Recently I took a workshop for an art technique I already know. I registered for the class to work with teacher. It was the best decision I made – on a variety of levels – and useful for writing as well as art. First, however, I had to commit to following her instructions. Following instructions is hard …
I really enjoy the “Aha!” moments in life — those flashes of inspiration that come when you least expect them. They are moments of brilliance and joy, testament to the magic that we call human creativity. Inspiration cannot be coerced or scheduled. Sir William Rowing Hamilton offers a famous example with his discovery of quarternions. He …
Nathan Bransford wrote a great blog about retaining your humanity when reviewing a book you didn’t particularly like “The Bullies of Goodreads” . It got me thinking about what a writer who posts gratuitously negative reviews wants. To be seen as the strongest writer in the room? Knocking down every other writer won’t make readers flock to …
Reviews as a Window to the Writer’s Soul by Lani Longshore Read More »
Life is getting in the way of my writing. My roles of wife and mother got a little busier, and while the situation is temporary I find myself with more excuses not to sit down at the computer and drag words from my brain to the page. If it weren’t for my critique groups, I …
One More Reason to Join a Critique Group by Lani Longshore Read More »
To an extent, all novelists need to build the world their characters inhabit. Since I write Sci-Fi I’ve got more work to create alien planets and believable futures. While writers have wrestled with this problem since Jules Verne, I have a new approach – planet as food. The idea came from a conversation with my …
Better world-building through food by Lani Longshore Read More »
The initial reviewer of the first chapters of my most recent mystery novel asked “Where’s the conflict?” The next critiquer said “Lacks tension.” The third reader followed with “Needs more action.” Number four summed it up with “Nothing worth turning the page in these chapters.” Nothing. Worth. Turning. The. Page. The manuscript took shape as …
I spent the last week in April at the Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) conference in Santa Fe. During one of the evening meet-and-greets, I was introduced to the woman in charge of blogs for the Northern California region. I mentioned my quilting sci-fi novels, and offered to write a blog about my experience as …
When a stranger called me a writer by Lani Longshore Read More »
I self published a second quilting science fiction novel, When Chenille Is Not Enough, with coauthor Ann Anastasio. We were offered a free ad in the program for the Studio Art Quilt Associates conference in April. Since quilters are our target audience, we jumped at the opportunity. We didn’t read the fine print, however, which stipulated the size …
Sweet News about Self-Promotion by Lani Longshore Read More »
“Burt’s Bees” is funnier than “Neosporin.” But it’s too late. I sent the story off this morning. No piece is ever finished (complete?). They dwell in perpetual draft mode well beyond the submission date. I never forward the same story to more than one publication, despite the fact that they have identical titles, themes, plots …
Susan Sachs Lipman’s program in March gave me lots of ideas for my as-yet-uncreated website, and my needs-to-be-updated blog site, as well as the impetus to become an expert in my field (what, you didn’t realize you need to know about quilting science fiction?). I left the meeting feeling enlightened and energized. So what should …
