Tips for Making the Writing Life Less-Stressful

Motivation and the Writing Life

A messy desk covered with papers and cups.

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Although I love what I do and can’t really imagine myself doing anything else, it’s not as if the writing life isn’t stressful.  It’s not all The Neighborhood of Make-Believe.

There are always things that need our attention that compete with writing–kids, our parents, household repairs, jobs, etc.  Then there’s managing daily life: meals, appointments, events.  On top of it all, we need to take care of ourselves (probably the last thing on most of our lists, but one of the most important): exercise, sleep, healthy eating.

Invariably in interviews I’m asked how I manage everything and keep a sense of balance. I know exactly how I manage everything…I’m the queen of organization. I organize things (even other people in my family) within an inch of their lives.  The balance? Well, some days are more balanced than others.

Here are some of my tips for keeping sane as a writer: Continue reading

Developing a New Cozy Series: Nuts and Bolts

Mystery Writing Tips

A cup of steaming tea sits on a table next to a notebook and decorative pen.

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Today I thought I’d cover my process for starting a new cozy series. This post isn’t intended to replace the more in-depth posts I created for developing a sleuth, sidekick, setting, et al. For tips on the nitty gritty part of developing those specific elements, see those particular posts and this series. 

My thought on creating a new series this time was to look at all the specific elements and put them on a Word document.  I brainstormed ideas for each element and wrote down pros and cons of every choice.

I started out with the sleuth.  Considerations were: age of the sleuth, gender of the sleuth (there are cozies with male sleuths…I’ve been asked about this regularly by male mystery writers), sleuth’s occupation (the theme/hook is incredibly important in a cozy mystery), and his or her personality type.Continue reading

Twitterific Writing Links

Twitterific

Bluebird with beak open and 'Twitterific Writing Links' by ElizabethSCraig superimposed on the image

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 48,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

Have you visited the WKB lately?  Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox!  Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.

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Writing a Mystery With Public Domain Characters

Mystery Writing Tips

Writing Sherlock Holmes and the Glad Game

By Matt Ferraz, @Matt_Ferraz

The genesis of Sherlock Holmes and the Glad Game was a challenge I made to myself: pick two public domain characters that apparently have nothing to do with each other, and somehow make them work together. I’ve been a Sherlockian all my life, and wanted to write a book with the detective for some time. But who could I match him with? Other writers already crossed Holmes Jack the Ripper, Mr Hyde, Captain Nemo and so many others. What could I bring to the table that was new and fresh?

I was at a bookshop in my home town when I saw brand new editions of Pollyanna and Pollyanna Grows Up, by Eleanor H. Porter. Those were books I had never read, but knew the basic premise: a girl who always sees the bright side of everything no matter what. I had seen the 1920 movie with Mary Pickford, one of my favourite actresses, but remembered little of it. So I bought copies of those two books, and while reading them, a novel started to form in my mind.

No one had ever had the idea of putting Holmes and Pollyanna Whittier in the same story. After all, they’re so different! But my mind was made up: I was going to write a book where Pollyanna comes to London and assists Holmes and Watson in an investigation.Continue reading

Twitterific Writing Links

Twitterific

Bluebird with beak open and 'Twitterific Writing Links' by ElizabethSCraig superimposed on the image

by Elizabeth S. Craig, @elizabethscraig

Twitterific writing links are fed into the Writer’s Knowledge Base search engine (developed by writer and software engineer Mike Fleming) which has over 48,000 free articles on writing related topics. It’s the search engine for writers.

Have you visited the WKB lately?  Check out the new redesign where you can browse by category, and sign up for free writing articles, on topics you choose, delivered to your email inbox!  Sign up for the Hiveword newsletter here.

Quick note–thanks, as always, for your comments and for reading the blog! I’m going to be offline until Wednesday so I’ll be slow to respond to comments on this particular post.  :) My next post will run on Friday.

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