Category: For Writers (Page 1 of 11)

All Canadian Girl

April 30, 2026 / / 2 Comments

I’ve been reading Margaret Atwood’s Book of Lives–a memoir of sorts. I’m familiar with various of her books and have listened to a number of interviews with her over the years, so I thought I had a pretty good idea of what would be in the memoir. Wrong!

So many things surprised me. Here are a few:

  • She’s an all-Canadian girl that others of my generation would recognize as “normal.” She spent her summers in the North (her father was a biologist who did field work there) living in a tent or a cabin, running free along the lakeshore with her brother or neighbour kids if there were any within walking distance.
  • Her public school (grades 1-8) experience was similar to mine. There were games and contests.  School plays and dance recitals. “Mean girls” and and best friends who could be fickle.
  • Loved working at a summer camp.
  • She learned to sew. I think an apron was her first endeavour. Later, in university, she used her skill with needle and thread to earn a few dollars to help with the rent.
  • She had a brother and a sister with the normal ups and downs of family life. She loved her parents.
  • She shopped in second hand stores even after she was a “success.”
  • She often lived in less than ideal housing — leaky pipes, damp basement, steep stairs, sketchy heat.
  • She planted vegetable gardens and harvested them–a main source of food for the family.
  • For many years she lived on a small farm and did farm stuff like tend sheep, and keep bees.

Other parts of her life were as I would expect — academia, the publishing world, awards banquets, and travel. The memoir also details how and when she wrote her major novels as well as stories, poems and magazine articles. I was struck by how much she wrote. It seems she was always scribbling at something. 

Another aspect of her life that surprised me was her investments in property. Whenever she moved and couldn’t find suitable rental accommodation, she would buy a house –usually run down, sometimes derelict — fix it up to make it safe to life in, and get on with her writing. Sometimes she’d rent out a spare bedroom or two. Being wealthy did not seem to be a goal in her life, but a place to live and write and enough cash for food and ink were important. I couldn’t help but compare that acquisition of property to today’s stories of young people finding it impossible to get into the housing market. Different times! As Atwood reminds us, she was 86 at the time of writing. She lived in Yorktown in Toronto when it was a Bohemian hangout for artists, writers and musicians, long before the developers “gentrified” it. 

Atwood’s sense of humour, her willingness to try something new even in her later years, and her love of adventure reminded me that “you can’t tell a book by it’s cover” and you can’t “know an author by her writings alone.”

Margaret Atwood is an icon of Canadian literature, she’s also an interesting person, always pushing the edges of her imagination. I’m glad I got to know her a little through this book.  

 

5 Reasons to Re-Read

March 18, 2026 / / 0 Comments

I enjoy checking other people’s book recommendations, so I browse the blogosphere with that goal in mind. Lately, I’ve been struck by the number of people who are re-reading their favourite books — not just the classics, but popular fiction as well. I’m curious about what may have spurred this surge in re-reads.

I offer five suggestions.

1. Comfort

Re-reading a favourite novel is like meeting up with an old friend. You already know you like each other. You have interests in common. There will be no unpleasant surprises. You are at ease in each other’s company. No need for lengthy explanations. Just enjoyable time together. You don’t have to put on make-up or do your hair. 

Taking a favourite off the shelf is a bit like that. I think a re-read epitomizes the decision to “curl up with a good book.

2. Craft

The first reading of  novel focuses primarily on the “what.” Whodunnit? Will love triumph? Will the quest be fulfilled? These are the main plot points and the reader is drawn into the story through them. However, on a re-read, we already know the answer to those broad questions. This time we might be more interested in “how” the writer accomplishes his/her ends. Why did this book merit a second or third reading? Was it author voice?  Was it setting? Intriguing characters? As writers we might study these questions and use the answer to hone our own craft.

3. No AI

Artificial Intelligence has burst into our world with shocking speed. Every bit of data that comes across our platforms must be questioned and assessed. Is it true? It this a real person? Is this an AI image? Reading has become an exercise in fact-checking. With a previously read book, there is no such danger. We are free to explore without fear. This old friend is an “open book” giving us permission to wander in the story and wonder about the human condition exposed between the pages. And it is the “human” condition.

4. Discovery

Even though this book is your old friend, you are a different person from the one you were when you read it last. You may find that you’ve outgrown this relationship. You may find instances of bigotry and hatred you missed the first time around, because your senses weren’t attuned to them.  Perhaps you are just “older and wiser” and this story no longer speaks to you. You may, with regret, consign this old friend to the “donate” pile.

