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I was channel-surfing last night and watched a host on one of those entertainment TV magazines (I think it was ET) talk about her tummy tuck that her plastic surgeon husband had done on her. She's a mother of two and had a slight tummy roll (yes, they shot it on camera). The program had some gratuitous "after" shots of her proudly baring her now flat midriff. She then expresses that she is so happy, that she was "so ashamed" before. Ashamed? What does having a slightly poofy belly after…

posted by Leann Sweeney

This week, the cat feels better, the dog and I are calmer and I am about a month away from becoming a first time grandma. It doesn't get any better than that in my personal life. Even my son-in-law, who is the worst airplane phobic ever, will be taking a train to be in Seattle at Thanksgiving and meet the newest member of our family. I'm smiling, folks. But there's more good stuff--at least I hope all of you reading this, some who have hopefully read…

I'm in the middle of A Rage in Harlem by Chester B. Himes and there is a big difference as to how he introduces the main chacaters to his series of books.

In the first paragraph of the first chapter of The Maltese Falcon we get a detailed description of Samuel Spade. Through the course of the novel where we are Sam Spade is as well. Philip Marlowe guides us through every step of Raymond Chandler's novels.

In A Rage in Harlem Grave Digger Jones and…

I love football. Sometimes I don't understand the nuances, but I love to watch the game. I can't tell you why exactly, since sometimes it can be deadly dull. There's nothing slower than slogging through mud and rain in search of those ten yards using only running plays; especially when those plays don't seem to be doing a darn thing. Pass! I scream (in the stands, at the big screen TV, at the radio). Throw the damn ball...there's a receiver wide open in the end zone! Of course, no one…

I've been at this writing business for 7 years now, starting cold as a new career without any background and taking the classes and learning by experience. Two things I'm good at, paying my taxes and promoting my work in the long term effort that some publisher will believe I'm a good candidate for publication. I think many new writers and even some more experience will find this articles helpful.…

In the wake of the recent Chinese ban on unlicensed reincarnation, Reuters reports another interesting religious development: On Tuesday, officials of Nepal’s state-run airline sacrificed two goats to appease Akash Bhairab, the Hindu sky god, because the airline was having trouble with one of its Boeing 757s.

Assuming for the moment that this approach is not suggested in the Boeing Users Manual, I think the airline officials…

Being published is an odd experience. First you spend a year all alone, hunched over a keyboard, talking to yourself and trying to coax a story and some people into being. Then your agent finds a publisher, and suddenly the emphasis is on the second book: What’s it going to be? How soon can you finish it? So the writer spends another year all

alone, hunched over a keyboard, and eventually turns in roughly…

The big news in Boone is Appalachian State University's historic 34-32 football victory over Michigan. I'm an ASU graduate and though I grumble about increased traffic, it was a wild time. The students tore down the home goalposts, even though it was an away game. Our newspaper is printing extra copies

of the sports edition because we figure it will be a collector's item.

My…

Lost Hours my new novel being published by Whiskey Creek Press will be available in October. Here's what reviewers are saying:

Author D. K. Gaston develops a tantalizing, suspenseful story that draws…

My eighth novel, THE KEY is now available on amazon and at the discounted price! And I'm doing a giveaway. My sister made me these really cool bookmarks for the launch (that you can see here: http://www.paulinebjones.com/contests.htm and there are more on the way.) So, buy THE KEY, send me proof of purchase and I'll send one to the first responders until they are gone.…

I just wanted to share a bit of good news about my suspense novel, CROSSHAIRS. It was reviewed by Stephen Horowitz, Ph.D. of the Peppertree Literary Magazine who said:

"The story is full of twists and turns and loads of suspense. The reader is pulled along at a frenzied pace ... I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good murder mystery."

Posted by Jeanne Munn Bracken

September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. That statement might seem waaaaay off topic for the Writers Plot, but it's really on target. Because I moved from "some day maybe I'll be a writer" to "I am a published author" as a result of an event that would shake anybody's life to the core.

My toddler daughter was diagnosed with…