Character Conversation

I talk to the characters in my books. They have personalities and minds of their own. Sometimes, it’s a struggle to decide which would fit best in the story I’m writing–my thoughts or my character’s. Usually, my character is right. Me: Ned, I don’t believe you would go off hunting for an Indian message tree […]

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 […]

Talking to Someone Who Isn’t There

Talking to Someone Who Isn’t There

  I saw a cartoon on Facebook something to the effect of authors talking to the characters in their books. Of course we do! I just hope nobody hears me sitting at my computer holding a conversation with an invisible person who speaks with a voice that is inaudible to everyone but me. Me: Ned, I don’t believe […]

Arguing with a Mysterious Voice

Arguing with a Mysterious Voice

…Well, the voice isn’t really mysterious, but what she’s saying may be thought to be–at least, it is supposed to fit into a cozy mystery and that makes it mysterious, doesn’t it? And, no one else can hear her except me but don’t think I’ve gone round the bend because hearing her is a good […]

Every Jot and Tittle

You’ve seen the cliche: the writer staring out the window appearing to be idle while she’s actually thinking of the next part of her story. I sympathize with that writer. It could be me! I’m on the re-write of the third Darcy/Flora mystery and re-writes and critiques are pain-staking necessities. The Cozy Critiquers are giving […]

The Mystique of the Critique

The Mystique of the Critique

The title of today’s blog is misleading but it does rhyme! There is no mystery about the Cozy Critiques. The official definition of a critique is an opinion or analysis or observation. A cozy critique (although I can’t find it listed in a dictionary) is a united effort of friends helping each other become better […]