Or you may discover that the author had challenged societal norms before you were aware of them.  You may find the writer discusses love and life in a way that went over your head years ago but reflects some of the lessons you’ve learned since your last reading. You finish your re-read and thank your old friend for opening your eyes. You put it back on the keeper shelf with a murmur of approval. You’ll talk again a few years down the road.

5. Enlightenment

Our modern selves are bombarded with an ever-increasing storm of information.–some of it incomplete, some of it biased, some of it downright false. Sorting the wheat from the chaff can be exhausting. We might ask, “how did we come to this?”

Books written in an earlier age can throw a light on our present dilemma. We are so close to the issues of today, it is difficult to separate fact from emotion. When we read about events from Jane Austen’s point of view, we can be more dispassionate in our judgement. Women still trade personal preferences for security in marriage but we mustn’t rush to judgement.

Why does Shakespeare have such staying power? Because he speaks of universal truths, even when rooted in a particular history. While we may not recognize the folly of our current leaders, we can readily recognize overweening ambition in Macbeth,  or the hubris of King Lear who cannot tell appearance from reality. 

We likely studied these works as teenagers or young adults. Re-reading them as mature adults, with years of life experience to draw on, presents us with a “new” reading experience.

I’ve had a browse through my own bookshelves and discovered some old treasurers. Lloyd C. Douglas and Taylor Caldwell wrote about good and evil, in a way that was true for them but may feel dated today. Yet, good and evil continue to plague humanity. There is still something to learn from these books. 

The Loon Feather, by Iola Fuller was the first book I ever read that featured an Indigenous heroine. (She was called “Indian” in that time.)  Long before I knew anything about residential schools, this story made me angry that the proud daughter of Tecumseh  was pressured to throw off her buckskins and the freedom that went with them, and don the restrictive corsets and heavy dresses of White society.  I think it’s time to give that one a re-read.

What are your favourite re-reads?  Why do you go back to them again and again? 

Tap the “comment” button at the top of the page to share.

Touchstones in Life and Fiction

March 4, 2026 / / 0 Comments

tree ornaments

I’m a week late with this blog because I was away from my desk while visiting family. 

Over forty years ago I moved  five provinces away from my home, leaving behind all of my relatives.  It was a wrench to leave, but I was young and hopeful and soon settled into a new life in my new home. Like other transplants, I sent back bragging letters to brothers still negotiating snow drifts while I revelled in cherry blossoms, (a common symbol of early spring).

Of course, as time went on babies were born into my immediate family “back home,” babies that I didn’t meet, sometimes for years. Then, those babies grew up, got married and had more babies and my connection to the expanding family grew more tenuous. As an antidote, I created handmade Christmas ornaments to send to all those babies. My plan was that each child would get an ornament a year for eighteen years. (When I started setting up my own Christmas tree I had to start from scratch, so my plan was that each child would have at least 18 ornaments of their own when they set up their own tree.) I hoped that these small tokens would remind the next generations that they had an aunt “out west.”Christmas angels

Imagine my delight when I met great nieces and nephews last week who immediately identified me as “the ornaments!” and recounted how much they enjoyed putting them onto their tree every year and the stories that were told around them.  My little “remember me” plan had succeeded beyond anything I’d imagined.

In the market, those little mementos would be worth mere pennies, but they symbolize family and kinship and generations of shared heritage. Their value as a symbol, or touchstone, is beyond price.

Symbols can hold that kind of power in our writing, as well. Consider “Rosebud” in Citizen Kane. The monetary value of a child’s sled would be nothing to a man as wealthy as Kane, yet the memory of it shapes his whole life. It is the last word on the lips of a dying man. 

In the Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald uses the green light at the end of the dock to symbolize Gatsby’s hopes and dreams.

The wicked step-mother from fairy tales e.g. Cinderella, is so pervasive the mere mention of a step-mother in fiction conjures up all kinds of mean and nasty characteristics.

Touchstones aren’t always objects or people. In my book, The Man for Her, the gold rush is a touchstone for Lottie, not as a means to riches, but as a symbol of all she has lost. She refuses Sean’s love when he decides to join the hunt for gold.

My short story, “The Man Who Loved Christmas” the phrase “what a beautiful mess,” is a touchstone for a grieving family.

