humorous2heinous

Writing a book - that's tough. Finding a literary agent to represent you - that often feels a whole lot harder. The traditional method for finding an agent at least had the advantage of simplicity....

I see a lot of non-fiction book proposals that are based on wishful thinking about whether the project is publishable. If writers asked some basic questions before beginning the process, they would...

As an agent, I get a lot of fiction submissions. Usually I can tell if I don't like them by the end of the first page. Sometimes by the end of the first paragraph. I'm a little embarrassed to make ...

I teach a class on finding and working with agents. A lot of prospective authors who attend the class are a little intimidated by the process and need to know the basics of agent research. S...

As I ramp up towards submission time for some of my stories, I've been pouring over page after page of submission guidelines for many, many magazines.  I've made lists of mags that sound like ones ...

My 10 year old daughter's drawings

1. If the Kardashians or Honey Boo Boo's clan had British accents would everything they said make them sound like Mensa members (the high IQ society) to our ears?2. Has anyone ever really been beat...

Ridiculous, over-the-top personas are entertaining to a large number of people. That's the big secret behind all reality characters fame and fortune. I don't have any illuminati secrets...

Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instruments series, currently on its 5th book City of Lost Souls (2012, Margaret K. McElderry),  is such a strange series. And, it's especially odd that I can&#...

Rapid heartbeat, can't breathe, nausea, vomiting, sweating, light-headed, arms tingling, and entire body shaking. Oh shit! What is this?! Sitting up in bed I grab my laptop. Google all of the...

RANDOM PICTURE DAY! A RANDOM WTF PICTURE FOR THE HELL OF IT ~ Giant cat couch…I'm more of a dog person, but yes please!

If you are having a bad day then you should probably look at this post.

In the last 2 1/2 years there have been nine deaths in my family. The most recent-my own mother. Two weeks ago at 6:45 am my father, through tears I've never seen him shed before, said ...

They're walking all over my house like they own it, and I've about had it! The worst part is I've caught them in my bedroom going through my private things, and damn near taking o...