The Crotchety Old Man

Tag: writing

  • My Staycation

    Today I return to work after my longest vacation in more than a decade. Usually, I use a day or two of vacation time around weekends and holidays to keep my work from piling up overmuch while I’m away. This year, that just wasn’t possible. For sixteen glorious days, I didn’t think about work. I…

  • Coming Soon: After Christmas Eve

    The folks at Dreamspinner Press, publisher of Until Thanksgiving, have been wonderful. When I finished After Christmas Eve (the prequel), I sent it to them, ignoring the part in their submission guidelines about the story having to be a romance. By ignoring, I don’t mean that I read and then disregarded the words. I never…

  • Keeping Things in Perspective

    There are very few things I’d rather do than write. When my chores are done or I’m dodging an unpleasant task, I write. Numerous other interests have come and gone over the years — tropical fish, gardening, video games, and paint-by-number to name a few. Writing has outlasted those and many other activities and has…

  • Dereliction of Duties: Seven Excuses

    My new normal is crazy busy. I thought the situation was temporary. For months I’ve believed that things would slow down once I got over the next hump. Being a slow learner, it took me more than a year to figure out that busy is here to stay. Reading and commenting on the blogs I’ve…

  • My Section at the Bookstore

    I never dreamed I could write a novel. Sure, I’ve always loved to write. But a novel? My first project was a memoir for a reason. I didn’t need to write dialogue, develop believable and interesting characters, or come up with clever and intriguing plots. Just write about my crazy family and the rest would…

  • Waiting Games

    Three weeks ago today I submitted a query, synopsis, and the first twenty pages of Until Thanksgiving to a publisher. Three days later, I received a response to my query: a request from the publisher for the full manuscript. I sent the manuscript within thirty minutes and have been dancing off the ceiling ever since.…

  • A Totally Different Experience

    A few years ago, the idea of writing a book intimidated me enough to keep me from even trying. The complexity of the task overwhelmed me. The job was too big to comprehend and I didn’t know enough to break it into smaller, more manageable chunks. I added “write a book” to the things I…

  • Back to Work

    It’s just been me and the dogs here at home this weekend. I took the opportunity to focus on me. My partner would say I do that all the time. He’s right. But when he’s not around, I really indulge myself. I could accomplish more without the dogs pestering me. They insist I stop whatever…

  • Going Pro

    Okay. That Until Thanksgiving is seriously being considered by a real publisher means I’m that much closer to my goal of becoming a published author. It’s time to spiff things up here at the House to prepare for fame and fortune. I’ve done some research and as a result, will be making some changes. The…

  • Back to Square One

    My affection for the people in my writer’s group has come up here several times before. We’re a diverse group with different backgrounds, interests, strengths, and weaknesses. Together we’re a tough bunch of well-informed critics. Besides the formal submission process and the critiques provided at our regular meetings, there’s also a lot of informal sharing.…