Terry Shames's Blog: 7 Criminal Minds, page 30

Of Murder and Morals

 Q: Do you often/sometimes weave a moral message into your writing, or do you think that's awful, and something that should never be attempted? Can you recommend good examples of books that do one or the other?  

-from Susan 

 

“Moral” – (adjective) concerned with the principles of right and wrong behavior

 

Well, implicitly, doesn’t that insinuate itself into a crime story? After all, we’re following actions that demonstrate right or wrong behavior and as writers we invite readers to make emotional ...

A hobby for a hobby - by Harini Nagendra

This week's question is about Hobbies.

Hobbies - some people garden, others work on jigsaw puzzles, cartoon, or play music. What's your creative outlet when you're not writing? 

Writing is my hobby, and my creative outlet - so this is a bit of a meta-question. I've always written - or almost always, I think I started writing tiny stories when I was about six. Writing - essays, 'made-up' stories, limericks and the like - has been my go-to creative outlet from the start. I like to say that my fictio...

LOTS of Photos from James W. Ziskin

Hobbies - some people garden, others work on jigsaw puzzles, cartoon, or play music. What's your creative outlet when you're not writing? 

At first glance, this week’s topic seems light and easy. And yet…

It’s made me realize how boring I am. But rather than hobbies, let’s call them “other interests.” That sounds more substantial.

I used to have more outside interests. In my twenties, I loved cinema, especially foreign and art films. Not anymore. I haven’t seen a new movie in a long time. Like my d...

Kicking Back

Hobbies - some people garden, others work on jigsaw puzzles, cartoon, or play music. What's your creative outlet when you're not writing? 

by Dietrich

My pastimes lean to the creative, and I think of them as passions, while hobbies are more relaxed than intense, like gardening, cooking and going for long walks. I like to pick up my guitar and tend to play songs with roots in the blues. There have been several guitars since I was in my early teens, but I never had what it took to really make any...

Spare Time?

 

Terry here, and this week we are talking about our hobbies – no, not the “hobby” of writing novels, but creative outlets other than writing. 
Some people garden, others work on jigsaw puzzles, cartoon, or play music. I do most of those things, except cartooning. Wouldn't even know where to begin. I also don't actually do "gardening," because I don’t have a garden. But I attempt to green my environment with lots of potted plants, which take their own bit of care. 
 I used to sing, and belonging ...

How My Crazy Brain and a Terrier Dictate my Workflow, by Josh Stallings

Q: A writer's job involves a lot of sitting - scribbling in a notepad, or hunched over in a chair, typing. Do you have a daily exercise routine? What advice would you offer to other writers, to keep themselves fit and healthy over the longer term?

A Case Study.

2:41 AM PST. My brain alerts my central nervous system, "WAKE UP. I have pages for the new novel. I need the fingers to type them. WAKE UP. I have the essay for Criminal Minds. It starts with “CASE STUDY” and a screen grab of the time.” ...

Just Six Things, by Catriona

A writer’s jobinvolves a lot of sitting - scribbling in a notepad, or hunched over in achair, typing. Do you have a daily exercise routine? What advice would youoffer to other writers, to keep themselves fit and healthy over the longerterm?

Great question! I quite like exercise and I really like routines so I'm feeling smug as I embark on the answer. (If the question had been "A writer's job involves a lot of biscuits (US cookies) ... What advice would you offer to other writers to help them ...

Bump, set, spike, write! by Eric Beetner

 A writer's job involves a lot of sitting - scribbling in a notepad, or hunched over in a chair, typing. Do you have a daily exercise routine? What advice would you offer to other writers, to keep themselves fit and healthy over the longer term?

I was an indoor kid. All of my interests - movies, TV, music, books - took place inside, and usually in the dark. I've never been much of a sportsball type. I always enjoyed being active when I did it, but I never joined any teams and I never took up any ...

Pay Yourself First by Gabriel Valjan

 

Pay Yourself First

 

A writer’s jobinvolves a lot of sitting - scribbling in a notepad, or hunched over in achair, typing. Do you have a daily exercise routine? What advice would youoffer to other writers, to keep themselves fit and healthy over the longerterm?

 

I thought of the myth of Antaeus, the wrestler in Ovid’s Metamorphoses, when I read thisquestion. Antaeus remained undefeated, so long as he touched the ground.Readers learned that he drew his strength from...

The Lazy Writer's Advice

 Q: A writer's job involves a lot of sitting - scribbling in a notepad, or hunched over in a chair, typing. Do you have a daily exercise routine? What advice would you offer to other writers, to keep themselves fit and healthy over the longer term? 

 

-from Susan

 

I have a daily exercise routine in my head, which does not mean that I perform a daily exercise routine. So, my advice falls under the heading of Do What I Say, Not What I Do. Which is not to say I don’t do anything, just that the ideal o...