Editing Tip: Kindle Time
You’ve typed, The End, at the bottom of your draft. After revising your pages several times, made the listed fixes from your developmental editor’s notes, it’s time to…what?
Tag Archive for ‘writingadvice’
Still a Story Seamstress
I’m still a seamstress cutting and trimming and sewing the pieces of my story into something lovely and sharable.
My Step Driven Action to Creating Characters ~ Step 3
Writers, how many steps does it take to bring your characters to life? For me, three! In previous posts I’ve covered the first two steps in this process. Step 1: Re-Research (I went back to the experts, read books on characterization) https://stepsinbetween.com/2020/05/17/my-step-driven-action-to-creating-characters-step-one/ Step 2: Paper Dolls (I sketched out my characters on paper; flat, with brainstormed hopes about his or her traits, behaviors, responses, hopes, dreams, obstacles, truths, lies…) https://stepsinbetween.com/2020/06/14/my-step-driven-action-to-creating-characters-step-2/ […]
Pocket Sizing My Story
Pocket planning! That’s what I’m working on right now. With book two underway, and my mission to de-pants myself…ummm, what I mean is, curb my pantser-instead-of-plotting tendencies, I aim to become more of a planner. Of course, I am NOT a planner by nature, so I’m on the hunt, finding simple solutions to trick my brain into the idea. Could I be wasting time as a writer? Could this process […]
Reader Advice: Same Walk, New Step (Squash the Creative Crunch)
Last week I shared real-life distractions blocking my creative pathway, even amid true inspiration. My readers delivered with caring advice, either through comments or private messages, and I am grateful. A few small suggestions helped me to make some slight alterations to my writing routine, which made all the difference. As a reference, please take a peek back at last week’s post: https://stepsinbetween.com/2020/06/21/creatively-crunched/ For starters, I took some time off […]
Writing Road Trip Reflection (Exciting News)
I am a goal-setter. Although to be honest, I don’t always look back and reflect. Sometimes I just keep going, setting new or abbreviated goals along the way. But today, with the accomplishment of one very important goal that’s pushed me to drive through long nights and torrential downpours, I have found reason to reflect. And I believe it is important to share for all the writers out there who […]
Fill Your Writer’s Well ~ STILL Delighting in National Poetry Month, April 2020
With April abloom, we are more than midway through National Poetry Month. If you have been following along with Steps In Between, you know we are reveling in this event by sharing poetry from writers all over the world. Their names are listed below, but read on for a quick bit of well-filling inspiration… POETS below in alphabetical order, their poems can be found at this link: https://stepsinbetween.com/2020/04/05/let-the-words-roam-national-poetry-month-april-2020/ Yvonne Brewer (Spring Sends […]
Writers–Check! (An Exercise)
Do I really need another writer’s checklist? I do. I’ve discovered it’s needed for my own growth. Only six years into writing for myself, and three years into writing more publicly, I am in great need of accountability and push-on-abilty. And, sometimes I forget the pure satisfaction in checking off an item on my list. Maybe I should add, celebrate checking off the checklist, onto my list. I find my […]
Writers Need Writers!
