Laura Langston's Blog, page 32

Seeding Heavy

I usually plant heavy and I tend to write long. That means my garden overflows even after I thin and prune. And it means my novels sometimes get a little out of control before I revise them down to an acceptable length.

I can plant sparsely. I’ve done it plenty of times. I can write lean prose too. I do it when I produce novella length books for reluctant readers (watch for In Plain Sight coming in 2017).

Gardens and books start with seeds – the seed of an idea or the seed of a tomato – and i...

A Matter of Perception

Writers love getting their books reviewed. You hear that all the time, and it’s true. We do. But every once in a while, a review comes along that makes me wonder if I’ve stepped into the Twilight Zone. Or if the reader has. Those reviews inevitably reference something – it could be a person, place or a plot point – that never happened in the book I wrote. And yet there are always just enough references to make it clear that the reviewer read my book and wants to share their views. Unfortunate...

Eclipse Season

Depending on where you live (and how early you rise) you may have gotten a glimpse of this morning’s lunar eclipse. It was visible in much of North and South America, as well as Asia, Australia and the Artic.

As you may know, eclipses always come in pairs. This morning’s lunar eclipse finishes the cycle which started with a solar eclipse two weeks ago, on March 8th. People who love astronomy (and astrology too) refer to this time of year as eclipse season because the alignments that cause the...

Digging for Facts

I spent the better part of the last few weeks digging for a few key pieces of information I needed in order to finish my latest novel, In Plain Sight.

When I’m conceptualizing a book, I don’t think about the challenges I’ll face writing it. I think about the kind of story I want to tell and the best way to tell it. I think about my character, their story goal, and their character arc. I consider secondary characters too, and turning points and rising stakes and setting. I also think about set...

My March Reads

The daffodils are blooming, and so are the flowering cherry and plum trees. It’s time to clean up the greenhouse, thin the plants in the pond and dust off the patio furniture. It might be a little premature for the furniture but spring is definitely here so my thoughts are naturally turning to outside activities. However, before I can get out there, I need to ready my taxes for the accountant. Every year, I vow to tackle all the paperwork in January and every year it’s March before I do. Luck...

And Now for Something a Little Different

I’m deep into revisions on In Plain Sight and I have two more manuscripts waiting, waiting, IMPATIENTLY waiting for their turn to be polished and cleaned. So this week, I’d like to suggest you pop on over to Adriyanna Zimmermann’s blog where she posts author interviews and reviews. She interviewed me about The Art of Getting Stared At and followed that with a lovely review. I hope you like it as much as I did!

https://lifewritingsofareader.wordpress.com/2016/03/01/review-interview-the-art-of-...

Library Love Affair

Anyone who reads my blog on a regular basis probably knows how much I love libraries. When I was a child, I learned to read and write because I wanted a library card. Back then, going to the library and wandering the stacks of books was one of my favorite things to do. When I became a writer, libraries (and the invaluable librarians who work there) took on added importance. As well as being a place of escape, I began to rely on the library for much of my research. I still do to some extent to...

Stepping Out

Yesterday was the official release day for Stepping Out, my latest title in the Orca Limelights series. You should be able to find it at your favorite independent bookstore or an online retailer, if that’s your preference. And while February 16th was the actual day it went on sale, I tend to feel more celebratory when the book is officially launched, which usually happens in the company of other writers several months after it goes on sale (I’ll put a note here when that date is set).

Meanwhi...

My February Reads

The seed catalogues are arriving and so are the seeds! We’re trying some new things this year – pepper varieties generally only found in Mexico, a few Mexican herbs, and some new (to us) tomato varieties too. And that’s only what we’ve ordered so far. There will be more. I love the promise of this time of year. There’s anticipation but not much hard work. Although the greenhouse is an absolute horror show and it’ll require some cleaning and prepping before it’s ready for seed flats. For now,...

Million Dollar Blues

Here’s an interesting bit of trivia. On this date back in 1690, the first piece of paper money was issued by the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the United States.

Life would never be the same again.

I’m thinking about money quite a bit these days because I’m working on Million Dollar Blues. It’s a women’s fiction novel about a contested lottery win and the impact it has on the lives and loves of three different women. I’ll be self-publishing it under my Laura Tobias name but first I have to get...