Writer's Circle

the viscount's prize

2010-08-14T17:45:00.000-07:00

Frederique’s gaze slid past the queen as he knelt. His heart lightened when he recognized one of the queen’s maidens. “Elisabeth.” The name slipped past his lips in a soundless whisper. Shock reverberated through his body as she drifted into court a few steps behind her majesty.

His attention wandered to the other women in the royal procession and his heart nearly stopped when he saw the last woman in line. Dressed in silver, her hair was swept up into a loose pile of curls atop her head. Powdered to perfection, it had a pale glow to it. Her clear, stunning blue eyes swept the room with curiosity and a touch of anger. Artfully applied cosmetics highlighted her high cheekbones and small nose. Her red lips were tilted in a smile that did not reach her eyes. A small black mole decorated her upper lip in the fashion of the times. A fan hung from her hand, and the ruffles along the edges of her skirts fluttered like butterfly wings with each step. Her breasts seemed near to bursting out of the lace of her bodice. Ribbons and bows cascaded over the gown in simple splendor compared to the queen’s lavish bejeweled gown.

His body tightened as she bowed before the king and her full breasts pushed against the confines of her bodice. The king’s expression bore no hint of lust. Indeed, the king barely acknowledged her before turning to assist his wife into her seat. With the queen settled next to him, he motioned to the fair haired beauty standing a few steps beyond the dais.

A new beginning

2010-06-21T18:07:00.000-07:00

As a writer one of the things that I have learned is that there is nothing more valuable to me than the tips and help of my editors. Things I've missed or would be confusing are often times, for me, the hardest to spot. Why?

Because as I'm reading and editing I can and will miss things. Is it on purpose, by no means. No matter what you write, or don't write, the brain will see what you want it to. When writing a sentence do I spot the error when I'm going through it? Not always. Is it because I believe my writing is beyond error? Not a hope in Hades, on the contrary I do not for a moment beleive that I'm an expert...but I do know that what my eyes see is not always what my brains processes.

So, in the hopes of helping writers who are starting out, I'm going to be doing a weekly topic on editing and spotting those errors that we can or have missed. Each week I'll discuss different aspects of writing, editing, and submitting to a publisher.

If anyone would like to suggest a topic, by all means, please feel free to post a comment and I'll do my best to address it.

Dealing with Frustration

2010-06-13T21:06:00.000-07:00

As a writer there are a great many things I do that provide joy...and just as many that are wells of frustration and angst.

Of course part of it is learning experiences. To develop as a writer one must have skills, and be willing to polish them. Does this mean that you tke advantage of everyone around you who asks to read your stuff? No. It means that you offer advice and take it with a grain of salt.

Speaking from experience however, having family/friends read my stuff is worse than strangers. They already have a preconcieved notion of who and what I am and write. Do I always make their predictions? No and there in lies the frustration.

To deal with it I've found its easiest to just keep writing. Disregard those things that aggravate me or find many ways around them and keep soldiering on. Everyone has their own means of dealing - and what may work for me may not for thenext writer.

Until then, happy writing.