Writers Need Writers! Lunch with friends is always a joyful experience. When written on my calendar, it becomes a beacon of light to look forward to. And now I have a new “lunch with friends 2.0” to share: lunch with writer friends! Writers typically work alone. Isolation is required in the realms of creation, but sometimes we need to poke our heads out and interact with others. Yesterday, I had […]
Character Developing: The Story and the Author
After five-plus years of writing my finally finished book, Seam Keepers, a burning new story has sparked into life. Although I am still in the querying stage of my first book, I can’t seem to snuff the light from this new idea seeking passage to the page. And though Seam Keepers has a sequel in need of completing, this new story inspiration doesn’t seem to mind sharing in the limelight. […]
Story Characters Take a Glimpse…
Merry Merry Writers! This one is a throw-back from December 2017: (https://stepsinbetween.com/2017/12/24/merry-merry-socks-or-chocolate/). I believe still applies today. It’s a fun exercise that can also help put character feelings and back-story into perspective. Give it a try during this holiday season, when writing time can be scarce. Happy Everything You Celebrate, my readers. I appreciate you! And…Happy Writing (because at least you’re writing), Celaine Charles, December 22, 2019 Image and Content […]
Writing Amidst the Mistletoe
I am writing in my fuzzy PJs, coffee swirling to my left, notes from my editor (and hopefully one day publisher) to my right. I’m planted at my desk, the place all good writing (and terrible, but I’m focusing on the positive) comes from. Imagination flowing like a crisp winter breeze? No, I’m caught up with seasonal shopping that isn’t going to find itself purchased and wrapped under my tree […]
Marketing-Shmarketing (A Writer’s Request)
Just because I’m a writer…author of my first poetry book…revising-expert of my fiction manuscript…and mostly nice human, doesn’t mean I have the business knowledge or wherewithal to market myself. This is the hardest part for me. More difficult than the writing itself; and writing is challenging. ***Side Note: At the bottom of this post you will find some links to marketing advice as well as a REQUEST for more resources. […]
Writing With the Rain
I am writing with the rain this morning. The house is quiet, as still as the cup of coffee steaming at my side. At the moment, it’s a calmness quite far from the workings in my mind. As a writer of poetry and fiction, a teacher of young students, a wife, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a friend…I feel overwhelmed today. Tranquil time is hard to come by […]
Happy Two Years, Writers!
Steps In Between is celebrating two years! This number may not sound as impressive as twelve or twenty, but to say I’ve posted 208 times is a huge accomplishment (personally). I’ve posted writing-journey articles every Sunday, and I’ve shared a poem to my Wednesday Whims of Poetry page every Wednesday for the last two years. That’s 104 articles and 104 poems! In addition, I’m thrilled and amazed (and exhausted) yet […]
Writing Feels Like An Ocean Today
Writing feels like an ocean today. Currants forcing deep swells instead of the gentle spume of a slow tide. Long past are the beachy days of writing to my heart’s content, although I will vacation again, intentionality is now my emphasis. And that’s okay. It’s time for me to focus on the author realities I’ve been dreaming about. I wrote a book. A story that wriggled its way from my […]
Writing Conference Hurrahs!
A few hours ago, with exhaustion pooling at my ankles, I arrived home from the PNWA Writing Conference. My mind is still swimming with information, inspiration, and a little apprehension (although not enough to pull me under). Just last week I posted the good, the bad, and the ugly of this anticipated event, yet happily I can report it was all positive and worthwhile. First of all, I had a […]
My Upcoming Writing Conference (the good, the bad, and the ugly)
My Upcoming Writing Conference (the good, the bad, and the ugly): The PNWA Writing Conference happens in less than a week in Seattle. This is a good news-bad news event for me. As eager as I am to soak in all the learning presented and meet other authors and writers, I still consider myself new in this writing world, and to be honest, I’m intimidated. Thankfully, my whole writing class […]
Friends know I submit a lot because I talk about it a lot. Now maybe five* more friends, (THANKS, READERS!) who live farther away, and don’t talk with me as much, will know too. I’ve mentioned that my rejections have been improving lately. Each nice rejection thrills and disappoints me. Here’s the June-mid-August tally: 30 […]
Please read the article above from writer friend and published author, Pamela Hobart Carter. She shares the ups and downs…but ultimately ups in this writing lifestyle we vulnerably wade through. She is an inspiration to me, and I hope she’ll become an inspiration to you.
