the trouble with writing

yesterday, i went to the coffeeshop to write. i do that sometimes. i’ve written several stories at the coffeeshop and then there’s editing. so, i’m trying to write a story and it’s not coming. i’ve got some thinking to do. there i am, researching, writing dialogue out by hand and getting in the groove when, … Read more

slayed

uh, that was a weird trip to the Banff Centre. diagnosis: strep throat.  great medical attention available at the clinic at the Banff Centre,  if you must know, but that’s beside the point. it was -40 degrees the entire time. i managed approximately eight pages of new material before i fell into bed for three … Read more

the long goodbye

a noir gimlet. “The bartender set the drink in front of me. With the lime juice it has a sort of pale greenish yellowish misty look. I tasted it. It was both sweet and sharp at the same time. The woman in black watched me. Then she lifted her own glass towards me. We both … Read more

nothing

i’ve got nothing, nada, not one thing to say.  this is a problem because i’m writing a lot and i wonder if this apathy translates into my work.  lordy, this writing business–it’s like walking through sludge. somebody bring me a cool compress, i’m swooning.  and a gimlet, whatever that is. do you have the recipe … Read more

shitty first drafts

i sorted out my messy story that i sorta kinda completed last weekend. parts of it were okay and others were absolute shit. i don’t know what i was thinking when i wrote some of those words. and that is the process. back and forth, back and forth, advancing slowly to story’s end. it occurs … Read more

technical difficulties

i’m having technical difficulties with podcasting.  please return to regular programming while i consult a professional.

forgive me

for i have sinned.  it’s been 11 days since my last confession posting.

MIKE BLANK

last year, i attended a writing conference and spent a week fleshing out the main characters of a book i’m writing. throughout the process, fellow writers commented that my character’s name, Mike Blank, was annoying. it’s the repetition of the ‘k’ sounds. they all agreed that i needed to come up with a new name. … Read more