In Writing the Breakout Novel, Donald Maass says symbols “pack a powerful lot of meaning into a small package.” As writers we want our prose to be powerful and meaningful. If a symbol can do that in a small package, so much the better.

I’ve taken dozens of workshops on writing, read volumes and volumes of “how to write” guides and studied literature at university level, but there is nothing like lived experience to drive home the lessons. Symbols are powerful. Touchstones shape our family stories. They can be just as impactful in our stories. 

Have a look at your current writing project and see if you have already included a symbol unintentionally. If you have, give it a little more space, repeat it here and there and you’ll find it enhances the emotional grip of your tale. If there is no object of phrase or landscape that symbolizes a theme in your book, try to incorporate one, without forcing the issue. It’ll add “polish” to your prose.

What is your favourite example of symbolism in a novel or movie? Click the comment button at the top of this post to share your answer.

Who Do You Write For?

February 12, 2026 / / 0 Comments

chatting with a friend

Any beginner’s writer course will tell you to know your audience and to write for that audience if  you want your work to be a commercial success.  Most writers want to attract as many readers as possible in order to sell lots and lots of books. This post of six tips from Ingram Sparks is a prime example, of this advice and a good place to start when considering your market plan. 

As many readers as possible seems axiomatic. I was surprised, therefore, when I read the author’s notes in the latest Jan Karon book, where she says she writes “to just one person: you.” 

Huh? Just one person? A letter is written to just one person, usually, but people who write (and sell) books want thousands to read them. Even Jan Karon admits that she hopes for many readers. Yet she targets her writing to “one.”

The idea of imagining the one person who will read our books can be scary. How many authors have you heard worry that “my mother might see it” and tone down their bawdy heroine? How many authors use a pseudonym to avoid that “one person” who insists that a work of fiction is an autobiography? There are good reasons why an author might want to write to a huge but anonymous audience.

Still, writing for only one reader raises intriguing possibilities.

While we’d all like a wide audience — “anyone can enjoy my book,” may be true but it won’t get your story into a publishing house or find readers through independent publishing–in order to sell your book, you need to appeal to a reader’s particular taste.  Anyone can enjoy a story that features a unicorn, but only a certain segment of the population will make that the sole criterion for purchasing a book. 

So, if I’m considering the “one” person I write to, who would she be? I say she, because I expect my audience to be largely female. The first choice she’ll make before  buying a book is between fiction and non-fiction. Since I’m a romance writer, I aim my work toward readers of fiction. Now, I choose between literary or genre fiction. In my case, I write genre fiction, specifically romance, and even more specifically historical romance, set in Canada. Each of those choices I make, narrows my audience, but it also allows me to visualize the “one” reader I’m writing for (to).

My books will be shelved in the “romance” section of a book store, or on-line retailer.  If I consider I’m writing for “anyone,” I’ll have a hard time getting my book to market.  Sadly, there is no section of a retail outlet that says “anyone.” Even shoppers who like to browse a variety of shelves, have certain biases. A reader who wants a Scottish setting, might try my book because she also wants romance and historical. The reader who wants a thriller will probably never see my titles. After all, if I want new shoes, I won’t shop in the grocery store.

Some publishing advisors recommend creating a profile of your ideal reader. For me, that reader is likely female, likely middle-aged or older, likely of European extraction, likely a history buff.  But even with those broad strokes in mind, I can write to a more specific reader. Maybe she’ll have a soft spot for cats. (There are millions of cat videos out there so clearly cats are a big seller!) Since I’m a cat owner of many years standing, I’m speaking from experience if I write a cat into story.

So now I’m writing a letter (book) to an old friend who shares my culture and my love of cats. As I imagine myself talking to this one person, my story-telling becomes deeper and freer. I don’t need to over-explain everything, because I’m just writing to a friend. I can uncover secret longings and confess to failures, because I’m writing to a friend. All of this will shape the story, colour the character of my protagonist, and make the story connect more on a personal level with my one (hopefully many ‘ones’) reader.

Early in my career, the “elevator pitch” was a hot topic.   Many writers obsessed with packing as much of the story as possible into one short paragraph that could be recited at top speed to an editor or agent as they rode the elevator together at a conference; in other words, a hard sell. But if you think of pitching your story to one old friend, the “sell” part diminishes. You want your friend to like your book, so you tell her the stuff that will interest her. And that’s the stuff the editor wants to know, too.

