Writing PILZ with the door to my study closed didn’t prevent a nagging little harpy from whispering into my ear: “What is your mother going to say about those naughty words?. . . and the sex? My God, nice girls don’t portray things like that on paper. . . and the violence? Do you really …
PILZ: Sex, violence and naughty words by J. K. Royce Read More »
I can’t put off the holidays anymore. National Novel Writing Month is over, the Thanksgiving leftovers are gone, and my family is asking about the holiday baking. My daily to-do lists take up multiple pages. My manuscript sits on the edge of the desk, waiting for revisions. I made good progress over the last month, …
A hovercraft, also known as an air-cushion vehicle (ACV), can travel over any terrain. You name it-dirt, water, mud, ice, water-it can hover in a stationary or mobile position. These hybrid vessels are operated by a pilot, not a captain like a marine vessel. An ACV functions by creating a cushion of high-pressure air between …
Cyber Monday Hovercraft from home by Violet Carr Moore Read More »
I found a book titled 100 Words Almost Everyone Mixes Up or Mangles (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, from the editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries). Having a fondness for trivia, I bought the book. The words listed were all familiar to me. I was about to congratulate myself on paying attention in school when I reached …
More than a dozen CWC Tri-Valley Branch members have taken the annual National Novel in a Month (NaNoWriMo) challenge. Cooking, house cleaning and yard work will be ignored. Laundry bins overflow. The trash begs to be taken out. Our fingers fly over computer keyboards toward a common goal—50,000 words by November 30. For the past …
I bragged about writing in the dark-waking up at night and scribbling a few notes without turning on the light. Then I thought about other images that phrase conjures. Pushing myself through the writers block of the late afternoon, I struggle for the perfect ending to my story. The final paragraphs shimmer in my imagination, …
I flip open my computer and touch the home row keys confident that words will flow. Writer’s block, my adversary, assaults me like a wave of desert heat. I glance at my abbreviated notes. Blog, blogosphere and bloke stare back at me. Blog, the first word, is my scribbled reminder that I must write today. …
I’ve sat in the glow of published authors-as much glow as fluorescent lights can cast in a meeting room. From first major breakthrough to New York Times (NYT) bestsellers, “What is your writing regime like?” is the most frequent question from the audience. Kathryn Coulter, NYT bestselling author of the Savage and Sherlock mystery thrillers, …
I read an article that said to be a successful writer I should never let anything interfere with my writing time, not even a simple load of laundry. My first reaction was that my family would head off to work in their birthday suits if I followed that advice. After some reflection (and a load …
I reconnected with a childhood friend awhile back. We had lost touch after junior high. The high school in our district had been plagued with vandalism and violence throughout the mid-60’s as the Civil Rights movement escalated. My parents, their minds made up that it was not a safe environment for a mousy white girl, …
