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Category Archives: Reading
Professional Wednesday: Reading Books Several Times
I have just started reading a book that I have read at least one time before. Maybe two. It is Under Heaven, by Guy Gavriel Kay, a terrific historical fantasy set in a world modeled after Tang Dynasty China. The … Continue reading
Posted in Business of publishing, Fantasy, Friendship, Novels, Reading, Writing, Writing Life
Tagged blogging, business of writing, D.B. Jackson, David B. Coe, editing, Faith Hunter, Guy Gavriel Kay, publishing, reading, writing, writing advice, writing business, writing life, writing tips
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Professional Wednesday: Beginnings, Middles, and Endings, part VI — Final Thoughts
This week I close out my Professional Wednesday feature on “Beginnings, Middles, and Endings” with some general observations about narrative structure. If you are just coming to this series of posts, I would recommend you go back and read the … Continue reading
Posted in Angry Robot Books, Business of publishing, Falstaff Books, Novels, Publishing, Reading, Writing, Writing Life
Tagged Angle of Repose, blogging, business of publishing, D.B. Jackson, David B. Coe, how to write, Islevale Cycle, J.R.R. Tolkien, Lord of the Rings, narrative, publishing, Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino, Sound and the Fury, Wallace Stegner, William Faulkner, writing, writing advice, writing business, writing life, writing tips
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Professional Wednesday: Beginnings, Middles, and Endings, part V — What Makes a Good Ending?
Continuing my Professional Wednesday feature on “Beginnings, Middles, and Endings,” (previous posts can be found here, here, here, and here) I now turn to endings. And I will begin by stating the obvious: The ending to our story is likely … Continue reading
Posted in Falstaff Books, Fantasy, Islevale Cycle, Novels, Reading, Setting, Short Fiction, Thieftaker, Writing
Tagged blogging, Casablanca, character development, D.B. Jackson, David B. Coe, Guy Gavriel Kay, how to write, Islevale Cycle, Lord of the Rings, narrative, narrative arc, Thieftaker Chronicles, three-act structure, Tigana, Time's Assassin, writing, writing advice, writing tips
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Professional Wednesday: Beginnings, Middles, and Endings, part II — Narrative Structure
Last week, I began a new Professional Wednesday feature called “Beginnings, Middles, and Endings,” in which I plan to write about the various parts of story writing. In last week’s post, I focused on openings, on how to approach the … Continue reading
Posted in movies, Novels, Reading, Thieftaker, Writing, Writing Life
Tagged blogging, D.B. Jackson, David B. Coe, harry potter, how to write, J.R.R. Tolkien, narrative, plotting, revisions, The Hobbit, Thieftaker, three-act structure, writing, writing advice, writing life, writing tips
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Monday Musings: This Blog, My Books, Your Support
This Blog: I want to say from the outset that I love maintaining this blog. I write my twice-weekly posts because I enjoy sharing my thoughts (on Mondays) and my writing tips (on Wednesdays). Writing on demand in this way … Continue reading
Posted in Bell Bridge Books, Belle Books, Business of publishing, Novels, Publishing, Reading, The Chalice War, Writing, Writing Life
Tagged Bell Bridge Books, Belle Books, blogging, business of publishing, business of writing, D.B. Jackson, David B. Coe, publishing, publishing business, The Chalice War, The Chalice War: Cauldron, The Chalice War: Stone, writing, writing life
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Professional Wednesday: When To Fight an Edit, and When To Let it Go
I know my knee-jerk response is not always my wisest response. All of us who have gone through the editorial process are familiar with the conundrum: We want to work with our editors. We want to cultivate reputations for being … Continue reading
Posted in Character, Novels, Reading, Short Fiction, Writing, Writing Life
Tagged blogging, character, D.B. Jackson, David B. Coe, editing, editor-writer relationship, editorial process, editors, how to write, plotting, publishing, revision process, revisions, wording, working with editors, writing, writing advice, writing life, writing tips
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Professional Wednesday: “Hidden Brain,” Perception, and Fiction
On a recent drive I began listening to the Hidden Brain podcast, with the brilliant Shankar Vedantam. I had listened to scattered episodes before, but never in a systematic way. But this was a long drive and I wound up … Continue reading
Posted in Novels, Reading, Research, Writing, Writing Life
Tagged blogging, character, D.B. Jackson, David B. Coe, dialogue, emotion, Hidden Brain, narrative, point of view, psychology, reading, science, Shankar Vedantam, Tessa West, writing, writing life
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Professional Wednesday: Roger Angell, 1920-2022
If you are not a baseball fan, and not a reader of The New Yorker, chances are the news of Roger Angell’s passing, at the age of 101, had little significance for you. But if you are familiar with his … Continue reading
Posted in Family, History, Publishing, Reading, Sports, Writing, Writing Life
Tagged baseball, blogging, D.B. Jackson, David B. Coe, family, history, how to write, learning to write, memories, New York Mets, New Yorker, publishing creativity, Roger Angell, sports, Willie Mays, writing, writing life
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Monday Musings: My Favorite Hidden Gems
Not so very long ago, I wrote a post on some of my favorite things. I thought I would follow up on that with a post about a few things I love that I consider “hidden gems,” things I have … Continue reading
Posted in Fun, movies, Music, Novels, Reading, Writing
Tagged Aaron Sorkin, Alison Brown, Americanization of Emily, blogging, C.E. Murphy, D.B. Jackson, David B. Coe, Jerry Douglas, Lynn Flewelling, movies, music, novels, Passion Fish, Sports Night, television, The West Wing, writing
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Professional Wednesday: Most Important Lessons — Trust Yourself, Trust Your Reader
Today, I’m introducing a new feature for my Professional Wednesday posts: “Most Important Lessons.” We are coming up on the 28th anniversary of the start of my career (which I trace to the offer I received from Tor Books on … Continue reading
Posted in Novels, Reading, Short Fiction, Writing, Writing Life
Tagged blogging, character, Children of Amarid, D.B. Jackson, David B. Coe, editing, how to write, LonTobyn Chronicle, novels, plotting, reading, revisons, short fiction, Tor Books, Winds of the Forelands, writing, writing advice, writing life, writing tips
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