Pegfish 's Blog (752)

The Gift of Murder

I've probably mentioned I'm part of this year's Toys for Tots anthology from Wolfmont, titled THE GIFT OF MURDER. Now I can tell you that I recommend it, since I finished in this morning over breakfast.

I'm pleased to have been included in the anthology, an entertaining mix of holiday crime stories. A great gift for the readers on your holiday list, since you get 19 chances to please instead of just one, and you support a worthy cause at the same time.

Nice work, Tony… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on October 9, 2009 at 9:56pm — No Comments

That Wonderful Bottom Drawer

In my writing workshops, I always advise letting a piece "rest" in a drawer or file somewhere for an extended time when it's finished, and I just proved to myself once more the value of that practice. There's something about stepping away that clarifies things: plot flaws solve themselves, characters solidify, and bits that nail the thing together grow between the cracks and almost insert themselves.

My WIP for October is the sequel to HER HIGHNESS' FIRST MURDER, which has been… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on October 8, 2009 at 10:01pm — No Comments

There's No Predicting

If you'd asked me a week ago, I'd have said that writers' groups don't buy books. Most of the time when I speak to a group of wanna-be writers, they're there to pick my brain, and the enticement of reading my work evades them entirely.

Then I meet a group that surprises me, and I have to run to the car to get more books (always more books in the car--that's a rule.) And I take orders from more people who didn't come prepared to buy the book but want to send a check.

The… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on October 7, 2009 at 7:30pm — 2 Comments

I'm Puttin' on My Top Hat...Sorta

Fred Astaire aside, I've scheduled a library talk tonight, so I've been doing all that silly stuff we do before presenting ourselves to strangers. Not sure why it matters if my nails are polished, but it makes me feel like I have done my part. The thing is, one never knows if it's going to be worth all the effort. I pack three tote bags with handouts, giveaways, book I hope to sell, etc., and then drive whatever distance I must. And sometimes nobody shows up. Sometimes three people. Sometimes… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on October 6, 2009 at 10:30pm — 1 Comment

Deferred Gratification

I had a professor at the U of M(ichigan...she hangs her head after Saturday's humiliation) who was always on about deferred gratification and how Americans had lost any grasp of it in modern times. It's hard to argue the point after seeing the newly touted sports channel that lets you "see every touchdown in every game" on a Sunday afternoon. Jump from game to game, just watching the highlights? How long would it take to be totally lost as to which team you were watching? And what's the… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on October 5, 2009 at 9:21pm — No Comments

Immersion

Once upon a time I worked in a bakery...for about three days. It was kind of fun, kind of funny. One task taught to me by a kind but verbally challenged worker was the process of what she called "emerging" the doughnuts. It involved a screen that pressed them under the hot oil, and they did eventually "emerge" from it completely cooked.

I do my best writing when immersed in the story, but sometimes it takes a lot to get there: a lot of time, a lot of silence, a lot of freeing my mind… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on October 2, 2009 at 11:05pm — 1 Comment

The Never-ending Edit

I believe that I could edit eternally, and I have to be very stern with myself about it. I edit in layers, so for example, I might start editing for character, checking to be sure I've been consistent and interesting and all that. But then I see a phrase that isn't quite the way I'd like it, and pretty soon I'm editing something else entirely.

Now that's not all bad, because it probably will improve the piece, but WHERE does it STOP? Maybe when I'm so sick of the whole thing that I… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on October 1, 2009 at 10:22pm — 5 Comments

Pushing On Through

I can't decide exactly how the victims die. The choices have been whittled down to three or four, and the final decision will change the course of the story, but I can't find out enough about certain murder methods to make that decision. I suppose it's only right that information on how to kill people is not readily available. My non-writing friends think I'm weird enough as it is, but it is only fiction, after all.

Anyway, I've decided to push through and write the story anyway,… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 30, 2009 at 10:37pm — 3 Comments

Ancillary Actions

I'd never used the word "ancillary" in my life until my first publishing days. Now I know and sometimes dread the word. Every job has aspects to it that outsiders don't know about or assume are done by someone else. Writers have a ton of ancillary tasks that not only aren't as much fun as writing, they actually take away from writing time.

First, of course is promotion, but there are a thousand things that come up. In my head I keep saying, "Maybe next week I can get back to my WIP."… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 30, 2009 at 1:49am — 4 Comments

Author Hours

I did a workshop on Saturday and as usual got the question, "Do you set regular writing hours for yourself?"

I always answer yes, but the sign on the door of my writing "business" would have to have some disclaimers:

BUSINESS OPEN:

M-F 7:00-11:00* ** *** ****

*-ish. If things are going well, I might continue until suppertime. If not, I wander the house from 9:30 on, doing little non-writing tasks and hoping the muse gets her butt back into the chair soon.