Maybe this writing to one reader isn’t as odd as it sounds. I note that Ms. Karon uses “to” instead of  “for.” I find that word choice interesting.   If I write “for” a multitude of readers, it feels like throwing spaghetti at the wall and hoping something sticks. If I write “to” you, I’m forging a relationship. We’re partners in this book. I put down my vision of the story, and you read it through your experience. 

I’m not suggesting writers should ignore all the marketing advice about building a brand, or the craft advice about voice or character arcs, or any of the many, many skills that go into building a profitable career. But I think the idea of writing to “one” friendly reader is worthy of consideration.

What do you think? Click the comment button at the top of this post to share your opinions.

 

 

Writing Motto for 2026

January 28, 2026 /

According to the puzzle page in my daily newspaper, today is world daisy day.  Daisies have a day. Who knew?

According to the encyclopedia Britannica, plants called daisies are distinguished by a composite flower head composed of 15 to 30 white ray flowers surrounding a centre consisting of bright yellow disk flowers, though other colour combinations are common.

Whatever the botanical characteristics of a daisy, their happy faces always make me smile. I guess it is that “bright yellow disk” thing. I have several clumps of Shasta daisies in my flower beds. They can be a bit of weed, but I can always count on them to survive a hard winter, to thrive on neglect, and to nod in gentle greeting whenever the wind passes by. Reliable, cheerful, resilient — those are the characteristics I’d list if I were writing a text to define “daisy.”

Those same characteristics describe my reading choices this month. I don’t want edgy, or dark, or mafia, or several of the other categories the book stores list. I want books that read like the daisy, — reliable, cheerful, resilient. Another blog I follow has a segment called “Good Book Thursday,” I’ve noticed that many of the comments are from folks re-reading their favourite novels and authors. Maybe it’s the daisy-effect. Whatever their personal taste, readers are looking for “reliable” reads. 

I’ve just finished two books from my Christmas haul that land in that category. The authors deliver a reliable story, told in a predictable style with characters the reader expects. Re-reading means the book-lover is not reading for story alone, but for voice and style and comfort. Louise Penny’s readers love “Three Pines.” They want to go to that imaginary village and just hang out with the characters they’ve come to know.  Alexander McCall Smith’s readers find themselves in Africa or Scotland so place is not so significant, but they can anticipate long rambling passages that discuss life and philosophy — a slow read. Considering Smith’s legions of fans, we can assume that “slow” is okay in the right hands.

As writers, finding fans who love to re-read our book is like getting a gold star — and a cash prize at the same time. Those loyal fans will talk about your books, promote them to book clubs, give them away as gifts, and generate new readers for you.

As I consider the authors I read again and again, I try to pick out the elements that I might use in my own writing to please my fan base. Penny’s mysteries are edge-of-your-seat exciting. I know that is not my forté, but creating a village where readers can hang out — that is more within my grasp. Prospect, the town in my gold rush romances, has potential along that line.  The gold rush town has a frontier appeal, there are recurring characters who have distinct personalities, the geographical setting in the Rocky Mountains has a romantic appeal. These are elements I can build on, either in another Prospect book, or in a new series.

I’m afraid I’d put readers to sleep if I spent page after page philosophizing but there are topics — like love and family — that I could develop as recognizable themes in my writing. My Christmas short story, “The Man Who Loved Christmas” is an example of family and the bonds that hold it together.

As I ponder a new chapter of writing in 2026, I’ll make “reliable, cheerful and resilient” a motto, just like the daisy. 

What about you, dear reader, how do you plan to approach 2026 both in your writing and in life. Click the comment button at the top of this page to share your thoughts.

 

Choosing Your Story

October 21, 2025 /

My book club selection last month was a book I loved and hated. I loved the writing. It was brilliant. Word choice, syntax, voice, clarity, emotion . . . they were all there in shining splendour. But the story! Oh my goodness. The story was horrible. The main characters were depraved, the weak were exploited and the innocent defiled. Even the ending felt hopeless. I searched and searched for one redeeming quality in the MC’s — after all the “experts” say even a villain should have a soft spot somewhere. Not in this case. I tried to find a better tomorrow from the sacrifice of the ‘good’ characters, but couldn’t find it. The story left me depressed and feeling besmirched. 

