Writing is a Solitary Pursuit. Being Read, a Sociable One.

Writing is a solitary pursuit. I remember telling my professor-uncle I wanted to be a writer. His response was that I should prepare for a painful, lonely existence. I was in college and had taken a few writing classes. Still high on workshop praise and being ever the pragmatist, I decided writing was the "career" …

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Spontaneous 1: Uncomfortaville

I am a writer. I have grand thoughts while grinding away on my upright bike. Admittedly, that's because I'm listening to Les Brown, Arnold Schwarzenegger, or Sylvester Stallone yelling locker room halftime speeches on volume nine, accompanied by epic soundtracks. I close my eyes, peddle faster at the crescendos. I apply football to writing, weightlifting …

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The Road to Traditional Publishing: A Walk, No. A Serpentine Crawl, on the Pan-American Highway

Radio Silence. I'm learning to live there. In January (yes, January) I had several agents request full manuscripts, two of whom were veterans; one was building his list. I heard back from the list-building agent quickly. He didn't like that a dog died in my story. I've since read other agent bios where they specify: …

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Weekend Coffee Share: Things to Say Yay! About

If we were having coffee I'd be smiling enormously. Two weeks ago today an agent requested my full manuscript. My reaction: eeeeeeeeck! Then another agent requested my manuscript. And...holy-too-good-to-be-true Batman! A THIRD AGENT REQUESTED MY FULL MANUSCRIPT. For my non-writer friends, this is like winning the lottery three times in a row. I've spilled my …

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