On the eighth day of Christmas… Instead of counting the official twelve days of Christmas, I’m counting down the twelve days before Christmas to offer my gratitude for the people and things that make the writing life possible for me. Today it’s social media. In truth, in many ways, I don’t like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, blogs, and…
While I focus most of my attention on better language, better structure and better story, sometimes I have to focus on the business of books. When you have a book out there—or will soon—you have to be ready to sell, sell, sell. In the course of my studies, I’ve learned a smidge about some new…
Usually, I wander idly through Twitter. It can be amusing or enraging. I laugh at the funny tweets and retweet the occasional brilliant ones. Sometimes, though, one sticks with me. This one did. “The first draft of your story is the story you tell yourself.” I never thought of that. But it’s true. My first drafts…
Mary K. Tilghman, writer 