I've gotten feedback from some generous readers on stories I'm putting together. Asking for feedback triggers insecurity and guilt ("I'm sorry to bother you and you don't have to read it if you don't want to.") but oh, people's comments are incredibly helpful. The feedback isn't only helpful in the practical sense ("Thanks for catching …
When I started participating in Story-a-Day in 2010, I chose a theme. That had to be the best way to approach coming up with an idea every single day for a month. That first year, the theme was fairytales. I took famous objects (a red hood, a poisoned apple, a pair of dancing shoes), and …
I'm still working on this novel. I've had some feedback on earlier versions of the manuscript, but now I'm on my own sorting this mess out. One thing I don't like about writing on a computer is having to scroll back forth in the manuscript to find scenes. I want to see several scenes at …
With a little luck, I might write a lot this week before the summer semester begins. Fingers-crossed and coffee mug filled! Also, I have news. My incredibly supportive and lovely publisher has needed to make a change, and Plum Tree Books is no more. I'm sad, but I hope this will allow her to focus …
Recovering from surgery seems like a good time to blog again. But after I recover from this surgery, I'll start taking Tamoxifen and that should be it. Except for checkups every three months (until I graduate to every six months and then to once a year), all this cancer stuff should be behind me. I'm …
One thing I want to do is make hand made books. I've got no market for handmade books and one book takes a ton of time, so they aren't practical. But they're fun, and I'll probably make more. Years ago, I started a story about two rabbits, Ink and Mirabelle. This weekend, I finished one …
You have to wonder why anyone would spend so much time writing a book, pitching that book, and bringing that book to market if that same individual was going to hide when one someone actually mentioned reading the book. Kind of silly. But I admit to doing that. It is exciting and weird to have …
When I write, I sometimes listen to music. The music fits either the mood of the story or the personality of the characters. The other day, I had the chance to collaborate on a music show with London DJ Claudio Fiore and with my publisher, Plum Tree Books, that tells the story of the music …
My novel launched today! (Here at Amazon.) Since the story is set in the summer of 1985, I've been thinking back to those high school days. What were you like in high school? I wasn't popular. I liked to be in the art room with a sketch pad or a book. The drawing posted here …
Every decade has its personality, right? Although it's tricky because it isn't as if everything changes on January 1st of that zero year. When exactly did the '80s become THE '80s? What historical events mark the period? The election of Reagan perhaps? The beginning of MTV? I graduated in 1986, the year Ferris Bueller skipped …
Marta Pelrine-Bacon 