….about a lot of things
Is it only me who feels like summer has sped by, and I haven’t done anything really important?
When I look at my list, however, I can see that isn’t quite true. There’s actually quite a lot going on that I wanted to bring you up to date about!
What was that about Shakespeare?
A couple of weeks ago I was the guest on a podcast called Don’t Quill the Messenger, where host Steven Sabel discusses the questions surrounding the works of William Shakespeare — especially the long-running dispute about who really wrote the plays and poems. I’ve been a doubter of the standard candidate for years, so I ended up writing a brief book — it’s more of a long magazine article — about the authorship question, why I don’t believe the man from Stratford on Avon was the playwright, and all the factors that have shaped my beliefs. If you’re interested in the podcast, you can listen to the episode here on Don’t Quill the Messenger. If you’re more interested in the book, here’s the link to Much Ado About Shakespeare.
New class starting soon!
I’m excited to be starting a new venture where I’ll be teaching a class called Secrets to Successful Fiction. Whether you’re writing romance or cozy mystery or thriller or sci-fi / fantasy or literary fiction, good writing is good writing, and storytelling is a skill that can be learned. This six week class, hosted in person on Zoom, will help writers of all sorts of fiction hone their storytelling skills.
–Learn what the reader wants as well as needs, and how to satisfy that desire.
–Learn how to craft an opening that captures the reader’s attention.
–Learn how to create characters who live on in the reader’s mind.
–Learn how to develop the problems and conflicts which make your characters compelling.
–Learn to use point of view, perspective, and dialogue to enhance your story.
–Learn how to bring your story to a conclusion that leaves your reader satisfied.
–Learn to give and receive constructive feedback.
This is your chance to interact, ask questions, and discuss your work, as well as writing techniques in general, with a best-selling author and writing coach — me. I will also give specific feedback to each writer’s work.
Authors of all genres of fiction are welcome. The class will meet on six consecutive Thursday evenings starting October 3, via Zoom. Seats are limited, so reserve your space today!
Secrets to Successful Fiction is part of a new venture in collaboration with book coach and Jackie Haley and author, teacher, and editor Misty Urban. Learn more about all of the new class offerings at Dream to Author Academy.
It’s time to Fall Into Romance!
With September fast approaching, I got to thinking about drawing attention to love stories. Romance writers and readers make a big deal of Valentine’s Day, but so does everyone else. I think we need a day in the autumn, so I propose that we start treating September 21 — the first day of fall — as “Fall into Romance” day. I plan to do some special things that day, but I’d love to hear your ideas! You can let me know your thoughts through the Contact Me page.
In the meantime, I continue to work on the new Regency romance, which is still in the plans for release this autumn. Here’s a draft version of the cover — what do you think?
And just a last quick progress note. My webmaster and I are working on a new site to host all of the independent study classes I’ve developed over the years. I’ve tried a couple of different hosting sites, without a lot of satisfaction, so we’re hoping to go live with these self-paced online workshops soon.
I hope you’ll have a wonderful rest of the summer!