Inspiration by jj Keller
Inspiration! Where do story ideas come from?My husband enjoys a good fried chicken dinner. Unfortunate for him,I’m not a very good chef. As a youngster, I never had to preparemeals. I lived in the dorms, and then my roommates practiced theirculinary skills. When my man proposed, I broke down and took a cookingcourse.Trust me—one cooking course does not make for a fine chef.A few years ago a newspaper article claimed a restaurant, in nearbycity, had the best fried chicken in the mid-west and with a late nightdrive-thru. The vegetables are always overcooked, but the bird ismoist and fresh. We’ve been going to this eatery for fiv

Christmas Scavenger Hunt
Hello all. This being Thankgiving day, it feels like a great time to announce a special surprise I've been planning for my readers. A scavenger hunt! The rules for playing (and the prize!) are explained below.But first, please admire the pretty graphic I designed to advertise the hunt. (Hey, I spent an hou

On Writing Conflict
Life isn’t without conflict, so why should your novel be? In fact, conflict is essential in a novel. It is what makes a reader want to turn the pages of your book. It is with the resolution of conflict that character growth happens and your readers read the last page with a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction.One type of conflict is internal. This is something that is within your character. One example of this is a character that has been hurt by a man in one fashion or another. Another man enters the picture and she finds herself falling for him. Before she can truly love him, she has to resolve the inner conflict created by the pain her ex caused her.Another

The Joy of the Surprise I Wasn't Expecting....
Because I have to self promote--this is my new Christmas story, Mission of Christmas, now available from Lyrical Press Will one man’s Christmas cheer thaw Ms. Scrooge’s heart?Now, on to the main event.We al

Chocolate Ice Cream
Lured you in with that chocolate ice cream, didn't I?Well, here's the real subject of this post. Although feel free to indulge your chocolate fantasies while you read about...deep POV.(Insert evil editor laugh here.)Did you know that deep point of view can be the most powerful tool in a writer's arsenal? Yup. With third or first person in the past tense, you can make readers see that world going on in your head as you write, feel as if they're your characters as they read. It's how to give life to a story and break through that invisible ceiling you've been banging your head against because your writing isn't compelling enough and you don't know how to gi