Tag Archives: historical fiction

The Next Big Thing

Posted on January 17, 2013 by

Two dear blogging friends, Jo Eberhardt at The Happy Logophile and Anthony Lee Collins at U-town, tagged me for The Next Big Thing. I am excited to report that answering these questions shifted my brain back into novel-writing gear. (It has been … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Plot, Writing | Tagged , , , | 15 Comments

Revisions: One Year Later

Posted on November 29, 2012 by

Around this time last year, I went to my novel critique group and listened to my peers talk about the first draft of Lost Notes, my 19th century historical novel. This is what I wrote about the results of that process: … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Revision, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 31 Comments

Novel Research: The Art of Bobbin Lace

Posted on June 18, 2012 by

Lace, specifically bobbin lace, has become an important part of Lost Notes, my 19th century epic novel. It showed up in the background of the first draft, but now, in the second draft, I’m weaving bobbin lace into my plot. Reading … Continue reading →

Posted in Community, Fiction, Research, Writing | Tagged , , , | 17 Comments

Studying Point of View Through Revising Chapter 2

Posted on March 19, 2012 by

I’ve been playing around with the second chapter of my historical novel for a few months now. Yes, I said months. I’m working with the same old plot points, but I’m trying to tell the story in different ways. Ultimately … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Revision, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 16 Comments

Ahh, Revision

Posted on November 28, 2011 by

Last November, when I started this blog, I was obsessed with revision. After all, I had spent the past few years hammering out drafts of BODY COPY, my literary small-town newspaper novel. I hadn’t started a new first draft of … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Revision, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Back to the Beginning–Again

Posted on November 21, 2011 by

I came away from Monday’s critique equipped with thoughtful overview letters, manuscript line edits and 10 single-spaced pages of notes from our several-hour discussion.  And now I’m digging into all this rich, fertile soil, not sure whether to plant or … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Revision, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 17 Comments

David Mitchell and Inventing ‘Inaccurate But Plausible’ Dialogue

Posted on September 28, 2011 by

Reading “The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet” was another amazing moment in my education about what historical fiction can be. My first watershed moment occurred earlier this year, when I read “Signal & Noise” by John Griesemer. I devoured … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Fiction, Reading, Writing | Tagged , , , | 18 Comments

Hitting the Send Button

Posted on September 14, 2011 by

I just submitted the first 85,000 words of my novel, LOST NOTES, to my trusty critique group. Now the waiting begins–two months’ worth, in this case. We’ll meet in mid-November for my critique. In the meantime, I’ll be working on … Continue reading →

Posted in Plot, Revision, Writing | Tagged , , | 32 Comments

Author Interview: Lisa Rivero on her real-life title character, writing middle-grade historical fiction and indie publishing

Posted on September 12, 2011 by

From its opening scene, on a hot South Dakota day in July 1904, Lisa Rivero’s new middle-grade novel captures the imagination of its readers with a lively protagonist, authentic historical details and the stark realities of homesteading. OSCAR’S GIFT: PLANTING … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Research, Seven Questions, Writing | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Author Interview: Faith Elizabeth Hough on Literary Historical Fiction, Avoiding the Info Dump and the Art of the Outline

Posted on July 18, 2011 by

It’s such a treat to interview Faith Elizabeth Hough today as part of the Seven Questions series. She writes literary historical fiction for children and young adults. Faith, a Connecticut resident, is the author of THE WITHERING VINE, which earned an honorable … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Research, Seven Questions, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 11 Comments