Lots of readers and writers ask what if the well runs dry? The well, meaning the creative fount from whence flows stories and all other manner of inspiration. It has never been the right question for me. The well, the source of story ideas, the movies in my head, the idea nuggets, the oh-shit-think-about-thi­s flashes … Continue reading WHEN THE WELL RUNS DRY

TODAY'S GUEST BLOG IS BY SUSAN WINGATE. Susan is the Pacific Northwest award winning author of Drowning, and the Bobby's Diner series. Susan Writes: In Fantasy: Writing alone = HeavenIn Reality: Writing alone = Heaven In Fantasy: Being alone = HeavenIn Reality: Being alone = Loneliness For years I've told people how much I love … Continue reading SPENDING TIME WRITING, SPENDING TIME ALONE

Before reading on, be sure to stop in again on October 6th for award winning author Susan Wingate's guest blog. Here's Bob's news: Life is a constant process of reinventing oneself, or at least replenishing and repairing oneself. Last winter in Southern Idaho was a roller coaster ride, with periods of nice weather and then … Continue reading WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING & WHAT’S TO COME

OK, I'm trying to double my mileage again. Below is another re-posting of some comments made on the Odyssey alumni blog spot. This was in response to a question on how one selects POV for a story. Here's a slightly edited version of what I had to say: I'm sure this is an iconoclastic opinion, … Continue reading DO YOU SEE WHAT I SEE — POINT OF VIEW

Recently the Odyssey blog site took up the topic of story setting, asking how graduates of the Odyssey workshop develop their story settings. Do the settings exist fully developed in our minds eye? Do we have some system of working out settings, like drawing maps or using other resources (emphasis here was on speculative fiction, … Continue reading ALL THOSE PICTURES IN MY HEAD

I wish I could say that I was a perfectly disciplined writer. That I adhere to a firm writing schedule every day. That I track my output and regularly submit everything. I’d be lying if I said those things without qualification. For me, “writing regularly” still means many spurts of writing throughout the year. The … Continue reading WORKSHOP ‘TIL YOU DROP?

I can’t imagine a writer emerging from someone who doesn’t read. Sure, there are movies, TV, books-on-tape, and even plays. But I think “something” is lost if the work is not assimilated by reading the written word-- if you don’t see sentence, paragraph, and story structure and punctuation on the printed page. It’s something like … Continue reading LEARNING TO READ TO LEARN TO WRITE

You can see it has been a while since my last post. It's probably worth a comment on that. My perspective on blogging is a little schizoid. It falls somewhere between viewing blogging as a disease that I take precautions against catching, and viewing blogging as the biggest cheap rush an opinionated retired guy has … Continue reading BLOGOMANIA VS. BLOGOPHOBIA

I’m an old retired fart, and I’ve found that the more I learn, the less I know. I like writing about my expanding ignorance, and can’t help wondering if it’s just me or something taking over the entire universe. I live off the beaten track in an agricultural halfway-between-too-big­-and-too-small town where most of the locals … Continue reading WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW?

In keeping with the maritime metaphor (at least for a sentence or two), getting serious about my writing has also involved a lot of mental, emotional and organizational clearing of the decks. I knew when I retired two years ago that I would have to transition to writing gradually. Mostly because the profession I retired … Continue reading CLEARING THE DECKS