If you're anything like me, you cringe when you hear that the cocktail party or social gathering is designed to be a 'networking' event. Oh no! Not one of those, you inwardly groan. Maybe your next step is to worry whether your business cards (if you have them) are up-to-date, or if your attire is professional enough for the occasion. You rearrange your hair three times before it looks right. …
My best lessons and indicators for what I should improve or refine in my work are sitting right in front of me, plain as day, in my last creation. In my case, this means that directions for improving my writing can be found in the last piece of writing that I completed. I'm in the process of reading Art and Fear, a book that my author friend…
In two and a half days, I logged over 10,000 words of story architecture, plotting, and brainstorming for my newest novel idea as a byproduct of a writers retreat that I and seven other individuals enjoyed this last weekend. Was the writing retreat productive? Absolutely. But it was so much more than word counts and fresh pages of prose. Can you remember those time-freezing, luminous moments that your…
In the art world, and in most places of life, change can come as fast as a tsunami wave--and my reaction to change may be compared to the terror of standing on the beach, watching the incoming wall of water, and wondering if I really am prepared for what's ahead of me. The analogy is imperfect. A tsunami would likely have killed me. The changes in my…
The world-changing news came on what could have been a very average day. I'm sitting at my computer, getting ready to leave it for a while and revise the printed pages of my current work-in-progress, when a new message on my screen reads: Dear Elise, we would like to move forward with your delightful story... And I realize that someone is telling me that they want to publish…