I’ve turned to one of my favourite “gentle” reads as a palette cleanser. I need to read about moral people. Characters who act on high principles. Story-lines that encourage and enlighten. A book that lets me sleep at night without bad dreams.

But, the experience made me wonder how authors chose their stories. How does a person sit down with a pen and a blank sheet of paper and decide I want to write “this” story. In genre fiction there are certain reader expectations that must be met. e.g. romance needs a “happily-ever-after,” mystery needs a solution, murderers must be brought to justice . .  . But, even within those parameters there are millions of stories that can be told. What makes an author choose the one that goes onto the page? Or what makes a reader decide to enter the world of “that” story?

Author’s are often advised to “write what you know,” but the author of the book I hated is not a bad person. He has not killed, he has not unleased immorality on a town, he has not exercised unbridled power to destroy his rivals. In fact, when asked why he’d written this book, he answered that “it just came to him.” And once he had the idea, he went with it.

In my own books, I wanted to tell a story about my country and it’s history. I also wanted to write a romance, so the Prospect Series was born. Jane Austen must have taken delight in exposing the foibles of her society. But Emily Brontë? What made her want to explore the darkness in Heathcliff’s soul? She was the daughter of a clergyman, brought up in gentile circles and surrounded by loving siblings. Was it the wildness of the moors that inspired her to write Wuthering Heights? By the way, the book was ill-received upon first publication. It was considered too wild and savage. Only years later was it added to the list of great English novels. 

Readers have diverse tastes, and I rejoice that there are books to meet every need. I’m glad my book club presses me to explore different books. And I’m really happy that I have the freedom to read the books I like and set aside those I don’t. What a sad and straight-jacketed world it would be if everyone had to conform to my idea of a good book. 

The Frankfurt Book Fair, the largest book fair in the world,  just wrapped up. The five day event included 1000 authors from 92 different countries and around 200,000 visitors. Three cheers for authors and publishers! May we all continue to thrive and find our happy place between the covers of a good book.

How do you choose a story? Drop a comment here.

What’s in a Title?

June 11, 2025 /

doing homeworkWent to the movie, “Jane Austen Wrecked My Life.” I hadn’t read much about the show but the title intrigued me so much, I joined a couple of female friends — no husbands wanted to come — and had a girls night out. The movie was not what any of us expected. To begin with, it was in French with English sub-titles. The scenery was beautiful and the plot  . . . took some work to find.

But the movie got me thinking about titles. The theatre sold three admissions because of the title alone.  A quick glance at my bookshelves reveals generic titles like, Venetia, Sylvester and The Grand Sophy — clearly I own these books because I’m a fan of Georgette Heyer. There are also a number of titles with “Vinyl Café” in the title, because I’m a fan of that series too. However, if I didn’t know the authors, I doubt I’d buy the book, or see the movie, based solely on the title.  How about The Sound of Life’s Unspeakable Beauty? I really enjoyed that book, but I can never remember the title when I wish to recommend it to a friend. It is a translation so perhaps that’s why it is cumbersome in my ear.

The first title in my Prospect series is The Man for Her.  The title was chosen by the publisher and didn’t ring any bells for me, but others said it was a “great” title so what do I know? The subsequent titles, Her One and Only, and Her One True Love were chosen to be consistent with the first.  Would you buy any of those books based on the titles alone?

So, what makes a “selling” title? Musical references are a favourite among romance writers. A quick glance at Amazon shows many titles referencing Elvis Presley’s “Love Me Tender.” There are many, many titles using the “Mail Order Bride” motif. I really like that trope, but there are so many books to choose from authors have had to add qualifiers to distinguish themselves. So now we have The Sheriff’s, the Doctor’s, the Rancher’s, the Cowboy’s etc. Mail Order Bride. Similarly Harlequin Romance has put “Billionaire” into many of its titles. These practices certainly help readers who want a particular trope to find their next read quickly and predictably. 

A look at Amazon’s “best seller” list revealed The Lost Bookshop: The most charming and uplifting novel for 2025 and the perfect gift for book lovers!  That one had me at bookshop — I’m a sucker for books about book shops! The tagline in the title seems a bit over the top, but it probably has something to do with Amazon’s categories and keyword marketing strategies.

What about the classics? Great Expectations, Wind in the Willows, Pride and Prejudice, The Great Gatsby, Two Solitudes, 1984. If you didn’t know about those books already, would the title alone tempt you?

