I’ll admit it, I’m easy to spook. I get sucked into scary stories. I let my imagination run wild with interpretations of mysterious sounds in the middle of the night. And don’t get me started on that creepy shadow, barely glanced from the corner of my eye. BOO! I’ll jump, squeal and then laugh —except when I’m simply too scared to laugh. Being easy to scare is a both an occupational hazard and a positive characteristic for a writer. But that doesn’t mean I can’t see the strings being pulled. A really well written story will move me — to
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Waltzing — Chapter 3
This is Chapter 3 of “Waltzing in the Snow” — my experiment in serialized fiction. If you missed chapters 1 & 2, scroll down to catch up! Chapter 3: To Catch the Conscience of the Playwright Detective Morgan called Amanda Sommer as soon as he heard about the young woman’s body. “Ms. Sommer, it’s John Morgan. I know it’s been a while…” “Detective Morgan, please call me Amanda. I cried on your shoulder over thirty years ago. I think that qualifies as a bonding moment.” The detective laughed. “We may have found her.” “Candace? Now? Really?” “I don’t want to
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Hitting the Pause Button
The more I write, the more I understand my own writing process. One part of this process is the big PAUSE. While I’m writing something — anything longer than a short story — I hit a crossroads and stop. I’ve started to call it hitting the pause button because that’s exactly how it feels. I pause, look away from the manuscript and then go back and read it. After the pause, I either chuck it or go on. I just hit the pause button on my fourth Candy’s Monsters. I’m happy to report that I’m not chucking it! My Dr.
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Waltzing in the Snow Chapter 2
This is the second chapter in my serialized mystery novella. If you missed chapter 1, scroll down and catch up. Every Friday, I’ll post an additional chapter. Chapter 2: All the World’s a Play Daniel was exhausted. It was almost five and he’d been at his computer writing and rewriting the same scene over and over again since ten in the morning. He was still far from happy with the dialog. Something wasn’t ringing true. The woman’s voice was on target, but her son’s words didn’t hang together. He was stilted and awkward. Daniel checked the contents of his refrigerator
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Mad Scientist Update
Even mad scientists have paperwork! My mad scientist experiment in serialized fiction began on Friday — and will continue for 16 more Fridays. Right now, I’m most concerned with getting people to read the first few chapters and click FOLLOW on this blog. This is a scary business for me. I’d rather be writing. All writers say that and I think it’s true for most of us. Writing all the time is just not possible. Promotion, marketing, networking, etc. all take time and are all necessary tasks. So, please help spread the word about “Waltzing in the Snow.” I’m taking
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Waltzing in the Snow — serialized mystery chapter 1
This is the start of my experiment in serialized fiction. Every week I will post one, short chapter from Waltzing in the Snow. This is a first draft with, no doubt, a few typos and the usual errors. I hope you enjoy the story and that your feedback will help me shape the final draft of this short, mystery novella. Waltzing in the Snow Chapter 1: Unsought, Love is Better And now back to our in-depth conversation with Tony Award-winning playwright Daniel Blake on “Theater Rap”…. Daniel, I’ve got to ask this question — why a novel? Why not tell
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The Well-Dressed Monster
I love Warren Zevon. What’s not to love? His “Werewolves of London” pops up every Halloween, but I think it’s one of those great songs that deserves to be heard for itself — without any holiday inspiration. I’m particularly fond of the line about loving to “… meet his tailor.” The well-dressed MONSTER is a figure in modern and contemporary monster stories. There are fashions in monsters — vampires are in one year, werewolves the next — but the debonair creature of darkness is a perennial favorite. Bela Lugosi’s dramatization of Dracula feels like camp today, but his evening suit
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Mad Scientist Experiment
I’m emerging from the lab, hair standing straight up in the air like Elsa Lancaster as “The Bride of Frankenstein” and badly in need of an extra large coffee. What have I created? A MONSTER! But this monster is not quite complete, it’s an original and untested manuscript, and I need a consult with fellow mad scientist writers and lab assistant readers. My plan is to begin serializing a mystery novella entitled “Waltzing in the Snow.” I’ll post a short chapter of this mystery on seventeen consecutive Fridays — beginning a week from today. Each chapter contains at least one
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