And What Happened Next?

I watched a nature program about a mama bear waking up after a winter’s hibernation. She had two cubs, so small that they had a hard job following her when she left the cave. The snow was deep and the grown bear took off, leaving her babies to struggle through the deep snow. They floundered […]

Reflections

Reflection is “a thought or writing about something, particularly in the past, or what one sees when looking into a body of water.” Reflections can be seen in eyes or heard in voices. A writer is both a reflector and a sponge. She soaks up a lot of images, words, outlooks, memories, and sifts through […]

What a Character!

What a Character!

What do you like most about the books you enjoy? Is it the setting, that intriguing plot, or, is it the characters?  Thinking back on my favorite stories, I remember the characters. When I read each of the books, those characters became alive to me. They weren’t words on paper; they were living, moving, thinking, […]

Why Keep Reading?

Why Keep Reading?

When you’ve started a book series, why do you keep reading? Is it the main character? Do you keep reading for the action, to see what’s going to happen next? I’m reading a series, have just finished the tenth book, so it seems I enjoy the writing. Right? But, why? Usually, it’s the characters who […]

All I Need to Know…

All I Need to Know…

Darcy, Flora, and Ned have taught me a lot. Did they teach me all I ever really needed to know? Well, let’s see now, they taught me… When you’re in a dark place, keep going forward…the tunnel has to end sometime, somewhere. Don’t believe everything you hear. You are more courageous than you think. Friendship […]

What a Character!

What a Character!

Hey! You aren’t supposed to say that! I looked at the paragraph I’d written. This character was speaking and acting…well, out of character. I had her personality planned and knew how she fit into the story I was writing, but, here she was, taking the bit in her mouth, the bull by the horns, and […]