As usual, the decision rests with individual tastes and interests. You can’t please all of the people all of the time, but it might be worth considering the people you want to please when choosing a title. If you’re writing adventure stories putting Jane Austen in the title isn’t going to be a great marketing strategy, but if you’re looking for middle-aged female readers (or movie goers) it works like a charm.

I’d love to hear about your favourite titles (not books, just titles) and what draws you to them. Please drop a line in the comments section to share your thoughts.

Love is Love

April 9, 2025 /

T.S. Eliot called April “the cruellist month.” Here, in Canada, that has certainly proven true with the weather. One day we are basking in sunshine and summer temperatures, the next an ice storm, or snow, or rain comes barrelling down, flattening flowers, breaking tree limbs, knocking out power lines and damaging roofs. 

Added to the cruelty of the weather is the uncertainty swirling over financial markets and world affairs. A ceasefire is announced and then broken. Medical workers and journalists in a war zone are killed. In Canada, we are in the midst of an election.

In the publishing world copyright issues, Artificial Intelligence, tariffs, and book banning create an unprofitable and frightening world for authors. Many wonder if they should continue to pour love and effort into fiction — especially romantic fiction.

Writers must each answer that question for themselves. 

But, for encouragement, I offer this bit of philosophy. I just finished reading a book with a very tangled and convoluted plot. People fell in love, or out of love. Parents and children and siblings had difficult relationships and unhappy lives. What seemed good often ended badly. What seemed wrong turned out to be uplifting. When I finished the book I had to reread it to find all the dropped threads and tie them together. But — the “moral” of the story was “love is love.”

As we struggle to find our footing in this shifting cultural landscape, I think it is worth remembering that “love is love.” When we ask “what’s the point?” Love is often the answer. Sometimes that is “boy-meets-girl” kind of love. Sometimes it is “the -lost-is-found” kind of love. Sometimes it is finding self-love in a damaged life.  For some, it is finding, and receiving, the love of God. For writers it may mean finding or rediscovering the love of craft. 

It seems to me, that the heart, in the end, is what drives our living. If the turmoil of our world is overwhelming, look deeply into your heart. There you will find an essence that offers solace. There, behind the baggage and disappointments of the mind, is peace. 

If you are a writer, write stories from that place — offer your understanding and your love to the world. Love is love and can heal even the most flawed of human beings. 

P.S. The cat pictures in this post are just to make you smile, and maybe remind you that pets offer their own form of love.

6 Ways to beat the Sophomore Slump

March 26, 2025 /

The sophomore slump refers to the sense of letdown experienced by second year college students. After the excitement and high dedication of their freshman year, second year looms as a bit of a grind — and their marks reflect that attitude. 

A similar phenomenon sometimes occurs with a writer’s second novel. The first story may have taken years, and too many re-writes to count. The author poured all of her heart and soul, skill and talent into that first work, determined to bring her best work to the publisher. But, having secured that first success, the second novel is sometimes a disappointment. The writing may be rushed, the plot trite and the characters a little flat. It’s still a good book, but it doesn’t live up to the promise of the first one.

I’ve been doing more reading than writing these past few weeks, and I think I’ve been reading those “less than” efforts. Perhaps that accounts for my disappointment with a couple of new books written by authors I hugely admire and enjoy. 

The first ho-hum response came from the latest in a very long series. This author is an auto-buy for me. I love her characters, her setting, her use of language, and her voice. But this latest offering felt a bit — stodgy. Hard to put my finger on exactly why I felt let down, but I suspect that “world famous author” is not getting a good hard edit. Some of the beautiful prose seemed to be there because it was beautiful prose, not because it advanced the plot. 

The second book in question was a new offering from an author with many fewer credits to her name. I have read them all and enjoyed them all, but none seems to live up to the promise of the first. The latest work, to my mind, is her weakest. Again, I ask why? In this case, it seemed to me that I was reading a late draft of the story, and not the polished final manuscript. This can happen when publisher and reader expectations push a writer into producing at a quicker pace than is comfortable for her. Or it could just be that this author is running out of ideas. Her characters were so similar to those in previous books they could almost be the same person but with the names changed. The romance threads seemed facile and shallow. The ending had a “they-came-home-tired-but-happy” feel about it. I got marked down for that in grade three.  I expect better from a multi-published author.

