Capturing Emotions by Using Personal Experiences

Hey, SE Readers. Joan with you today. A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about ways to capture character emotions. I briefly touched on using personal experiences. Little did I know I would soon face a situation that left me (and several of my neighbors) more than a little “uncomfortable.” Hope you don’t mind …

Useful Writing Tools

Hey, SE Readers. Joan with you today. You’ve probably heard the terms planner, plotter, and panster. Some writers must have a detailed outline before writing the first word of a novel. Others write by the seat of their pants and let the story (or characters) determine what happens. I’m somewhere between. When I begin a …

Research – Love It or Hate It

Hey, SE Readers. Joan with you today.  I have a confession to make. When I first began writing fiction, I hated to do research. I didn’t want to bother with such mundane tasks. Once I even wrote a blog post titled “Research, A Necessary Evil.”  I’m not sure why I had such an aversion. I’ve …

Picture It, Portray It, Pen It

Hey, SE Readers. Joan with you today. Do you ever struggle with describing a character’s emotions or how they would react in a particular situation? I do. Even though I have several reference books, at times I feel as if I keep repeating the same thing—an arched brow for surprise, a pricking sensation for fear, …

Getting it Done with Writing Sprints

Hey, SE Readers. Joan with you today. Hope you’re enjoying this chilly, um, frigid February. Perfect weather for staying indoors to write. You’re near the end. You can see the end in sight. You want so badly to cross the finish line and celebrate having the first draft of your manuscript completed. But there are …