Category: Articles and Essays
-
Loving Our Characters
American Buddhist nun, Pema Chödrön, writes in “Comfortable with Uncertainty” that, “…When we start to meditate or work with any kind of spiritual discipline, we often think that somehow we’re going to improve [ourselves], which is a subtle kind of aggression against who we are…Meditation practice isn’t about trying to throw ourselves away and become…
-
Families OnLine Magazine| My New Monthly Column
Check out the first in article in my new monthly column at Families OnLine Magazine Take Your Time Tillie .
-
Twists
The best stories often have a twist at the end. But what is a twist? Is it the result of having led the reader in one direction, only to surprise them with action rising from another? Not quite.
-
Premise
What’s the premise of your novel? Do you need one? Why would you not? Premise is the combination of character and situation. What if Person A is forced to confront Situation F?
-
Our Words Are But Children at Play
Like an old man watching children at play, we need to see through our own seriousness. No matter how seriously the children go about their games, the old man is amused and never for a moment takes them to be real. We can watch our own thoughts and emotions in the same way. Without taking…
-
The High Cost of Agents
I have read many articles this year stating that one of the major economic struggles of the publishing world are rooted in the high cost of publishers garnering books. And who determines the cost of an author’s publishing or book contract?