finished with church one Sunday and drove to Green Bay to enjoy some lunch at Mission BBQ. We discovered this place a few months ago and were immediately attracted to it…
You can’t have good stories without the occasional, unexpected twist
A time-honored tradition for most book writers is the twist. No, I’m not talking about the dance sensation. I’m talking about how a reader is just jetting along the story with the cruise control on, and then something happens that turns the free flow on its ear, and the reader is left to wonder what…
Blurbs with bullet points seem to miss the mark
It’s not always easy to write a book, but even once you write “The End,” it’s not really the end. Nope, you have to do rewrites and figure out what’s going to go on the cover to entice people inside, just in case the cover images are not enough to hypnotize potential readers. Then there’s…
Without faith, how does one’s story end?
When it comes to telling stories, I’ve always had some theme to cling to. Some of my stories are tales of love where two men find each other and figure out how to navigate their lives together. Some stories have a touch of magic and fantasy. Ten of them are tied to an aspect of…
The more you write a story, the more the story writes itself
“The more you write a story, the more the story writes itself.” As I was browsing Facebook the other day, fellow author Geoffrey Knight posted this quote. I’d been trying to put a handle on my writing journey the last three months as I wrote White Christmas in the Desert, and that seemed to wrap it up…
Rural Roots and American Rainbows 