I have always loved getting together with fellow writers and avid readers. I can almost always guarantee there will be an absence of small talk and chit chat. Authors and writers tend to think deeply, to converse engagingly, and to entertain interesting and unique perspectives. Nothing bores me more than mindless cocktail conversation (except ad-filled …
The ultimate review …
As the author of three historical novels, I’m always eager to know what readers think. I (like all writers) wait breathlessly for reviews. Now, however, I have received the ultimate review. I recently reconnected with a friend I had known when I was a teenager. Our fathers had worked together, and she and I graduated from the …
The unexpected fact checker …
While I was working on my latest novel, one set in the the Virginia Highlands—a mountainous region with soaring views and deep restful valleys—I had an unexpected fact checker. I had written in a late spring storm. As an earnest novelist, I am always cognizant of "verisimilitude"—the requirement that demands that everything in a book …
Readers are different …
A month or so ago, I published my third novel. As always , I did so with great trepidation and hope! Living with a novel for weeks, months, years provides an author with a deep and penetrating knowledge of the characters and their lives. In one respect, authors come to know them so well that …
The landing gear is down …
The hardest thing about writing a novel isn't the writing. It isn't even the editing. It's certainly not finding a suitable cover (that's fun!) The hardest part—undoubtedly—is letting it go and sending it out for the public to read. And that is just where I'm poised right now. I've been flying with and around this …
What a chapbook reveals ….
Some time ago, I pulled together a chapbook for a literary contest. A chapbook—I had to look it up myself—is a compilation of various kinds of writing with a coordinating theme that runs throughout. I had no hope of winning because I am a writer not drawn to many of the currently popular subjects, but …
The pause that refreshes …
I've thought a lot about the creative process and I have often likened it to an artesian well. For those non-geologists, an artesian well is a natural well that bubbles up out of the ground under its own pressure. It is usually free flowing and often overflowing. Sounds like the creative process, doesn't it? Unlike …
The modern writers’ shifting sands …
There was a time when writing a novel was a singular task. Writers like Charles Dickens or Mark Twain took up their writing instruments and wrote on paper. Dickens always used blue ink and couldn't start a novel until he had decided on the title. [That's another fun post coming.] They would then turn their …
Finding your voice as a writer …
Any accomplished singer will tell you that a voice over time matures, blossoms, and eventually settles into a distinct and recognizable vocal signature unique to an individual. In the art world, this principle is even easier to understand when one examines the early works of a famous artist and compares that body of work to …
As easy as spilling paint …
Writing is a craft. Editing is a craft. And the two are inextricably entwined. One needs the other. Without writers, editors would be unnecessary. Without editors, writers would be, well, lesser writers. The trick comes in the balance and knowing how editors help—and when they can hurt. Years ago, when I was a young and …
Every writer’s necessary partners …
Writing a book—as so many authors from Hemingway to Twain have declared—is a solitary profession. It requires long hours of solitude and quiet contemplation. Sometimes it's lonely. But for a book to really shine—especially in today's competitive marketplace—it eventually requires the aid of others. Editors and graphic designers are at the top of that list. …
A chill in the air ….
It's only hours before Christmas celebrations commence. Outside the wind is howling and the air is frigid, but the sun is shining. It feels like Christmas. An occasional burst of snow blows by, and all the trees brittled by ice are bending and swaying. It is the kind of day that inspires writers. Yesterday, as …
Books every serious writer should read …. and study
I just finished reading Daniel James Brown’s bestselling book The Boys in the Boat. I know I’ve read a really, really good book when there’s a kind of sadness when I get to the final page, and I close the book in awe of the writer’s ability to tell the story. I’ve long said that a book …
Continue reading Books every serious writer should read …. and study
The verdict is in …
I love using beta readers as I’m working on a book. They are so helpful, especially to counteract the very real tunnel vision that writers get when they’ve looked at a manuscript—stared at it incessantly—for months and months and months. This time around, I had several beta readers who were quite helpful. But the chief …
That ONE book …
Anyone who has read about the writing life of C.S. Lewis has, no doubt, come across his references to George MacDonald’s Phantastes. The book inspired Lewis like none other. He writes about how MacDonald's book opened his mind to the world of imagination, which he eventually came to understand was God-given and incredibly freeing. Recently—out of curiosity—I ordered …
When reviewers get it wrong …
I love reviews of my books. The good reviews are affirming. They tell me I've done something right and that a reader has enjoyed my books. Positive feedback is the ultimate prize for a writer. I deeply appreciate every reader who takes the time to write a review. But I also appreciate the not-so-good reviews …
A Thoreau moment …
I don't know about the rest of you, but I am tired of sitting at a computer screen, "talking" or "meeting" with friends and colleagues and "seeing" them in one dimension. Very, very tired. Recently, I had two back-to-back Zoom meetings totally 3 1/2 hours. (Zooming persists even in our somewhat post-COVID world because of its …
Writers and earbuds …
I've spent a lot of time walking on a track near my house this summer. It's been lovely to get out and move. Often I pass other walkers—and more times than not, they have earbuds stuck in their ears with heads down, ignoring everything going on around them. In fact, everywhere I go these days, …
And here it is …
For more than a decade I've tinkered with a book. The title has changed. The main characters' names have changed. The plot has changed. But finally, it is finished. Now, at long last, I've published it. And here it is ... FLEURINGALA, a novel that opens in Southwestern Virginia on the cusp of 1940, is …
Deadlines wooshing by …
As an writer, I'm accustomed to deadlines. They are a necessary evil of the publishing business. Usually, I'm fine with deadlines. Actually, I appreciate them. Deadlines help me manage my time and keep me on track. Writing a book is an exercise in determination and patience. To do it right, a writer must allow sufficient …
So I obsess …
Finishing a novel is a challenging task, one I've undertaken during the months of our corporate COVID-19 shutdown. My newest novel, Fleuringala, is now in the hands of my very able graphic designer Stephanie Pierce. She has designed a beautiful cover and, as I write this, she is formatting the interior for me. Writing a …
“Stop. Let me catch up!”
As a child I had a little red tricycle. I loved it. I rode around and around the cup-de-sac on the hilltop where I lived. I tried as hard as I could to keep up with the bigger kids, all on bicycles, but I never could. I remember yelling to them, "Stop. Let me catch …
When I wanted to be famous …
Life has a marvelous way of training one to live. As the years sift through the proverbial hourglass, we sometimes forget that the pile of sand below the narrow neck grows—and the sand above diminishes. I find that interesting. Thought-provoking. What can that mean? I hope it means that each grain of sand is a …
M.K.B. Graham 