Pictured: Not my character, FWIW, but still a fairly demanding lady. Some authors say their characters take over. Some authors say that's rubbish. The writer is the boss! Well, yes? While I wouldn't say my characters take over, at times, when I'm contemplating the plot, I write the plot a certain way and it just …
When people ask me, "What's your story about?" I have a slight panic attack. Why? I can speculate, but I don't really know. I can't afford therapy. BUT I am excited about the story I'm currently working on. (I'm excited about every story. At this moment, however, I'm also in an optimistic mood. Why optimism …
These are strange days indeed. I'm teaching from home, which is weird, though I'm getting used to it. I might be coming out of the creative fog I've been in. Don't want to jinx it, but nevertheless, here I am, testing fate and hoping for the best. Years ago one NaNoWriMo, I started this story …
I want to write about a time traveler who travels through time and space. I have a beginning for such a story but not much else. Who is your favorite time traveler? Mine, in case you don't know (in which case you're new around here), is the Doctor. I like all the Doctors, by the …
I finished Story-a-Day May! I wrote every single day and ended up with probably 29 stories or scenes I can polish up or use somewhere. And even though I've ended up re-publishing my first novel on my own, that isn't what I want for the rest. Or I don't think it is. My dithering about …
May 2014 ends today. I spent the last few days in Las Vegas for a friend's wedding, and I completely dropped the proverbial ball on writing for Story-a-Day May. I didn't gamble in Las Vegas, not even with a slot machine. Most of the time, lights, sounds, people overloaded my senses. But I had a …
Are you ever too old to play with action figures? Mt action figures started with Charles Dickens. As a joke, I bought a Charles Dickens action figure for a friend, but it turned out she already had Mr. Dickens. Of course, she did. She's his biggest fan. (Other than the Doctor--for you Whovians.) Then I …
I know this ridiculous, but what if the Doctor's companion was a cancer patient. She could run around between chemo treatments and lose her hair. I don't know. It's crazy, but maybe it would be nice to see patients with certain illnesses on film out in the world doing things. And by doing things I …
Today was the summer solstice. A year ago today, we had our housewarming party to celebrate moving into our very first house. A week from today I'll have my fourth chemo treatment (12 more to go after that). Before I'm done with chemo, I'll have another book out that I've illustrated. Soon after I finish …
Whenever someone mentions bees, I want to shout, "The bees are disappearing!" If you're a Doctor Who fan, you'll understand. But the point now is that I'm illustrating a children's book about bees. I've never drawn bees before, so this is a challenge. This might sound crazy, but most of the time, I don't actually …
Marta Pelrine-Bacon 