Toward the end of last year, I was reading Roni Loren’s review of the book Deep Work by Cal Newport and one line really stuck with me.

Our subconscious mind works out answers to things when we’re bored or doing something relaxing.

I was crazy-busy at the time, so I didn’t pay much attention to the words simmering in the melting pot, but something else I read before the new year (I don’t remember what) prompted me to go back … Read More »

I’ve been asked a few times about my “story sheet”, so I thought I’d write up a blog post I can link to when I mention it in passing and somebody asks what I’m talking about. It’s only one piece of paper, but it’s my everything. I don’t seem capable of writing a book without it. And no matter how much I try, I can’t do it digitally. It has to be paper.

I write out of order. Like … Read More »

On Tuesday, I blogged about the question, what are edits like?. Today, I have a related topic, but this one’s far more opinion-based. (As in, this is what I think, but you can and should do whatever you want because what the hell do I know?)

I received an email from a friend wanting to know the real title of Title B (see Tuesday’s blog post via the above link if you haven’t already read it) (and, no, I’m … Read More »

Having just finished edits on Yours By Design Yours To Keep, I was asked a question I’ve been asked before, usually by aspiring authors or new authors stalking their inboxes, waiting for their first round of edits. What are edits like? I’ve seen others answer the same question and the answers are often similar in vague, possibly frustrating ways. It varies by author. It varies by editor. Both true but, more importantly, it varies by book.

Angela James… Read More »

(If you’re my editor, you might want to look away.)

I’m currently doing edits for my June Carina Press release, Exclusively Yours. (I hope to have a blurb soon so I can make a page for it.) So, while I’ve talked about it before, what better time to talk about the editing process than while you’re in the editing process?

The one thing I figured out early on is that, no matter how insecure you consciously feel, every writer … Read More »