It’s a Literary Device, Dear Reader

I love learning the names for editor-y things. Like parallel construction and hiatus break and inciting incident and rhetorical device. Sometimes I make up names for problems I encounter when I don’t know the Official Editor-y Terminology—like name-calling and...

Those Important First Pages

Sometimes you set out to do a thing for one reason … only to find it was so much more than you ever imagined. More than you could have actually planned. In this case, I learned just how much value can be wrung out of focusing on the first chapter and how it relates to...

#WhatImReadingNow : Swiss Vendetta

The old man’s face was pale gray and his eyes were closed. Agnes saw the glint of a long knife in Estanguet’s hand and she leapt forward. He saw her and flicked the blade toward Arsov’s throat. She halted, the element of surprise lost. “He killed my sister,” Estanguet...

Short Saturday: Stammer Verbs

I love it when I find an article that gives me a name for something I’ve noticed in editing, but didn’t know what to call it. Such is the case when I read this article at Jane Friedman’s website: “2 Stammer Verbs to Avoid in Your Fiction.” What the heck is a stammer...