Category Archives: Thoughts about Writing

50,000 Words, Baby! YEAH!

Posted on November 29, 2009 by Marion
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Revision Is Hell Part II: Avril is Gone

Posted on November 25, 2009 by Marion

Dear Avril: I’m very sorry but as of today you will no longer be in the book. Believe me, it’s nothing you did or failed to do. You were everything I’d imagined in your part, and even more. You were … Continue reading →

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Revision is Hell–Part I

Posted on November 12, 2009 by Marion

The other night I had a dream that I was in an old inn that was being renovated. I was on the first floor. The place was draped with tarps, tangled with scaffolding. In between the sawdust, scaffolds and drapes … Continue reading →

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Write In at Santa Rosa Library

Posted on November 9, 2009 by Marion

Last Monday Lillian and I spent a couple hours at the Santa Rosa Central Library, plugging away on our word count for National Novel Writing Month. There were about a dozen people there, all ages and both genders represented. Most, … Continue reading →

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Arabesk: A Tour Guide You Can Trust

Posted on October 17, 2009 by Marion

The Arabesk Series Pashazade Effendi Felaheen Jon Courtenay Grimwood Spectra Fiction When I first see Ashraf al-Masur, it is through Felix Abrinsky’s eyes. Felix is in a place with architectural features I’m not familiar with, in a city whose name … Continue reading →

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Is Caliban a Bad Guy?

Posted on September 23, 2009 by Marion

Well, of course he is. He’s not the bad guy, the Real Villain. One of the problems with The Tempest is that it’s hard to tell who the real Bad Guy is. Since the really bad stuff happened in the … Continue reading →

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Fun With Homophones

Posted on September 19, 2009 by Marion

Pore (v) to scrutinize, meditate on, or ponder Pour (v) to direct the flow, usually of a liquid, as from a container or over or into something. “Senators pour over Max Bacchus health care bill.” MSNBC ticker, 9/18/09.

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NaNoWriMo Starts in 6 Weeks!

Posted on September 16, 2009 by Marion

It’s that time again. Soon we’ll hear the screams of football fans—oh, we’re hearing that already—the susurrus of gentle autumn rains, the rustle of fallen leaves, and the frantic clicking of hundreds of thousands of keyboards, as the NaNoWriMo community … Continue reading →

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Suspending Disbelief

Posted on September 13, 2009 by Marion

I first heard the expression “a willing suspension of disbelief” at a science fiction convention. I was in my twenties. I didn’t get it. The words rolled around in my head but I couldn’t parse them. It took me awhile … Continue reading →

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The Aroma of Coffee, The Plumage of a Bird

Posted on August 31, 2009 by Marion

I’m writing an action adventure novel set in the future. It’s not too far in the future, only about 70 years, but there have been some geopolitical and socioeconomic changes in that time. My main character is meeting with someone … Continue reading →

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