Category Archives: Rants

Writing Nowadays–Kindle Fanfic

Posted on May 23, 2013 by

Amazon has announced that their Kindle Direct Publishing program will now allow people to submit and publish television fanfic for “Gossip Girl,” “Pretty Little Liars” and “Vampire Diaries.”   A number of authors quickly chimed in about how draconian the contract … Continue reading →


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Posted in Publishing, Rants, Uncategorized, Writers on Writing, Writing Nowadays | 9 Comments

Talking Heads

Posted on May 20, 2013 by

Recently, I’ve been critiquing with several other authors for the purpose of learning more about craft. They are staunch proponents of making dialogue do the work of carrying the story. Some time back, I heard a new author complain that … Continue reading →


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Posted in historical novels, Rants, romance, Writers on Writing, Writing Nowadays | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

You Really Have No Idea

Posted on May 10, 2013 by

Any writer in the creative arts can share a version of this story. It is invariably something that has directly happened to them: They’re at a party, making small talk, meeting people. They are asked, “What do you do?” “I’m … Continue reading →


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Posted in Rants, Writers on Writing | Tagged | 5 Comments

Why Can’t Men Wear Dresses (Redux)?

Posted on April 18, 2013 by

Back in September, I did a blog post called “Why Can’t Men Wear Dresses?” It was inspired by how painful it was for my father to put on pants as he was recuperating from hip surgery. He needed a nice … Continue reading →


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Posted in feminism, Rants | Tagged , | 15 Comments

Guns and Self Defense

Posted on March 7, 2013 by

 Some years back — maybe 10 years before the Great Recession — I wrote a story about a stockbroker who’d become homeless in an economic crash. The only possession of value he had left was an Uzi and for awhile … Continue reading →


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Posted in Rants | Tagged , , | 22 Comments

Creative People

Posted on February 24, 2013 by

Most people understand that there is a difference between people who are creative and those who are not. Those who are not often wish they were able to think up wonderful things so they might be lauded as geniuses and … Continue reading →


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Posted in Faith and Religion, Rants | Tagged | 2 Comments

It’s Ranting Time Again
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Posted on January 14, 2013 by

I know I usually blog on writing and books, but I’m a writer, and if I get sick, I can’t write, so a bad cold ought to be a writing topic, right?  And since my husband and I are both … Continue reading →


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Posted in Health, Rants | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

Greed, Selfishness, and Happy Thanksgiving
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Posted on November 19, 2012 by

I am seriously tired of greed and selfishness. Seriously. Maybe I’m getting old and grumpy, but since when has a pizza become more important than a man’s life? What makes one man think that just because he compiled a stack … Continue reading →


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Posted in Book View Cafe, Community, Culture, Lifestyle, Rants | Tagged , | 5 Comments

For God’s Sake, Think of the Children

Posted on November 13, 2012 by

I wonder, sometimes, if anyone writing for TV has ever met a child.  Or anyone writing for film.  Or even just writing fiction.  So often, kids appear in one of the following guises: As the well-behaved dress accessory As the … Continue reading →


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Posted in Book View Cafe, Rants, Writers on Writing | 5 Comments

Shades of Bimbos of the Death Sun

Posted on November 10, 2012 by

  Does anyone remember the cult favorite cozy mystery “Bimbos of the Death Sun” by Sharyn McCrumb?  It’s about a man who writes a hard science fiction novel only have the publisher change the title and put a bimbo in … Continue reading →


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Posted in Publishing, Rants | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments