Writer's Toolbox

Backing Up | Basics | Being Mean | Believe | Character Clinic | Revisions | Sunrises | Writing Fast | NEW! World-Building: Laying the Foundations

The Religion of Backing Up:

What do cd-r's, usb/thumb drives, webmail accounts and external hard drives have in common? They're all ways to back up your work.

You should always, always, always back up whatever it is you're working on. Turning on the back-up function on your computer is all well and good but what happens if, heaven forbid, your computer falls under a truck? There go your backup files. Keep reading.

The Basics: Writers' Glossary:

I recently attended a romance writers conference and had a fantastic time. I also noticed something interesting - that just like in any other profession, experienced writers use a kind of shorthand about their work that speeds up communication. However it tends to leave some of the newer people floundering. Of course that's not on purpose and most people are happy to explain, but who wants to ask, right? So here's a list of some common terms used by writers. Keep reading.

Character Development: Being Mean:

I'm a meanie and so should you be!

People who know me may disagree with the above. They might say that though I can occasionally blow my top, I'm generally a nice enough human being. They'd be wrong—I'm meaner than mean…to my characters. Keep reading.

Motivation: Believe:

'Believe' is the title of one of my unpublished manuscripts which placed in the Clendon Award and got requested by several editors but didn't sell. Why am I telling you this? Not because I love talking about myself but because it illustrates two things: (1) That I've never lacked faith in my work; and (2) That I have the ability to bounce back from rejection. Keep reading.

Character Clinic: Flaws:

How many of you know a perfect person? I'd say that the percentage is very low. And for those of you that do - does that perfect person make you want to grit your teeth? Or maybe they just put you to sleep?

Perfect people are boring. Keep reading.

Revisions and how to tackle them:

It finally happens. You open that envelope with a feeling of intense disappointment, expecting yet another rejection but lo and behold, it's something else. A revision letter!

Stage 1
You stare at the letter in shock, check that they sent it to the right person, stare at it some more and perhaps start to giggle a little hysterically. Keep reading.

Sunrises & Sunsets:

Writers often send characters to places they, themselves, have never been. Occasionally, you need to know whether it’s light or dark in the city at the time the character is out of doors.
 
This is a great website for finding out that information: http://www.sunrisesunset.com/


As it’s name suggests, it gives you the sunrise and sunset times in a particular city. However, it also provides moonrise and moonset times, which can come in useful if you’re writing a werewolf story and need to know the date of the full moon!

Writing Faster:

Everyone wants to write fast. I often hear writers comparing word counts and then starting to worry because they're not writing as fast as someone else. When I began this article, I was simply going to give you some tips about how to write fast. But then I realized that maybe, faster isn't better for everyone. Keep reading.

NEW! World-Building: Laying the Foundations:

This short workshop was originally written for a guest blog I did. It was set up so people could ask me questions. Keep reading.