Sue Bradford Edwards's Blog, page 141
May 26, 2020
Breaking 3 Writing Rules
Yesterday @JoshuaIsard tweeted an Orwell quote. “Never use a long word where a short one will do.” Contrary-bear that I am, I immediately thought of an exception. But that doesn’t mean that we should ignore writing rules. Oft repeated rules are oft repeated for a reason. Breaking them can be done but can be hard […]
May 25, 2020
Three Reasons I Quit Reading
One of the reasons that I love using the library is that when I decide not to finish a book, it is a guilt free decision. This is especially true when it is an ebook. Click to check it out. Listen or read for a short time. Click to return. Am I sure I want […]
May 24, 2020
Memorial Day
I hope you are taking some time to recharge and recenter yourself today. Most Memorial Day weekends, my family spends the weekend in the country. We roam forests, fields and gravel roads. We stare into the open blue sky. We remind ourselves that in addition to fighting for the Flag and Freedom, our veterans were […]
May 21, 2020
Four Tips to Help You Take Action Now
When I have a deadline, I work toward it. I meet it. And then I find myself drifting around the house, cleaning floors, dusting and baking. My family really appreciates the baking. With my last deadline on the near horizon, I’ve been contemplating what I can do to get my writing-life in gear. Monday I […]
May 20, 2020
3 Big Picture Things to Look for in Your Fiction
Like many of you, I’ve been reading quite a bit lately, as in even more than usual. Some things I’ve really enjoyed including All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely, The Golden Thread by Kassia St. Clair, The Long Call by Ann Cleaves, and The Other People by C. J. Tudor. Some things I’ve found […]
May 19, 2020
3 Things to Remember When Working on a Rewrite
Last Friday I got the coronavirus manuscript back from my editor. I quickly looked at the comments. There were 100 so I couldn’t read them closely but I wanted to let her know if I had any big questions or concerns. After I e-mailed her back, I walked away. And that’s my first piece of […]
May 18, 2020
How to End Your Picture Book
Last week, I read Dibs! by Laura Gehl. In this story, Julian has to learn to deal with being a big brother. He tries to do this by calling dibs on various things. Because we need a plot, obviously this does not work. I’m not going to review the book here. You can click through using the […]
May 17, 2020
Give Yourself a Break
The other day a friend commented that she was having to force herself to read her current book. But it wasn’t for a class or bookclub. It wasn’t for research/ It was something she was reading for fun. Really? It didn’t sound like fun. My advice? Back away from the book and give yourself a […]
May 14, 2020
The Three Dangers of Making Assumptions
The other night I was listening to the Fiber Nation podcast. As they discussed textile history (yes, that’s a thing), they got around to the manufacture of the first US space suits which were assembled by the seamstresses at Playtex. What?! I paused the recording and found my husband… “Yeah, I knew that. We saw […]
May 13, 2020
4 Things You Need to Know to Write Picture Books
This week, I’m revisiting a picture book manuscript. Considering the fact that the last manuscript I finished was nonfiction for teens and tweens and this is a fictional picture book, that’s a big jump. So I’ve been looking for ways to refresh my picture book savvy. Thankfully I found a series of video lectures by […]
