Musings Of A New Southern Man

I apologize for not posting anything lately. I have been a little busy. You know those problems new authors say they have about juggling allotted time between crafting their works of fiction and their day job? Well, I can say from recent experience that the burden of time between tasks is much more daunting when it involves writing fiction and dealing with LOSING your day job. The Denver Post says I am out the door on June 15; I have a difference of opinion, but that will wait for another day. Part of my workload has been making contacts to determine  ... well, no details as of right now. Much of my workload has involved combing through job postings, then turning in applications for potential jobs. Some of the applications involve a good deal of time to connect all the dots. Add to that the stress of potentially losing my livelihood of more than 37 years and I think you can understand my angst. My fiction hasn't gone untouched. I have started outlining the second novel in my se

My latest novel has four main settings. I am familiar with each, and I try to let my readers feel each location. Authenticity is such a beautiful asset to any novel. My settings are: Downtown Denver. I have worked there for more than six years, and I know the details of the exact location where my action takes place. I also drove to the location and researched small details. Suburban area north of Seattle. I selected the town of Mukilteo because I stayed there and thought it was one of the lovely parts of the Puget Sound area. I put my protagonist in a pretty upscale area of a beautiful Pacific Northwest location. San Francisco Bay Area. I use Candlestick Park, where I have been about 40 times, and the northern Napa Valley town of Angwin, which I know from my working days in nearby Santa Rosa. There are little details about Angwin I will use to bolster reasons why one specific supporting character chose that exact spot. Los Angeles and areas of the San Fernando Valley. I know t

Almost every author has a day job, save for those chosen few who are blessed enough to do the job they love for a profitable living. Well, my day job is collapsing, and so is some of the rest of my world. An explanation is needed. I am a copy editor at The Denver Post, which is joining the parade of narrow-minded thinkers who decide that copy editors are the most expendable part of the publishing enterprise. I disagree strongly, but it's not my newspaper. I am under pressure to put in my resignation (the pressure being an enhanced insurance package for six months) and then walk out the door. I am not alone _ 16 or 17 other copy editors will join the unpopular exodus. OK, the obvious question: Now what? First, I have kept a good attitude about all this. Well, there was yesterday when the impact of all this hit me. That, however, was a momentary lapse. Today I am focusing my efforts on building new revenue streams, to put it in the language of those who sever jobs for enhanced pr

One of my lessons from the Pikes Peak Writers Conference was Joe Lansdale's advice to me to become a voracious reader. To put Lansdale's point in simplest terms: A writer can become great by reading other great writers. The writer-as-reader learns the art of it all that way. He knows that from his own experience. I had a cardinal rule when I was writing a novel: I did not read any other works. That meant for seven to 12 months I didn't pick up a work of fiction of non-fiction. I am mending my ways. I am juggling reading three works right now, one fiction, one non-fiction and one educational. The fiction is Harlan Coben's "Live Wire" so I can see how a great mystery writer handles his work. My non-fiction is Antonio Salinas' "Siren's Song: The Allure of War" so I can drink in the atmosphere of a soldier on the battlefield. My educational work is Donald Maass' "The Breakout Novelist". I will give a short breakdown on each work.