Writers know all about alter egos. They usually have many. They have to. The good, the bad, the ugly, and all the squishy parts in between those familiar identifications. If we can't look deep inside ourselves to find the essence of many characters, we often manage to make them cliché. Of course we hope…

    King and Maxwell is entertaining, laying the groundwork for the continuation of this series. I like it. Good chemistry between the actors Jon Tenney (playing Sean King) and Rebecca Romjin (playing Michelle Maxwell), not bad writing which I think will improve as more history is laid down for the characters. Anyone else watching…

      Either you are or you aren't. A writer. Creative or otherwise. Yes or no. Enough of the foolish declarations and self-doubts, false humility, fearful murmurings of how you can't really call yourself a writer. Enough! Pick one: writer or not. Being "published" does not define you. It no more makes you a…

                                 The relative definitions of "right" and "wrong" from those who choose not to believe in a deity or choose to define creator as superior-intellectual aliens or as some abstract fluid and distant entity far removed from everyday life, naturally recoil at the biblical references to sin. Sin is a dirty word. Personal.…

  Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.   Hebrews 13:7-8 (NIV)

                                James Scott Bell is the king of lawyer snark. He writes fascinating stories that feature attorneys with serious flaws. Imagine that, you say, an attorney with flaws! Suffice it to say Blind Justice features Jake Denney who's about ready to pack it in, maybe once and for all. Jake's a jerk.…

                     Saying "Thank you" seems inadequate so much of the time. The synonyms don't do the feelings justice. The embellishments of "so much" and "very much" and "from my heart" don't serve their purpose no matter how intense the feelings of gratitude are. They're never enough to reveal how deeply the feelings dwell. So.…

      You can ask writers all kinds of questions and get such different answers to the same topics. Ask writers what they hope to accomplish with their novel(s). Ask them if they have a purpose in writing a particular book. Ask them what their goals are in writing stories. Ask them if they…

       I had a glorious remembrance of the book Tender Is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald. He gained a favored spot in my heart when I was in the 17 to 20 age bracket, so planted in me that I remember his writing with a certain feeling I can't describe. I loved his writing.…

                                      Signet Select; Published by the Penguin Group   If you want thrills, horror, philosophy, just a dab of humor now and then, teen angst, grown-up angst, professionalism, genius, a smidgen of spirituality, and killer killers, you need to start with The Pawn and read all the way through to The King by Steven…