point of view

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POINT OF VIEW: Setting Goals (And Making Them)

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I am both immensely thrilled and a whole lotta stressed today as I write this. I set myself two missions at the start of this year – one, to get into the Science Fiction Writers’ Association (SFWA, pronounced Siffwuh) by writing and selling a qualifying short story. And two, to take steps to snag an agent for what I hope will be the next step in my writing career. Well, missions one accomplished. This week I got not one but four rejections from the major sci fi magazines to which I have submitted. I know, that’s totally not where you … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: Immersed In Another World

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immersion - deposit photos

I’m writing as much each day as I have at any point since Nano four years ago. When I get this deep into one of my stories, I start to practically live in that another world. I’m approaching the end of my latest novel, a solar punk sci fi tale that blends gee-whiz tech, epic scenery, crazy twists and turns, and a pervasive sense of hope I feel like we sorely need right now. I’m writing 1200-2000 words a day, and the story and its characters are on constant rotation in my head. All throughout the day I notice little … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: The Power of Downtime

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Everyone needs downtime. Even writers. I know this, and yet I am spectacularly bad at actually letting myself enjoy any of it. Writer brains, as any writer will likely attest, are strange creatures. Mine is a magpie, flitting through life and chasing whatever is bright, shiny, and new. The other day, we had lunch with friends, and one of them comes from a family of K’s, where every sibling’s first name starts with “K.” And then she mentioned that one of their daughter’s names started with an “E.” And off my little writer brain went. Families with kids whose names … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: Writing at a Dead Run

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I’m writing my ass off. Seriously, I haven’t written at this brisk a pace since NaNoWriMo back in… 2014? 2015? I have the wind at my back. Or maybe it’s a pack of snarling wolves. Or perhsps just the fear of not making it – never quite getting to where I want to be as an author before I die. Hitting your fifties encourages a whole lot of “what have I done with my life” soul-searching. Those who follow me (thanks to both of you!) know that I am gearing up to find an agent, to take the next step … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: When Reviews Attack

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I just got the worst review of my writing life. I mean, truly brutal. They pretty much hated everything about the story. Technically, it was written four years ago, but I just ran across it this last week. It’s for one of my earlier stories, but it absolutely pulls no punches – the characters sketchy and poorly drawn, the story unbelievable, and – gasp – the world-building too sparse. It also called my writing that most dreaded of adjectives, the one every writer hates to hear. Unoriginal. I bring this up not to cast aspersions on the reviewer. They felt … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: Rewriting the Past

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I’ve been in the process of re-releasing a number of my older works. It’s funny to think I’ve been published long enough to actually have some older works. LOL… In the process, I’ve had a chance to see how my writing has changed over the years. Most recently, I updated “The Homecoming,” coming out this Wednesday in eBook and (for the first time) paperback! The story itself held up remarkably well – I even had a few of those “damn, I actually wrote this?” moments, which is always nice for an author. *grin* But there were a few things I … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: Here We Go

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rocket - pixabay

So things are a ‘changin for me. I have finally completed the two trilogies I’ve been working on for the last two years (well, four years for Oberon) and I am looking ahead to what’s next. I have decided to take my shot at the bigtime. I have discussed this with my current publishers – the wonderful folks at both Mischief Corner Books and Dreamspinner Publications – and I am going to try to get an agent for my next book. My ultimate goal is to break into one of the big publishing houses to see where it might take … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: The World Needs to Calm the F* Down.

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Pride Season is upon us, and with it, so many things I have to do, and so little time to do them. We have two readings in Sacramento this week (thank you Jeff Adams for managing one of them!), two pride celebrations, an author lunch, and that’s just the stuff on my local author group plate. The world outside our doorstep seems to be spinning out of control, my writing is on hold until I can find time for it, and somehow I have about ten times as many things to do as I have time to do them. So … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: Pride

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Scott 1992

We’re entering pride season, a time we celebrate our community – one that I have watched grow from “gay” to “gay and lesbian” to “GLBT” to “LGBT” to “LGBTIQA,” all over the course of my lifetime. I’m fifty-one this year, and as I look around, I am amazed at the number of pride celebrationsheld around the country. Almost every city has one, and Pride has become a commodity, a shiny rainbow-colored thing that in the process has lost some of its former meaning. This is part of the mainstreaming of queer culture that has had enormous benefits for our community, … Read more

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POINT OF VIEW: Gardening is Writing

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We writers are creative folk. Beyond writing, it’s not uncommon for us to have other creative pursuits – art, music, theater… or even gardening. I started vegetable gardening when I was in Junior High. Two of my friends went to the store with me, and we got seeds and soil and planted a garden in the side yard. I’d never really experienced some of the things we grew fresh. This was in the late seventies and early eighties, and much of what we ate at home came out of tin cans. The first time I had some fresh-cooked green beans … Read more