A couple of years ago, I was diagnosed with misophonia and phonophobia. Misophonia is “a disorder in which certain sounds trigger physiological responses that some might perceive as unreasonable given the circumstances” (WebMD). Phonophobia is “a persistent, abnormal, unwarranted fear of sounds” (NIH). These are not uncommon diagnoses for autistic people like me. Anyway, I was referred to a therapist
This feels like a basic concept, but based on continuing social media arguments, it seems to bear repeating. Creators—writers, artists, etc.—are told many times over to “consider their audience” when creating a work. “Who is this for?” is the standing question. Sometimes, it’s just for the creator. In any case, it should always be for the creator… and then, ideally,
Lately, I’ve struggled to find books that hold my interest. Some of that is definitely on me; I’ve been having a rough time, and sitting down and focusing on a book has been incredibly difficult. And yet I have read a few books that I enjoyed (check my YouTube channel for those). So it can be done. Still, the wins
Two thirds of the year are done, which feels like a fair benchmark for stopping to examine how this year has gone for me in terms of sales and page reads. Though, to be clear, I have to say that these numbers will only include Amazon (ebooks) and Ingram (print sales). I am slowly rolling content out to other sites
I really love sharing my fan fiction with the world. I’ve received more love and validation from the various fan communities for which I write than I have for my original works. I suppose that is to be expected; it’s easier to capture existing fans than create new ones. That’s one reason Hollywood is so focused on existing IP over
I have complicated feelings about the WGA strike. As a writer, I probably shouldn’t. As a would-be screenwriter, I almost certainly shouldn’t. But that “would-be” is key. The film industry is notoriously difficult to break into. I’ve written scripts that got great coverage, and one that has won an award. I’ve had scripts optioned… and then go nowhere. Which is
As the number of major publishing houses seemingly continues to shrink, and with more and more people seeking representation from an evaporating pool of agents, many hopeful authors turn to small (sometimes called “indie”) publishers. These are publishing imprints that don’t require agents to submit manuscripts. They’re often run by a small group, or sometimes even just one person. They
This old chestnut of an argument has recently reared its head again: “Self-published authors aren’t real authors.” (See also: “Self-published books aren’t real books.”) So, of course, let’s go through the debate once more. What this pronouncement almost always boils down to is the idea that, in order for any book or author to be “good,” they must go through–and
As promised in my most recent YouTube video, here is the bingo card for this year’s reading challenge:
Although the year is not quite over, it’s about time to start wrapping things up and examining what worked, what didn’t, and how to move forward. I intend to do this in bits and pieces by looking at different aspects of my life through the year. Naturally, I’ll start with my writing. Releases It’s difficult to believe I actually started