I’m working on a new book idea. And this time, I’m doing more upfront planning such as outlining and character development. I’m also reading more craft books. In Lisa Cron’s excellent Story Genius, she includes a story about elementary schoolers trying to write stories by throwing everything they can think of into a single plot prompt. She refers to it as “drawing with every crayon in the box.”
Which got me thinking… Which crayons do my characters have to color with, and how does that affect the way I draw them in on the page?
Do you DNF (Did Not Finish) Books?
Has this ever happened to you? The library hold you’ve waited months for finally comes in. It’s the book recommended by every club and BookToker. It’s won awards and been heralded as The Next Big Thing. Excitedly, you dig in… and find yourself thinking: “Huh?” “What is everyone else seeing that I’m not?” and finally: “What is wrong with me?”
The answer is: Nothing. Nothing is wrong. There are lots of reasons a book isn’t hitting for you, and you don’t need to feel guilty about any of them.
Read moreSomething Better: Corinne's Birthday (the original scene)
If you’ve known me awhile, you’ll know that I’m not a fan of Valentine’s Day. I’m not anti-love or romance, far from it (how could any Gen Xer raised on Lloyd Dobler standing outside with a boombox not be a little sappy about romance?). I just think love should be about the little things we do for one another daily, not all lumped into a once-a-year-gesture. Plus, I refuse to go out on Valentine’s Day because I think it’s entirely possible an employee, bitter at being scheduled on what has got to be the worst night of the year for servers, will spit in my mushroom risotto.
Some of my Valentine’s Day cynicism spilled over to Corinne, and the following is my original attempt to bring Corinne’s complicated relationship with love and romance to light. Enjoy!
Lunchtime Poll with Shail Rajan
First, a little story: I met Shail in 2021 when I was still just a newish baby author and I won her Women’s Fiction Day giveaway. I still use the items from her beach-themed giveaway (and I treasure my first edition of THE SUMMER BREEZE with its original cover) but the best gift was our continuing friendship. I admire Shail’s courage and talent—like the characters she creates, Shail believes in taking risks, learning new skills, and most importantly, herself.
She is, quite simply, #goals.
Shail Rajan is a women's fiction author whose heartwarming stories are character driven and embrace the role of family, friendships, and food in our everyday lives. Readers have described her books as feel-good reads with characters you'd want as friends and food you'd like to eat.
She was born in India, raised in beautiful Upstate NY, and is now settled in Northern California with her husband and three children. When she's not lost in books, she loves spending time with her family, volunteering, cooking, tackling the occasional DIY project, and obsessing over her vegetable garden.
Girls Just Wanna Make Memories
When my daughter was six, I tried to take her to a Cyndi Lauper concert. This was back in the day when you still got your tickets mailed to you, so it wasn’t until weeks later when the tickets arrived that I realized the show was being held in an 18 and up only club. Undeterred, I called the venue and asked if I could bring my daughter anyway. “It’s not like anyone is going to mistake her for 21 and serve her a drink,” was my argument. Unsurprisingly, I was denied and I promised my daughter I would take her to see Cyndi one day.
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