Writer Resources

A Tip and Resources for Writers of Short Fiction

Hi Folks, Dean Wesley Smith is the professional long-term fiction writer whom I consider my mentor. He’s made his living with his fiction for over 3o years and has well over 100 novels published through traditional publishers. This is back before traditional publishers lost their minds and made their contracts completely one-sided. I emailed Dean about my most recent (at the time, back in November, 2014) short story, “Saving the Grenlow”: “Seriously doubt I’m up to … Read more

A Public Service Announcement… sort of

Yeah, sort of. If you’re a writer, you need resources, and the fact is, I’m a good one. I’ve recently revamped the Writers’ Resources listing in the right sidebar of my page. That sidebar contains a list of copyeditors as well as various useful tools: several dictionaries for everything from slang to sex; language translators and conversion resources for measurements, mileage, money and more; invaluable information for would-be independent publishers; character naming conventions; free apps; free … Read more

Let’s Go Streaking

Hi Folks, First, Happy New Year! I hope it’s perfect for you. If you’re a writer, there’s no better time than right now to go streaking. (grin) No wait… I mean, you know, there’s no better time to begin a new streak. Nah, I’m not talking about taking off all your clothes and racing around in public. Seriously, nobody wants to see that. I’m talking about eating an elephant. Remember the old (very wise) joke? Q: … Read more

An Essential Tip: Just Write the Scene

A long while back, I posted that if you’re writing and you get bogged down, you should just write the next sentence, then write the next sentence, and so on. Soon you’ll be back in the flow of your story and you can forge ahead. There’s one proviso—that “next sentence” should come directly from your subconscious (creative) mind. In other words, you shouldn’t force it and think about it and make it read just so. You … Read more

A Bit More on Goals

First, a public service announcement, especially for avid readers: if you’re going to be in or near Green Valley on December 6, I hope you’ll stop by to see me and a lot of other local and regional authors at the annual Meet the Authors Book Fair. That’s next Saturday, December 6, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Desert Hills Lutheran Church at 2150 South Camino Del Sol in Green Valley. I’ll have my new … Read more

A Few Resources and Goal Setting

Hey Folks, A few strong resources— If you’re serious about your work as a writer, check these out: http://deanwesleysmith.com—The resource-rich website of Dean Wesley Smith, my own unintentional mentor and one of the most prolific writers in America. While you’re there, check out the Think Like a Publisher and Killing the Sacred Cows of Publishing tabs. I also recommend checking out his Online Workshops tab and his Lecture Series tab. Also while you’re there, remember that … Read more

My First Novel and Killing Writing Myths

Hi Folks, First, a salute to my brothers and sisters in the United States Marine Corps—Happy 239th birthday—and a respectful toast to our brothers and sisters in the other US armed forces as well as friends in the ROK Marines and the Corps of Royal Marines. May your days be vibrant, your evenings calm, your heart safe and warm at home. Okay, on to business. As I write this, I just finished my first novel. It’s … Read more

A very special blog post

Hi Folks, If you live in southeast Arizona and you are an aspiring writer who can’t seem to find time to write has never heard of Heinlein’s Rules HAS heard of Heinlein’s Rules but have amended them because you think they’re too good to be true believe you have to “polish” your work before publication believe you have to rewrite X number of times before publication believe you have to write X number of drafts before … Read more

A Bunch of New Stuff

Hi Folks, Yeah, I know it isn’t the 10th or 20th or 30th, but then again this isn’t a normal blog post about writing. I mean, it’s about writing in a way, but first it’s about my website. I’ve made a lot of changes to the site. The first is a general reorganization. I added a sidebar, made my new picture the subscription button, moved my Meet Harvey stuff (formerly Connect with Harvey) over under my … Read more

10 Mistakes Authors Make That Can Cost Them a Fortune (and how to avoid them)

Hi Folks, The Microsoft Word for Writers series will return on October 30, but right now I wanted to share this very important reprint with you. I’ve trimmed away the non-essentials but kept the main points and the rationale. I’ve indicated omissions with an ellipsis. This series of excerpts is reprinted with permission from “The Book Marketing Expert newsletter,” a free ezine offering book promotion and publicity tips and techniques. http://www.amarketingexpert.com. Where I added anything, it’s … Read more