Category: Books

Did I say that a second novel is just as hard as a first? I take that back. If the second book is a sequel, it’s way harder. My primary issue is trying to figure out how much recap to include. Do I assume that the reader of this book has read the first? Do I need to cover people’s jobs? Appearance? My only solution is to treat myself as if I’m the reader. Recently, I read the third book in a trilogy. It had been two years since I’d. . . Read More!

So I’ve started writing my second book, which is a sequel to We Could Be Villains. It definitely isn’t easier to write a second book after you’ve written a first. You still have to do an absolute crap-ton of research, and outlining, and prepping. (Unless you aren’t the outlining type. But I’ve discovered that I totally am.) So I guess right now, it seems like it’s just as hard as the first. I kept a list of general ideas for a month or so. (I’ve discovered that notebook apps like. . . Read More!

This is going to be a long one, friends. Buckle up! Writing a book can be difficult–anyone who’s tried to do it can attest to that fact. But laying out that book for print, especially if it isn’t something you do every day, can fill your soul with rage. There are a ton of little fiddly rules that mean you’re going to have to nudge, adjust, wiggle, and poke at things until they sit just right on the page. All the way through the book, from front to back. And. . . Read More!

In previous posts, I’ve covered the planning and writing of my novel, as well as using early readers to develop and improve the book, and how important it is to hire an actual professional editor. Now, it’s time to talk about something that could make or break a book: the cover. I’m going to tell you right now, I designed my own cover. And I’m also going to tell you right now, this is something you might want to spend money on to have a professional do it. For all. . . Read More!

Last time, I wrote about having early readers give feedback on my novel (after several drafts and lots of proofreading, of course). I think it’s essential to get the opinions of a few trusted folks; they can only make your work better. Today, speaking of someone who makes your work better, I’m going to tell you about hiring a professional editor. First, I should address the fact that I self-published my book. If I’d gone out to find a literary agent, and that agent had taken me on as a. . . Read More!

Previously, I wrote about the prepping, planning, plotting, and writing of my novel. After writing, rewriting, and reading through and rewriting again, my draft was ready to be read by someone other than me. I’ve been Scott’s first/alpha reader for all of his books so far, so of course he was mine. For both of us, we like to read the book in Word. It isn’t as convenient or hand-held as a copy on Kindle, but we both like Word’s commenting and markup features. On Scott’s two most recent books,. . . Read More!

This is the first in what’s going to be a series of posts about how my first novel came into being. Like so many people, I’d always wanted to write a novel, but always had excuses why it wasn’t a good time. Well, I finally did it, and here’s how. Setting a Timeline I’d watched my husband Scott write a pair of novels the previous year, and he was just starting into a third. Granted, he’d been working part-time, while I was working full-time, but I still figured that if. . . Read More!

So some of you may already know, and some may not, but I published a novel this week. A lot of writing advice boils down to: write the book you want to read. So that’s what I did with We Could Be Villains. It’s primarily a lighthearted action/adventure story, with elements of superheroes, sci-fi, heists, and chick lit. (If you’ve read any of Scott’s books, you already know that ours is not a household dealing in super-serious dramatic works.) At first I referred to it as “a geek girl beach. . . Read More!