I didn’t set out to disparage these authors in this post. Rather, I was seeking to share lessons I’d learned about keeping my writing fresh. Here are my thoughts.

  • Refresh the characters. Even if they are returning characters used in a series, they need to grow and change — in exciting ways. Just making them older doesn’t heighten the tension. If an athlete is older, make the loss of physical prowess have an impact on his life and the story. Then his aging is germaine to the story.
  • Introduce a new element. If you write small town with the same characters in the same roles over a number of books, bring in a stranger. She can be like a stone thrown into the calm waters of your little town. Let the ripples impact all those stock characters. Unsettle your familiar, cozy small town. It’ll make a better story
  • Cut, cut, cut.  I’ve heard editors reject work for being “self-indulgent.” I think the books I referred to earlier fell into that trap. The author was indulging her love of language to create long, prose passages that read beautifully, but did not advance the story.
  • Take a break. When the words are hot off your pen, or keyboard, they sound like perfection itself. Enjoy that feeling. Walk around for a week or so, buoyed with the sense of accomplishment. Imagine yourself accepting awards for this marvellous book. Then re-read it with a cold eye.  Your masterpiece probably needs another edit.
  • If you have a trusted beta reader (not your mother) send the ms to her/him.
  • Listen to what s/he says. 

Sophomores and second books are not predestined to disappoint, but knowing the hazards should make students and writers alert to them. I look forward to the next offerings from my favourite authors, but if they continue to fall short, I’ll rethink my purchases. There is a saying in the writing world, “you are only as good as your last book.” Let’s make sure our last book is our best book.

Here, There, and Everywhere

March 5, 2025 /

Last month I published a post here about etyology — the study of the origins of words. Since then it seems I stumble over etyology, linguistics, syntax, idioms and the like at every turn. Even a book on music is talking about the rhythm and cadence of words as a tool to understanding how music affects our brains. Running  into this same concept over and over might be called the Baader-Meinhoff phenomenon, or frequency illusion. 

Writers often discuss experiencing this phenomenon when they have an idea for a new story. Our creative juices my be sludgy and opaque for weeks, months or even years, then we get an idea, or even just the glimmer of an idea. Suddenly, we see that idea playing out all around us. On the flip side, it seems several authors get a similar idea at the same time. Is it something in world events that triggers a common notion? Is there really a god-like muse at play who plants a thought in a dozen minds to see if it will grow? 

I can’t answer that question, but I do know I’ve been running into language delights everywhere for the past few weeks. Here are a few instances:

  • At Bible Study, we heard about Jesus’ visit to Jericho. It would appear that Jericho, both ancient and modern,  is a nice place.”Why then,” I asked, “do we ‘wish someone to Jericho’ when we want them to go away to a not nice place?” No one but me knew the expression but I had read it in the works of L.M. Montgomery. So I looked it up and here is what I found. 

The expression “go to Jericho” comes to us from the Old Testament where it appears as a command by King David to his mistreated and dishonored envoys to King Hānun of the Ammonites. At some point, however—perhaps by the middle of the eighteenth century, to judge from the examples in Farmer & Henley, cited above—English speakers began to use it euphemistically to say “go to hell.” The expression may have persisted in some corner of the English-speaking world, but it does not appear to be in general use today.   Slang and Its Analogues Past and Present 

  • My next example came while watching the Canadian Men’s Curling Championships, known as “The Brier.” An announcer used the phrase “the straw that stirs my drink.” The other broadcasters were flummoxed, never having heard the expression before. So, once again, I looked it up and found

The most valuable or important person or thing in a system.                      The phrase is usually   attributed to baseball player Reggie Jackson.  At the time it was viewed as a boastful commentary about his importance that ruined his relationship with other players. 

  • My last example is a  simile rather than an idiom but the colourful language appealed to me. A book describing a woman trying to make a living on a stony, neglected farm said “she worked as hard as three sled dogs.” Anyone who has seen a team of sled dogs towing heavy loads, while running at speed can understand the reference. 

Using idioms and colourful phrases can distinguish an author’s voice, make her prose memorable, and add a sense of place and time to the writing. But such devices should be used sparingly. Too many and the work becomes a caricature. Sometimes that is the aim — think “Hee Haw”– but readers can be easily turned off if the language becomes hackneyed and trite. Think of idioms in your prose like salt in your stew — a little is essential, too much spoils it.

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