Today I am SOOOOO EXCITED to interview my friend and OG writing coach, the incredible Charlotte Rains Dixon!
The great-granddaughter of pioneers who walked across the Oregon Trail, Charlotte Rains Dixon considers herself a westerner through and through. Many of her stories are set in her home state of Oregon, where her characters reside in fictional versions of her favorite wine area and coast towns, as well as Portland, where she lives.
When not writing fiction, Charlotte teaches writing in England, the south of France, and around the Pacific Northwest. She also coaches writers privately. She is Director Emeritus and a current mentor at the Writer's Loft, a certificate-in-writing program at Middle Tennessee State University. She earned her MFA in creative writing from Spalding University and is the author of The Bonne Chance Bakery and Emma Jean’s Bad Behavior.
Read moreThis month we are talking about writing challenges and genre-hopping with the marvelous, musical, multi-talented D.Allyson Howlett.
About the Author: D. Allyson Howlett is a millennial wordsmith living in a farm town in rural New Hampshire. Her most favorite things are the smell of autumn air, s'mores by the campfire, and nacho pro-wrestling nights with her family. She is the author of 'A Playlist Kinda Love Story' series and a ghostly novella.
Read moreOne of the best things the internet ever did was to introduce me to the holiday of Jólabókaflóðið.
Jólabókaflóðið (or Jolabokaflod) means “Christmas book flood” and is the Icelandic tradition of gifting and reading books on December 24 while drinking cocoa or non-alcoholic ale.
What follows is a list of my favorite Jolabokaflod reads. I hope you enjoy, and maybe even find a new favorite yourself.
Read moreThis month, I am so thankful to introduce one of the first people to welcome me into the writing community on Instagram, author Tracy Brown. Not only is Tracy a fabulously talented writer, but she is also one of the most encouraging people I’ve ever met. She is a wonderful cheerleader of other authors, and her book recommendations are the main reason why my To Be Read list never gets any smaller.
Read moreI recently heard an interview with Parks and Rec co-creator Michael Schur (also a writer for The Office, creator of The Good Place, and co-creator of Brooklyn Nine Nine) where he talks about the list of ideas-in-waiting he keeps on set for those moments when a show runs short or a scene needs a quick drop-in joke. He calls this list his “Candy Bag.”
I think this is brilliant, because A) Who doesn’t love Candy? and B) It’s a great way to reframe all those random snippets writers have floating around. It might be a scene or infodump that was cut for space, or a joke that wasn’t working in its current context. Now, instead of feeling bad about deleting scenes or “killing your darlings,” you can simply think of it as adding to your Candy Bag.
So, in the spirit of Parks and Rec, I present to you my own Candy Bag for this blog, culled from three years of various notebooks, journals and sticky notes. (Unexpected added benefit, my desk is now much cleaner!)
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