Emily H. Bates's Blog, page 14
March 4, 2015
Driving for inspiration with RC Hancock
Today, you get an introduction to my first guest blogger and one of my fabulous author friends: RC Hancock, author of An Uncommon Blue. I got my hands on a copy of his book a week before my editing deadline for Demon’s Heart hit, and I made the mistake of reading the first page . . . and the next page . . . and the next page . . . and suddenly I had read the entire thing instead of working on my edits. You can learn more about Hancock and his insanely addictive novel on his website or his Fac...
March 2, 2015
Give me your three words!
I went to the dentist today.
And then I took Scout to the doctor for her shots.
I’m tired.
So today’s writing challenge is a simple one, and I’d love to see some of your responses in the comments section:
***
In three words, express a prominent theme in your novel.
***
See? So simple that I can even manage it in my current state of mind.
For my current project: potentially moral lies.
For Demon’s Heart: internalizing external perceptions.
What are your three words?
PS Be excited for Wednesda...
February 23, 2015
Wherein coloring M.O. predicts the future
Every Sunday, I spend an hour and a half with five three-year-olds at church. It’s an adventure, let me tell you. I’ve listened in on a lot of jabbering conversations about camping, marshmallows, death (I can’t believe how many discussions they’ve started about death), and the correct way to color.
Yesterday, as I was watching them color a page about the Holy Ghost, I noticed how different their coloring methods are. One scribbles over the entire page with several different colors. Another co...
February 21, 2015
Shaking the Slump
As a writer, it’s absurdly easy to go from feeling like you’re writing the next bestseller to feeling like you’re writing something not fit even for rats to consume. Here are a few suggestions to shake yourself out of that writer’s slump:
Get feedback from your mom. Or your best friend, or your significant other, or anyone who is obligated to love whatever you write. Even if it’s someone you normally trust to give an honest critique, tell them straight out that you need a shameless ego boost...February 19, 2015
Winding up for the pitch
Pitches are baffling to me. Or rather, the construction of pitches. Sure, there are formulas all over the Internet on how to craft the perfect pitch, but I think I’ve made clear how much stock I put in those hard-and-fast writing rules. Although I did come up with a pitch forDemon’s Heart, I have far less practice writing pitches than I do writing novels, so creating the perfect pitch seems to me like trying to catch a fly with your bare hands, except that once you start trying you realize th...
February 16, 2015
Irrational Fears
Do you know how many times you press the Ctrl key on your keyboard in a day? I never thought about it . . . until mine stopped working. You know, right after I had replaced my power cord. Sheesh. But now I have a fabulous new wireless keyboard and mouse, and I’m wondering why on earth I’ve been using that stupid little touch pad for my mouse all these years. This is amazing!
With all these little wonky things going wrong with my computer, I’ve been growing insanely paranoid about losing all t...
