History, Real Life, and Faith
What type of books does a harried reader want when life is running wild? I just took off a week from writing my novel, Bridging Two Hearts, because the adorable grandchildren came to stay. I knew my mind, heart, and body would be occupied elsewhere and saw no need to pressure myself to try to finish my book in the tiny…
Read More
Sometimes you need to take a break from writing a novel
Thanks to all who contributed to the discussion last time of the fat woman getting a massage. She turned out to be a more minor character than I anticipated owing to a medical crisis with another minor character nicknamed Flip. You can’t always control your characters when writing a novel. But in discussing her name (Camilla, BTW, with no nods…
Read More
“How did you choose these names for your characters?” asked an interviewer. Great question–and one writers wrestle with all the time! Choosing a name Two-thirds of the way through writing Bridging Two Hearts, I needed to introduce a minor character. She was getting a massage from my heroine (a massage therapist). Because massage is an intimate experience, many therapists ask…
Read More
Can the beach not have a scent? I’m just back from three exquisite days in Coronado, California, the setting for my next novel, Bridging Two Hearts. I went with a purpose: to pick up local color, talk to natives and make note of details–particularly scent and sound. While some like to say the devil is in the details, the facts…
Read More
Do maps and fiction writers need each other? I’ve been working on a novel the last month that takes place on Coronado “Island”, a long narrow sand spit just west of San Diego proper. It’s connected to the “mainland” via the infamous Coronado Bridge (third highest suicide bridge in the US) or an isthmus at Imperial Beach to the south….
Read More