** Of… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 28, 2009 at 10:18pm — No Comments

Here's Another One

Yesterday I melded MACBETH and WE HAVE ALWAYS LIVED AT THE CASTLE. How about this one:

Teaser: His body disfigured, his purpose unknown, he came toward the town. Was he back for vengeance?
For help? Or did his red skin signal a need for...blood?

Coming soon: The Return of the Count

Added by Peg Herring on September 24, 2009 at 10:00pm — No Comments

I Can't Explain It

The idea hit me sometime this morning, and I just had to share: two classic stories woven together.

Teaser: People are dying all over Scotland, and the blame, at least in the view of most people, falls on a certain woman. I feel sorry for her, because I can see the strain she's under. If only the real killer could be found. Oh! Could it be? Yup, it's me, Macbeth.

Coming soon: WE HAVE ALWAYS LIVED AT GLAMIS CASTLE

Added by Peg Herring on September 23, 2009 at 10:07pm — No Comments

Getting the Word Out (R)

This week I'm out doing library talks, and that means getting those ducks in a row. Do I have enough cards, books, handouts, and such? How will I look after a long drive on a hot day? And worst of all, will anyone care enough to show up?

Second-time authors aren't exactly hot properties, and while libraries are usually willing to let me do my schtick, there's no guarantee patrons will show up to watch. I combat the no-name problem by approaching with a theme rather than just "Come… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 22, 2009 at 8:59pm — 6 Comments

The Play's the Thing

I ditched work last week and visited one of my favorite places on Earth: Stratford, Ontario, Canada. In two days I saw three plays, and like the theater geek I am, two of them were pieces I'd seen many times before. I don't mind a bit watching Tony and Maria struggle against Fate one more time or seeing Bottom made even more of an ass than Nature made him at birth.

Plays are different than novels. (Duh!) For me, seeing a play again is a treat, while reading a novel again has little… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 21, 2009 at 10:38pm — No Comments

Good Men

I read two books recently from authors I admire, and it's mostly because of the protagonists, who are good guys. Not perfect, but good. Solid. Understandable.

First is Jim Benn's Billy Boyle. Billy is an Irish cop who learns, with the help of World War II, that he isn't as lazy as he thought. One gets a sense that if Billy had stayed in the States, missed the war, he might have become a cynical, take-what-you-can-get type of cop, but war makes him look at the world differently. I… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 18, 2009 at 10:30pm — No Comments

Growing Up

Remember when you were a kid and didn't realize that every day made you less of one? Me neither.

Writers experience a similar phenomenon, I think. While there are undoubtedly a few Mozarts out there who write instinctively and perfectly from the cradle, most of us grow over time, often without fully realizing it.

I've heard really successful authors hint that they recognize weaknesses in their early works, but there's no sense worrying about it. They're out there for everyone to… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 17, 2009 at 11:00pm — 3 Comments

True Confessions

I wrote earlier about early works and what we'd like to change. It's time to confess, and I'll start.

I began with plays, publishing four of them before I switched to novels. Looking back at them now, I see WAY too many words. I'd like to pretend that it was Shakespearean creation of mood, the verbiage weaving a spell for the audience, but in truth it was inexperience, and I'd love to get my hands on them and pare them down, especially the first one. I did learn over time, and they… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 16, 2009 at 10:30pm — 1 Comment

About a Writer's Confidence (R)

Exposing one's writing to the world is more terrifying than all the chainsaw massacre movies put together. Emily Dickinson said it: "How can you print a piece of your soul?" And yet, there is a compulsion in those of us who write to share that writing with others. We are tentative at first, but we can't resist handing that "piece of soul" to another person, hoping that he or she will say, "This is good." Often we're even okay with "This isn't too bad."

My first time story: I shared… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 15, 2009 at 10:28pm — 2 Comments

Names Again

How do you choose names for your characters?

It often bothers me when two characters in a novel have names that are too similar, and I try not to do that in my own work. I also try to use interesting names, or at least names that interest me. I can't make myself do the name-symbolism thing, like "Brick" or "Steel" for the alpha male character. I suppose my choices are limited somewhat by my upbringing, which is among mostly white, mostly European descendants. Lots of German, Irish,… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 14, 2009 at 8:32pm — 9 Comments

What's in a Name?

Two perspectives here: my own and some recent experiences.

First, mine. For some reason I don't understand, I often am called Pat (shades of old SNL skits!) If often happened in my years of teaching, not surprising since there was another teacher of similar build, coloring, glasses, and height who is named Pat. So Pat was called Peg and I was called Pat, and we laughed about it.

But since I became Peg the Author, I still run into people who call me Pat, and they didn't… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 11, 2009 at 10:23pm — 4 Comments