I’m under the weather today. Body aches, tired, etc. I could blame it on a lot of things–getting older for one. My wife try to get up at 5 each morning with the intention of exercising, but for one reason or another it doesn’t always happen. We chose 5 because she works in Fort Worth, … More Garbage in, garbage out
A month or two ago, I had a fellow Tweeter ask me what Christian suspense was. I politely told them that Christian suspense was just suspense writing with a Christian theme. That got me to thinking about a question that came up in my blog about a year ago: Is there such a genre as … More Is There Such a Thing as Christian Horror?
Week six in my Drama Writing class, and we are making the transition from stage play writing to screenplay writing. As I have said from the very beginning, we are blessed with two great textbooks, and I am learning a lot not only about scriptwriting, but about novel writing as well. One of the words … More How Spectacular Are You?
“This above all: to thine own self be true.” –William Shakespeare I suffered through the typical teenage years. I was pretty insecure about who I was, and was eager to be accepted into “the inner circle.” And so I was constantly trying to reinvent myself. One week I would go for the cool surfer look … More The Trap of Reinvention
I spent a little time on Twitter this morning. My Reporting class is involved in an in-class writing exercise, which gives me time to play. Once again, as I surf through Twitter, I am amazed and floored at the thousands and thousands of would-be writers all saying the same things and dreaming the same dreams. … More Really, It’s Not the Lottery. Or Is It?
One of the most challenging parts of being a professor is also one of the things I like most about teaching. I teach in communication, mostly journalism. There’s a lot of people who think that journalism is dying or dead, but that’s not true. It’s evolving. Trouble is, no one is sure exactly what it’s … More New Stuff
I will be the first to admit that I am a novice in the field of self-publishing. But I have learned a great deal since I jumped into the business at the beginning of 2012. Probably the most significant thing I have learned was how critical two things are as far as book sales are … More What a Difference a Cover Makes!
The saying is, when the world gives you lemons, make lemonade. I haven’t always believed that way, but in the past decade or so, that’s been my approach to life. And so far, it’s been pretty helpful. I’ll give you a somewhat shocking, yet true to life, example. In 1993 my father was diagnosed with … More Archive: When the World Gives You Vultures
My wife Shelly feels like I have the most vivid dreams of anyone she has ever met. When I have one, and when I remember it in the morning, I try to tell her about it. Why? Because I have learned through my own graduate work in communication that unless you verbalize your dreams, they … More From the Archive: I Must Be Dreaming
I can’t help it. I’m a blabbermouth. When I am working on a writing project, I can’t hardly wait to finish a chapter before I print it off and start to share it. I corner my wife, harangue my students, bother my daughter, even pester you faithful blog readers just to know that someone, somewhere … More Feedback or Solitude? Another Dilemma for Writers
