Archive for the ‘Writing’ Category
Posted on March 10, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
Writer’s Block? Maybe it’s “Writer’s Avoidance” Behavior
I was fortunate to attend a presentation given by author Kathy Steffen, who talked about ways to overcome writer’s block. One of the things she talked about was how writer’s block isn’t always a “block” of creativity, but you’re actually engaging in something she called “writer’s avoidance behavior.”
I feel that this is especially true [...]
Posted on March 4, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
What Other Writers Can Learn from Romance Authors
I joined a local romance writer’s group last year and, admittedly, I was a bit nervous at first because I knew nothing about that arm of the publishing industry.
Well, here we are months later and I’m very happy with my involvement with this group for several reasons…
Posted on March 3, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
Guest SFWA Blog Post on Website Usability and Design
Hop on over to the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America website to read my latest guest post entitled, Authors! 8 Tips For Your Website’s Usability and Design.
Here’s a quote from the article:
In today’s article, I’d like to share with you some tips to consider when you’re reviewing your current website or when you’re [...]
Posted on March 1, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
Announcing the Release of THE QUEEN OF CROWS
Centered around a short story entitled “The Queen Of Crows,” I designed a unique, digital product that I think you’ll really enjoy. At a retail price of $4.99, you will receive a magazine-style layout of THE QUEEN OF CROWS, a professional illustration of a character named Mahochepi and more!
This product is the first digital release [...]
Posted on February 17, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
Writing and Conventions
For the past, few months I’ve been taking a serious look at my short-term and long-term goals, and I’ve come to some pretty interesting conclusions.
When I look back at the projects that I have published, I realized that I have just as many that fell through the cracks due to bad business partnerships, horrible [...]
Posted on February 10, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
On Writing a Historically-Accurate Paranormal Short Story
Currently, I’m working on revisions for a short story entitled THE QUEEN OF CROWS that will be released as part of a digital product through Flames Rising Press. Set in the late 1800s, the plot revolves around a Navajo medicine man who is trying to summon a vengeance goddess called Mahochepi, the Queen of Crows. [...]
Posted on January 8, 2010 - by Monica Valentinelli
Marathon Wrap-Up and a Quick Look Ahead
First of all, marathoners — I owe you an apology. I had a summary post written (I really, really did) but somewhere in between plowing full steam ahead to 2010 and my WordPress updates I lost it. I’d like to share with you some closing thoughts on the Marathon.
For me, December was a kick start [...]
Posted on December 28, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Day 28: Removing the Obstacles
Well, we have just a few days left in the December 2009 Writing Marathon. Some of you are chugging along reaching those goals; some of you are simply writing a little bit very day. For me, this has been a very up-and-down sort of a month. November was extraordinarily busy for me and December proved [...]
Posted on December 20, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Day 20: What’s Your Mantra?
We’re two-thirds of the way through, and from what many of you have been sharing, this has been a “busy-insane-nutso” month for many of us. Still, regardless of whether or not you’ve written or revised one chapter or several, there’s something we can all learn from being this busy. Sometimes, in order to write we need to shut off our brains and just put our fingers on the keyboard. (Like Yoda says, “Do or do not, there is no try.”)
Posted on December 15, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Day 15: On Dealing with Insecurity
If you think about it, writers, artists and musicians have everything in the world working against us — because conventional wisdom tells us we’re not “supposed” to make money doing this. We’re supposed to suffer, because that’s part and parcel of being an artist.
Many writers that hear this message get discouraged, and often take it to heart by worrying about “only” getting published through this channel or that, or by giving away their work for free because they don’t think they’ll ever be good enough.
Posted on December 14, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Day 14: The One Thing That “Just Doesn’t Matter”
Well, we’re just about to the halfway mark for the December Writing Marathon, and I have a “new” confession to make…
I stopped counting the number of words I’m revising and wading through, and am going to wait until the end to tally up my goals.
Posted on December 13, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Day 13: Dealing With Holiday Stress
So here we are almost halfway through December and the words — my words — have been slowing down to a trickle. This week I had a problem with the number sixteen…sixteen inches of snow which translated to sixteen extra hours of commute time between driving, defrosting my car, etc. Additionally, this is my busiest season at Musicnotes.com, because we’ve got an immense collection of digital sheet music for the winter holidays that we’re highlighting to help people find the songs they want to play.
Posted on December 7, 2009 - by Monica Valentinelli
Day 7: Goals and Establishing a Routine
Well, it’s the end of Week One for our December 2009 Writing Marathon. Today, I ask you to reflect on your goals and see how you’re doing. Did you write a lot? Not enough? Did you end up doing penance like I did for your lack of writing?
My Recent Releases
The Queen of Crows
Download THE QUEEN OF CROWS e-book at DriveThruHorror.com
Family Games: The 100 Best
Pre-Order at Amazon.comBuried Tales of Pinebox, TX
Available at Amazon.com
Available at DriveThruHorror.comCurrent Project