Happy Sunday and Happy Writing (because at least you’re writing),
Celaine Charles, August 25, 2019
Live a Little, Write a Lot
Live a Little, Write a Lot! Story bits and poem parts bombard my thoughts on a regular basis…but only when I escape my writing desk and explore the world around, do they grow into full-fledged ideas. Part of my writing regime is getting out from behind the work and living. I used to believe I had to escape from life to write, an arduous task when I teach by day […]
Peering into Writer Friendships (Celebrating Poetry)
I tend to write alone, as most writers do. But, sometimes we need each other. Artists, Edgar Degas and Edouard Manet, were friends. Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso were also friends…encouraging and pushing each other along in their creative paths. Poets, Anne Sexton and Sylvia Plath were friends. Lord Byron and Mary Shelley were friends. J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S.Lewis? Friends. Celebrating friendship in the arts, especially the isolating art of […]
Color Guard Haiku
A short and sweet Sunday post today. Summer is that time of year where schedules get highjacked for either fun vacation-y reasons, or even lazy lounging ones. I am leaving on vacation in a few short days, but I also have some exciting news to share. Therefore, this post will be a little different than usual. Don’t worry, there is still some quick writing advice at the bottom. So, take […]
I Cannot Write Today
My mind wandered this morning, like an early summer sun leisurely seeks a cheek to warm; I cannot write today. I gave it my best effort, sitting down at my desk. A few lines for a poem emerged…then sank to the shaded parts of my creativity. I looked over a scene in my fiction novel, but the words blurred into nonsense. So, I made a cup of coffee, decaf, as […]
Writing & Chocolate Carrots
I have found chocolate. Chocolate for people, like me, who are allergic to everything. This new chocolate tastes more divine than the typical chocolate I’ve devoured in past years. And now it’s the carrot to my writing. I’ve dealt with autoimmune issues for the last five years. After giving up a majority of enjoyable foods, rediscovering chocolate has been an unexpected gift. Unbelievably, it’s helped my writing in all kinds […]
Writing Through the Heavy
https://stepsinbetween.com/2018/07/29/writers-in-training/ Above is a link to a THROW-BACK post from last July, Writers… in Training. It just seems to fit with my writing mood today. Sore, but in a good way. The enormous weight of writing (internally and externally) can be trying, but somehow pushing through brings hope. It must have something to do with the unpredictable balance of exercise, discipline, and life. Take a look at the post, then […]
Meandering Through my Muddled Writing Thoughts (read at your own risk)
As I near the end of my novel rewrite, filled with ravenous revisions, I find myself delirious, and so alliterations may absentmindedly find their way to the page. At the same time, I am wondering how much creativity and craft is possible to crunch into one’s mind. Deadlines at my doorstep demand my absolute attention. And as my heart is soaring with perseverance and dedication to complete my projects, I […]
Grumpy Writing
I’m in the heat of it now. The mantle-sludge of revisions sucking me closer to the core. Deadlines loom, clocks tick, and crankiness overwhelms. The excitement of publishing drives me onward, but not without the glumness of the work still needed. It could be the black hole of revision that pulls me in. I sometimes wonder if I revise a scene over and over until it’s back to its original […]
Ekphrastic at Easter
As inspiration stirred for this weekly post, my spirit also fell on the importance of Easter. I’m not going to discuss my personal ties to Christianity today, but suffice to know the layering of interpretations and meaningful significance in the two, for me, are great. Here’s the definition of ekphrastic from Poets.org: “Ekphrasis (also spelled “ecphrasis”) is a direct transcription from the Greek ek, “out of,” and phrasis, “speech” or “expression.” It’s […]
Writing Takes a Second Wind
Sometimes I come home from a long day at work d-r-a-g-g-i-n-g. I crawl up to my writing desk and pray for a spark of motivation to do my writing. But on other work days, just as long and grueling, I somehow catch a second wind. Those days take me by surprise, and always I am fortunate to accept and appreciate them. The commonality between both examples above? I put myself […]
