Writers are not normal people. I’ve been at the ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) Conference for the last several days. 675 like-minded people. The Hyatt Regency in Dallas wisely locked us in the basement held all our classes on the lowest floor. A friend of mine told me that once at her daughter’s gymnastics class she suddenly asked, “If I …
Drama … for Better or Worse
Drama. In a house with three teen/preteen girls, drama is not usually a good thing. It’s something to be circumvented, squashed, avoided at all costs. You tell the kids it’s bad, and you try to teach them better ways to settle conflict. But the last month or so, drama has begun to mean something different to me. A writer friend …
It’s A Beautiful Thing, the Destruction of Words
So says George Orwell in 1984. If you recall (or if you don’t), the Party aims to make “thoughtcrime” impossible by removing words which describe forbidden ideals, such as freedom, rebellion, etc., from the dictionary. No words, no thoughts. One character remarks on the slender volume with the above quote. Apparently, the New York City public school system (see link …
I. Have. A. Blog.
To most writers, those four words would be fun. Exciting even. To me, they’re unnerving. Intimidating. I write fiction for a reason. For one, I don’t have to write about myself. I write about characters I have created, and I design them exactly the way I want them. They are as nasty or kind or insecure or silly as I …