Thoughts of Pooh Bear, Sticky Words and Other Nonsense Pooh Bear might have said, “Thinking makes me think things.”  He’s made so many profound statements in his young life that I’m almost certain that he did. At least I’ll blame him for the question that popped into my hea

JENNIFER ANISTON ISN’T OLD Browsing through one of my picture magazines this morning, I came upon a photograph of Jennifer Aniston and below it were the words, “America’s aging sweetheart.”  The writer meant to hurt and as I am old enough to be Jennifer’s mother, I took umb

“I SEND MY WORDS THROUGH TIME AND SPACE TO GREET YOU. YOU WILL UNDERSTAND.”  James Elroy Flecker (1884-1915) Yesterday, these lines from “To a Poet a Thousand Years Hence,” came to me as I opened my blog and found that I’d had visitors. Unlike Flecker who imagines a future

Dominique Browning and Slow Love Dominique Browning has published a new book called, Slow Love. You may think it strange that I’d recommend a book I haven’t yet read, but I’m confident about the author. Her writing never fails to satisfy. www.dominiquebrowning.com. I discovered

Caroline, This is such an enjoyable blog! Nice to be able to read firsthand how it is in the real world of writing and agent hunting…. reads as a novel unto itself! Love your perseverence and look forward to seeing your daily posts! L

Welcome aboard! Looking forward to reading your new novels. I see that Gothic Spring and Heart Land are highly regarded by readers using Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com. No surprise there. Both are fine books. Tom in Burbank

SMALL PRESS/ BIG PRESS PUBLISHING: WHAT’S THE BEST WAY DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE? Let me be honest. Since I started my quest for an agent 4 months ago, I’ve endured lots of rejection. Mostly, my query letters are ignored. If I do get a response, it’s usually canned — though one

Opportunists, Scammers and Sleazebags, Oh My! Yesterday, I received another agent’s e-mail rejection. This one started off encouragingly but ended with the usual “not for us” statement. I was steeled for that but not for his suggestion that I spend $12 to purchase his book on ho

On the Hunt for an Agent People interested in writing often ask me if it’s necessary to have an agent to get published. The answer is: yes and no. In the past, writers could submit their work directly to a main stream publishing house and if the company liked it, they’d recommend

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Steig Larsson A couple of days ago, my new novel was rejected by a top New York agent.  Like every insecure writer, I prepared for the worst when he asked to see it. The head knows the probability of success; the heart doesn’t listen.  When the r