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A few weeks ago, I was working to deadline; I had a post due for the Fundamental Fridays blog which, for me, is a pretty big deal. It was a fairly typical scenario for a writer; up at 5:00 a.m., at the desk by 5:30 with coffee in hand. I was behind schedule (which, admittedly, …
A few months ago I got up the courage to pitch a podcast idea to Tim Grahl. Tim is a book marketing expert—the kind of expert who charges a king’s ransom to run one book launch and who puts authors on the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. The gods must have …
Being an author is remarkably similar to being a mother. It’s insanely hard work, yet infinitely rewarding. The reality of it is much different than we thought it would be. And, no matter how many advice books we read, in the end we figure it out as we go along. That doesn’t stop us from wanting …
This past month really drained me. My analysis for Dracula was due May 28—this is a full Story Grid workup in the vein of a PhD thesis. The drop dead date had been haunting me for months. If I missed it, my book wouldn’t be published in October (which is ideal for a book about Dracula). I …
One of the skills that a professional writer has to develop is the ability to say no. No to social invitations. No to interesting projects. No to clueless asks. It isn’t an easy thing to do, but when I’m under deadline, saying yes to them means saying no to myself. No to my novel. No …
When people tell me that they wish they had my life, one of the things they long for is the freedom to set their own schedule; to work when, where and how they want. The funny thing about being a writer is that I’m on the job 24/7. I do things that non-writers would recognize …
It’s marathon Sunday in Chicago. My sister, Diana, ran the race this morning, and yesterday, I ran the Chicago International 5K—my first race in 18 months. Humbling. And before you ask: no, I have no plans to run a marathon anytime soon. I write novels, and that’s basically the same thing as running a marathon, …
I just got back from a trip to New York City with my daughter. We saw four Broadway shows in three days, so there wasn’t a whole lot of time to do much else. We did, however, find time to swing by Saks Fifth Avenue. Two important takeaways from that adventure. First, expensive shoes aren’t …
As I write this, my hometown is under a State of Emergency. Yesterday we got hit with a massive, 17-hour blizzard (a Category 2 hurricane that dropped three feet of snow, in addition to what was already on the ground) and right now, a second blizzard is raging. (If you want to get a sense …
I’m always pressed for time at Christmas, but this past season seemed worse than usual. I ended up with a very small window in which to get my tree up and decorated. That meant I had to skip steps in order to speed up the process. I dragged the tree into the house without first letting …
As I was thinking about how to frame this month’s post, I came across the following tweet from Roseanne Cash. Shakespeare also didn’t have laptops, central heating or electric lights. What he did have was free and easy access to his imagination. Kinda makes you think, doesn’t it? Many writers will use this period of …
I’ve been working on this post for over a month. Many drafts have gone into the bin and it’s taken me thousands of words to find the three I needed, and the three words aren’t even my own. They’re Neil Gaiman’s and they’re simply this; make good art. During this bizarre time in our history, …
This isn’t what I was planning to talk about. I’d intended to write something uplifting about getting back on track after the COVID-19 derailment that we’ve all be dealing with. Then my cat, Sophia, hopped onto my bed. This blog is designed to give you a little peek into what a writer’s life is actually …
I’ve been debating whether I should write this. Not because I think I’m wrong, but because I think it will be interpreted as angry, or ungrateful, or petulant. Then I looked at my window that needs fixing and my kitchen door that needs replacing, and I realized that this is exactly the article I should …
I’ve had an idea rattling around in my head for a while now, and the more I think about it, the more I’m convinced it’s true. The idea is this: everything is story. That’s a pretty bold statement. You could argue that I’m biased because I’m in the business of story, and you wouldn’t be …
Australian author, Liane Moriarty, is doing a whole lot of smiling these days. You may know her as the creator of Big Little Lies, which was optioned by Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon and turned into an award-winning television show. The second season has just wrapped production and stars Meryl Streep as the mother-in-law to Kidman’s …
Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine is a rare find. Published in 2017, it’s the debut novel from Scottish author, Gail Honeyman and it earned her the Costa First Novel award. I’m telling you, this is a writer to watch. If Eleanor Oliphant has not already been optioned for film, it will be soon. When you read this book, you …
Jane Fonda’s Prime Time might seem like an odd choice given that Mother’s Day is this month. And I’ll be honest, I was hoping to recommend a novel about motherhood. I looked high and low and read (or partially read) about a dozen books. I discovered that books about motherhood fall into a few broad categories: …
Summer is around the corner so, I’m going to ignore the fact that I still need my winter coat here in Newfoundland, and begin my beach read recommendations! One of the things I like best about Dear Mrs. Bird is that author AJ Pearce starts the story with a bang. Not literally, although she could have given …
Ahhhhh, summer has finally arrived! I’ve gotten some requests for a romance, so this month I’ve chosen a charming story from Sue McDonagh, a debut author out of Wales. Before I go further, a brief word about romances. It’s an easy genre to poke fun at and the uninitiated love to roll their eyes, criticizing …
Daisy Jones & The Six is a love story involving the lead musicians of a fictional 1970s American rock band, but it’s far from a typical love story. Author Taylor Jenkins Reid has innovated the heck out of it. I’m really tempted to tell you all the amazing things that are happening with this novel, …
Australian author, Sally Hepworth, got the idea for her latest novel when her real-life mother-in-law was living with her for six weeks. Hepworth swears that it’s a complete coincidence that the book is a murder mystery with the mother-in-law as the victim. (We’ll take her word for that, shall we?) It’s not your average whodunnit, …
The Haunting of Hill House will scare the pants off you. It scares me. It scares Neil Gaiman. It scares Stephen King. Need I continue? It’s a super creepy haunted house story and I want to warn you, but I also don’t want to ruin the fun. Just remember, it’s not real. Probably. Keep the …
I know, I know. I’m not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but that’s exactly what I did this time around. It’s a striking cover; black with gold foil. It jumps off bookshelves and begs to be read. Happily, the story lives up to the expectations set by the cover design. As you …
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society takes place shortly after WWII, so if you liked Dear Mrs. Bird (my June, 2019 book club pick) or Call the Midwife, there’s a good chance you’ll like this too. This is the book that the Netflix movie (of the same name) is based on. Even if …
I thought a love story would be appropriate for February and so this month, I’m recommending the contemporary romance, Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes. Evvie is recently widowed and lives in a big house she can no longer afford. So, when a handsome ex-baseball player wants to rent the downstairs apartment, she agrees …
This month I’m recommending a book that was recommended to me by my friend and colleague, Leslie Watts. Leslie is also my editor. (Yes, even editors have editors!) Like the novel I’m currently writing, The Night Circus is a non-linear narrative that has multiple, interweaving storylines. So, Leslie suggested we study it to see how …
I don’t know about you, but I could use a literary escape these days, and for me, that means mysteries! If you like Agatha Christie, you’ll like The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley. Alfred Hitchcock said that mysteries are intellectual puzzles, and I agree. (I’m not likely to disagree with anything Hitchcock says about storytelling.) …
A friend of mine recently recently recommended Fleishman is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner. It’s a great book (lots of “content” though so you’ll definitely want earphones if you’re listening to the audio). Brodesser-Akner used to work for GQ, so it’s like reading a really long GQ article. Her authorial voice reminded me of Nora …
If you’re looking for a Kate Hudson/Matthew McConaughey romcom in a book, Beach Read by Emily Henry, is for you. During lockdown, for my recreational reading I’ve been craving stories that provide entertainment and escape. For me, that’s primarily whodunnits, but rather than bombard you with one mystery after another, I thought this month I’d …
To download a PDF of this article, subscribe to Valerie’s Inner Circle and check the Resources section of the Members Only area also published on the Story Grid website as Writing a Page Turner: Part 1 As a novelist, I’m fascinated by what keeps readers turning pages. How do we hook a reader at page …
