From the monthly archives:

July 2008

Blogging 101: Break The Blogging Shell

General

When I first started blogging I was shy.  What?  A shy blogger you ask?  How is that possible – I’ve never heard of a shy blogger? Well – of course not.  You never will hear of a shy blogger because they quietly post and hope to be noticed.  Some will get noticed but with millions [...]

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Everything I Learned Came From Comics

General

Everything I ever learned I learned from comics.
Now that’s a bold statement.  What about school?  My parents?  My friends?  Yes – my mind was shaped by all of them.  But as a young reader, comics held the most sway over what I thought.  It’s why I started writing.  Spiderman was my favorite followed closely by [...]

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Kill Your Darlings

Writing Tips

Last week we discussed the ten commandments of writing.  This week we’ll move on to another topic inspired by Mr. King  with his phrase “Kill Your Darlings”.
Imagine you’re finished. Finally finished.  You’ve typed “The End” on the last page of the novel you’ve been working on for the last year.  You’re elated.  After all of [...]

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Your Opinion Counts

General

Big things are planned for Tripping The Muse in the coming months.  I need your help though.  Please take a moment to let me know your thoughts. And thank you!
[memedex: pollid#487231]

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Forewords Don’t Have to Be Painful

Writing Tips

Say a good friend has written a book and has asked if you would mind writing the foreword.  After the initial honor has faded you are left with a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach that promises to drag you down with it.
How do you start?  What the heck is this thing called [...]

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The Ten Commandments of Writing – Continued

Writing Tips

Welcome back. Are you ready for the next five commandments on writing as stated by Mr. King?  Here they are (fanfare please….):
6. When your reader sees what you see it’s telepathy – This is my favorite.  Think about it for a moment.  
7. No need to explain what characters look like  – I used to [...]

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The Ten Commandments of Writing

Writing Tips

In my favorite writing nook there was a piece of paper I use to keep taped to the wall beside me.  My writing nook has changed since those days and the piece of paper no longer hangs on the wall but the words are here in my laptop and I pull the document up every [...]

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Blogging 101: It isn’t About YOU

Blogging

I ran across an interesting blog post the other day.  It was from a guy in Minnesota who proceeded to tellme how rich he had become by blogging.  ”Wow,” I wanted to say. “Really?  You made six figures last year by blogging?  How?” 
He never told me.  I looked at another one of his posts that spoke about [...]

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Song Lyrics Can Harm You

Writing Tips

I love Blue Oyster Cult.  Always did. I remember being 14 years old and rushing to the record store to buy Fire of Unknown Origin the second it hit the shelf.  I still have that copy.  The corners are a little dog-eared and the shape of the vinyl record (what’s that??) within can be seen wearing [...]

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Your Grandparents Know More Than the Internet…

Writing Tips

 
“Information could only be a branch away on your family tree.”
A good friend and collaborator on The Black Toad Tavern, Robert Griffin,  told me this recently and he’s right.  He went on to say…
“Don’t underestimate that lovely old couple you call Grammy and Grandpa. We all know that their houses have that “old people smell” [...]

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