Revel in Spring Writing
Spring’s relief; we can throw up our windows and sweep out the floors. In writing terms, we can clean out all those old projects and let the light touch them once again. I see it as a Revel, with fairies stirring up all kinds of dust, yet only reminding us of what we already have. * Enjoy these lovely fairy pictures from Cicely Mary Barker throughout my post today * […]
Sometimes Writing is an Aloe Vera Plant
I am beginning to learn even my multi-tasking mind has limits, or at least seasons. While in some seasons I carry out several great feats, in others, I slow down to refine only one. Writing projects are unfolding for me like this. And it feels good to acknowledge that it’s okay. Typically, I can focus on a multitude of projects at one time, nurturing them as I would each seed […]
Luck Finds Those Looking
Please follow this link: https://stepsinbetween.com/2018/03/18/a-little-luck-without-the-salt/ Happy St. Patrick’s Day! It’s a “Throw-Back ” Sunday for me for two reasons: 1) It’s my father’s and son’s birthday today (yes, on St. Patrick’s Day). A very festive time in our family. 2) My original post on the idea of luck (one year ago) is a dang good one. Rereading it, I realized that luck did, in fact, find me after focusing on Sadie Holloway’s […]
Docked in my Rewrite
Docked here in the middle of my novel rewrite, I’m reminded of a l-o-n-g boat ride up Washington’s Lake Roosevelt. My family often boated, but this trip from Fort Spokane to Grand Coulee was quite the adventure. I always enjoyed the anticipation of boating somewhere beautiful, taking in surprise vistas and stops along the way. On this particular trip we popped a tent and spent the night with family friends. […]
Messages Making Their Way – Keep Writing
Recurring messages have perfect timing. It may not feel like it when we’re flat on our faces, but they do know when to nudge. Growing up with parents who persevered to achieve everything their hearts desired, it’s probably in my bones not to give up. It’s the stubborn side of me that causes the long winding path that eventually gets me there. And, it’s hard work. And, it doesn’t always […]
Buttoning Up Another Year in Writing; in Life
The weather is surely cold outside. The end of December is hardly the time to put away the winter-wear. Although metaphorically it’s the perfect time. January, still winter, still cold, marks the beginning of a new year. A fresh start waiting to resurface the playing field. It’s an opportunity to begin again regardless of life’s happenings in the year before. I see it as a wool overcoat, houndstooth. With only […]
Humble Success & Gratitude
I’m coming to you at another unscheduled time (Saturday of all days) to report back good news: https://channillo.com/2018-channillo-awards/ Thanks to you, my amazing readers and followers, I have won in all three of my nominated categories at Channillo. My “Colors” poetry series has won BEST ONGOING SERIES, BEST NEW SERIES, and BEST POETRY SERIES. I couldn’t be more thrilled… yet at the same time, humbled and grateful for the growth I’ve […]
Holiday Hullabaloo: Life and Writing With the Magic of Threes
Living a simple, stress-free life is something I always strive for, though continually fail at… miserably. I read articles and buy into the latest organization techniques, but always end up where I began, frazzled and let-down. Then comes the holiday season, and my need for a perfect, memorable experience throws my inner longings for nostalgia and order into chaos. Toss in my discombobulated focus in writing time, I pretty much […]
Creativity and Age – Inspiration from Author, Priscilla Long
Inspiration rolls in waves at various times in a person’s life. But, is there a peak age inspiration strikes? Can you miss it? Author Priscilla Long doesn’t believe so. She gave a talk on aging and creativity at the Elliott Bay Bookstore in Seattle on Saturday, October 27, 2018. The event was in honor of the second edition release of her book, The Writer’s Portable Mentor (University of New Mexico […]
Halloween: A Scare Break from Real Life Writing
Halloween, early 1970’s, I was always a witch. My mask was made of plastic and attached with a long rubber string tied behind my head. Equally shiny with synthetic materials was my dress, not unlike the mask, tied behind my neck. The designs of the fabric simply printed on, to give the illusion of different fabrics and textures. Illusions. I’m wondering now if the illusions of fright during Halloween time […]
