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Carol S. Mann
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Bits and Pieces
“He knew everyone had flaws. People fell from grace all the time. But some people fell further than others.” From “Ferrelli’s Fall” (Creek Songs).
Category Archives: novel
Writers’ Workshops to the Rescue
I’m continually looking for writing tips, techniques, and approaches. I’m forever searching for ways to become a better writer and be inspired. Sound familiar? As a result, I attend conferences and workshops, read articles and books on writing, listen to speakers, … Continue reading
Posted in Authors, Creativity, fiction writing, Finding Ideas: The Creative Process, Inspiration, Looking for Inspiration, novel, Reading, short story, Writing
Tagged Author Elizabeth Sims, Developing a fictional character, Developing a fictional plot, editing your writing, perfectionism, Scene development in fiction, sequence in fiction writing, The short story, The Value of Writers' Workshops, Writer's Digest Magazine, You've Got A Book In You by Elizabeth Sims
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Lucky Seven and Writers
I’d never seen the word shichifukujin until I read author Dan Brown’s thriller Digital Fortress. Granted, there are many words I haven’t seen or read, but this one intrigued me. Brown simply revealed the shichifukujin were the seven deities of … Continue reading
Posted in Authors, Creativity, fiction writing, Inspiration, novel, Reading, short story, Writing
Tagged Author Dan Brown, creating characters, Digital Fortress by Dan Brown, good luck, Hope, luck, rainbows, Seven Deities of Good Luck, shichifukujin, Snow White, Story and plot, The Seven Dwarfs, writing
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Giving Input to Another Writer
Being in a critique group is one way to add dimension to your writing process. As a participant, you receive or give critiques on ways to improve the story under discussion. But giving input in a positive, productive way is … Continue reading
A Writers’ Critique Group at Last
I pulled into the parking lot of the local library a little before 10 a.m., feeling a bit excited. After many years, a writers’ critique group was forming in my locale under the auspices of the Palm Springs Writers Guild … Continue reading
Posted in Authors, Books, Creativity, fiction writing, Inspiration, memoir, novel, personal essay, Reading, short story, Writing
Tagged Being in a writers' group, Developing Writing Craft, La Quinta Library, novel, Palm Springs Writers Guild, personal essay, Purpose of a critique group, short story, Writers and a Critique Group, Writers' Camaraderie, Writing Critique Group
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Finding the “just right” character name
I don’t have a magic potion for selecting a character name. Sometimes the name just arrives. Other times, it’s a hard search. I may have to give the character a temporary name for a while as I push ahead in … Continue reading
Posted in Authors, Books, Creativity, fiction writing, Inspiration, Looking for Inspiration, novel, Reading, short story, Writing
Tagged Andy Weir, finding character names, Harry Bosch, Mark Watney, Michael Connelly, Mitch Rapp, naming a character in a work of fiction, Order to Kill, The Martian, The Wrong Side of Goodbye, Vince Flynn
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How do you get in the mood – to write, that is?
Some days I walk down the hall to the office thinking of other things I’d rather do than write. You know, procrastinator thoughts. Paint a room. Clean the garage. Pay bills. Other days I walk down the hall like I’m … Continue reading
Finding the Angle
You sit at your desk or take a walk and, as you do, you scratch at your brain’s stored content and loose ends. You want to find an angle for your story and a world backdrop against which your protagonist … Continue reading
Posted in Authors, Books, Creativity, fiction writing, Inspiration, novel, Reading, short story, Writing
Tagged All Our Names by Dinaw Mengestu, books, creativity, fiction, ideas, imagination, In the Kingdom of Ice by Hampton Sides, inspiration, literature, nonfiction, Passion and Principle by Sally Denton, Rancho Mirage Writers Festival, reading, Redeployment by Phil Klay, short story, The 19th Wife by David Ebershoff, The Widow of the South by Robert Hicks, Welcome to Braggsville by T. Geronimo Johnson, When Book Went to War by Molly Giptill Manning, writing
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Writer, Author, Wordsmith?
If you like to write stories, you might call yourself a writer. Okay. If you’ve published a piece or two, you might call yourself an author. Someone may refer to you as a wordsmith or teller of tales or story … Continue reading
Posted in Authors, Creativity, fiction writing, novel, Reading, short story, Writing
Tagged artist, author Anthony DeCasper, Chico State, Glimmer Train, imagination, literary artists, Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, narrative artist, show, story artist, tell, the art of writing, wordsmith
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My novel’s like a tree?
How do you go about writing a novel? Good question. I’ve been reading, studying, and analyzing different approaches by authors and writing coaches. Why? Because I have a novel basking in various stages of undress in both a computer file … Continue reading
Posted in Authors, Books, fiction writing, novel, Reading, short story, Writing
Tagged Christmas tree, Eduardo Santiago, first draft, holiday tree, Janet Fitch, Larry Brooks, novel, ornaments, short story, Storyfix.com, White Oleander, writing a novel
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Writing that lights your marquee …
The house is quiet. I’m reading a really good book. In fact, I’m buried in it. As I read, I come upon a sentence that sends an Oh! to a little niche in my brain. There the sentence lights up like a … Continue reading
Posted in Authors, Books, Creativity, fiction writing, novel, Reading, Writing
Tagged Alice Mendelssohn, analogy, apartheid, Botswana, creating an image, description, Eleanor Morse, great sentences, heightening meaning, honing and idea, Ian Henry, imagery, Isaac Muthethe, shedding light on a character, South Africa, White Dog Fell from the Sky
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Written Beneath the Palms 