To download a PDF of this article, subscribe to Valerie’s Inner Circle and check the Resources section of the Members Only area also published on the Story Grid website as Writing a Page Turner: Part 2 I’ve been studying narrative drive quite a bit in the past few months and have already gone into great …
To download a PDF of this article, subscribe to Valerie’s Inner Circle and check the Resources section of the Members Only area also published on the Story Grid website as Writing a Page Turner: Part 3 Today I wrap up my three-part series on narrative drive with a look at dramatic irony. Narrative drive is …
It may not surprise you to hear that the best time to start is right now. Your idea might not work. You won’t have all the bugs worked out. Things will go wrong along the way. Still, the best time to start is now because now is all there is. Perfection isn’t important. The only …
Most of the time, fear holds us back. Sometimes, it paralyzes us. But what would happen if we saw fear as an ally? When we realize that experiencing fear is a good thing, that it’s actually a sign that we’re on the right track, we start to look for the things that scare us. Writing …
What do you really want? We tell ourselves that what we want is to write a book, but that’s not the whole truth. We also want the thing we believe a book will give us. Validation (someone to read our book and praise us). A spot on a bestseller list. Fortune, fame and status. Of …
…said no author ever. It is a truth universally acknowledged, that writing a novel is an agonizing, soul-destroying process. It requires alcohol, coffee, blood, sweat and tears – in that order. We hear this so often, we accept it as truth. But what if it wasn’t true? What if we chose to see the process …
There are only two ways for a dream to come true. The first way involves a fairy godmother. The second way requires us to turn our dreams into goals. What’s your goal? Write it down. Read it everyday. Act on it everyday.
...Writer’s block doesn’t exist. We don’t suddenly forget how to write. We don’t suddenly run out of ideas. What does exist is Resistance; that force within us that can – and will – paralyze us if we let it. If you haven’t yet heard Seth Godin’s podcast about writer’s block, I encourage you to take …
When you make up your mind that you’re going to give it everything you’ve got, you’re going to be in such a small group of people that even the losers are winners. – Bob Proctor Very few people give 110%. As authors, what does giving 110% look like? Have we made writing a daily habit? …
Failure, and the fear of it, can really tie us in knots if we let it. I think it’s because we don’t understand what it is. It’s generally thought to be a lack of success; not achieving the thing you set out to do. But I disagree. To me, there’s only one way to fail …
Oooh boy. This one’s a biggie. There are already so many legitimate demands on our time that Resistance hardly has to lift a finger to derail us. If we’ve got a writing goal though, we’ve got to find time in our day to write. How do we do that? I wish there was a magic …
Discipline means giving yourself a command, and following it. It’s not the same as willpower. Discipline is not for the faint of heart either. It takes guts to commit to a writing regime. If we say we’re going to wake up an hour earlier to write, then that’s what we’ve got to do. It will …
Consistency over time must be the least sexy strategy known to mankind. It also happens to be the most effective. No matter what our goal is, consistent effort over time is the key to success. If we want to lose weight, making healthy choices consistently over time will get us there. If we want to …
A local charity just held its third annual fun run fundraiser. The first year, the turnout was respectable and although the weather was awful and the route poorly designed, runners had a good time. For a year they told their friends about the swag bag they got after they crossed the finish line. It was …
Resistance, as coined by Steven Pressfield in The War of Art, is that thing inside us that keeps us from doing what we really want to do. Bob Proctor calls is a Paradigm. It’s strong and it’s sneaky. Unless we’re paying very close attention to what we’re doing, we will fall prey to it. How …
If there’s one thing Resistance is good at, it’s sensing weakness. It knows our Achilles heels – maybe even better than we do ourselves – and it has no problem using it against us. When we begin to notice patterns in our behaviour, the patterns that keep us from our writing, we discover the tool …
When we have a goal that we want to accomplish – like writing a novel – we’ve got to recommit to it every single day. I’m talking about making a conscious decision. We’ve got to write it down, or say it out loud. Otherwise, one missed day of writing becomes one week, then one month, …