Growing Smaller: Write Through the Holes, Write Through the Homecomings
The day I dropped my first daughter off to college was the day I grew smaller. I used to be five feet-seven inches, quite an average height. Now in my forties, the doctors keep measuring me at just over five feet-six inches. Of course, they encouraged calcium supplements and I got serious about my Pilates classes (check out The Balanced Life, by Robin Long, contact below). But I know it’s […]
My Writer’s Mind Takes a Walk
I’ve discovered my writing mind is never still. It’s either that or the characters and topics I write about live three dimensionally in my head. It gets crowded, so we get out and take a lot of walks. Or at least, this is how if feels. I believe writers are undeniably always thinking. Our minds are on the go even sitting still behind a desk. This makes perfect sense. It’s […]
First October Sunday ~ Family & Poetry
The first Sunday of the month is where I highlight my poetry page: https://stepsinbetween.com/poetry/. Although the first Sunday in October fills me with family. I remember when my babies were little. The energy it took bundling them up with mittens and hats that always multiplied in those moments getting out the door. As each young one pulled off a fuzzy garment piece, one after another, I patiently (and sometimes impatiently) […]
Happy One Year Anniversary WRITERS!
Happy Anniversary! It’s been exactly one year since I began posting about my writing journey in this blog, Steps in Between. I have succeeded in some of my goals, reworked a few others, and still have a handful waiting for retrieval. But what I’m most excited about… YOU! Blessings are overflowing when I think of the writing community I’ve been fortunate enough to interact with. I’ve written before about the […]
Inspiration in Waves
Sometimes I feel at the will of my inspiration. Could it be that this abstract part of me is more in control than originally thought? It’s my creative side that links itself to motivation. It’s my motivation that gets things done. But it’s the reality of those finished works (and sometimes unfinished) that seem to define me. Or do they? I think, in all honestly, I allow myself to be […]
Pockets of Time to Write
Time – I have written so many posts on time. It must be something I’m dealing with on various levels. According to the Internet a ridiculous number of people are stressed about not having enough time. There are numerous articles about the topic, and a hundred different lists of what to do about it. Just google it. But how do I define time for my writing? We all need to […]
Elusive Writing Time: 3 Steps to Manage the Beast
Time is elusive. It doesn’t matter that there is sixty seconds in every minute, or sixty minutes in every hour, or twenty-four hours in every day… I could go on to weeks and months and years, and so on. Time is measurable until it gets to the value of time, hence how we spend the time we’re gifted. This is how something perfectly calculable becomes ambiguous. And when it comes […]
A Writing Recipe Via Food Network TV
Summer Saturday mornings are meant for lazing in bed. Perfection would dictate my husband brings me coffee… but life isn’t always perfect. On a recent Saturday morning, I abandoned my usual write-in-bed routine and turned on the television. After Food Network shows repeated every thirty minutes, drawing me in for longer than intended, I started wondering about recipes for writing. Many authors swear by handed-down rules for writing, such as […]
Write Every Day ~ By Guest, Pamela Hobart Carter
I am proud to introduce my amazing writer-friend, Pamela Hobart Carter, as my guest-blogger today. She has written a witty and thoughtful article about “writing every day.” Please read, like, and share her work. Links to her websites and writing work are at the bottom. As always, I appreciate your follower-support. ~ Celaine 🙂 ***Thank you, Pamela, for your help while I take a much needed vacation. I will see […]
Happy First’s ~ August is Six Months ~ Poetry
Happy First’s ~ August is Six Months of Wednesday Whims of Poetry! It’s my six-month anniversary of “Poetry-First’s,” meaning six months ago I began dedicating the first Sunday of every month to my poetry page at this same Steps in Between site. The page is entitled, Wednesday Whims of Poetry. Since I don’t post each poem as an official blog-post, then once a month I like to pull your attention […]
Steps In Between 