TL;DR - in a blizzard. Life often sends us challenges that test our character, and patience. I've found that in writing, if I have a character I can't seem to flesh out enough, it can help to throw something at them, to test them and see how they cope with... Read more →

It's that time of the year again, when Hallmark, Laura Secord and countless florists seek to help us chase away the winter blues with a bit of romance. So, in the spirit of the season, let's try a love story. A love story between monsters. They can be cuddly little... Read more →

There are many articles out there on the Interwebs about writing, but I did read an interesting article in the Guardian about writing Flash Fiction. I'll share the main points. They were: Start in the middle. Don't use too many characters. Make sure that the ending isn't at the end.... Read more →

I recently took the train from Ottawa to Toronto. It was a very snowy day. After a slow cab ride to the station, we left 1 1/2 hours late, and the 4 1/2 hour trip took almost six hours. But, I had some interesting reading with me, my fellow passengers... Read more →

This week's prompt is a bit of a fiddle—I've had to bend my rules. TL;DR - pick a random genre from this list. 1 Action/Adventure 7 Ghost Story 13 Romantic Comedy 2 Comedy 8 Historical Fiction 14 Sci-Fi 3 Crime Caper 9 Horror 15 Suspense 4 Drama 10 Mystery 16... Read more →

I found an interesting Short Story challenge, run by NYC Midnight. The first heat starts January 28th, so I signed up. There are prizes - cash, publishing deals, and discounts 0n writing tools. For each heat you have ou have 8 days, then 3 days, then 1 day. They also... Read more →

I'll often be wandering my quirky neighbourhood when something catches my eye, something interesting. Which usually means odd, and gives me cause to wonder just what's behind the image. And of course, since I always have my cell phone with me, with better specs than my SLR I might add,... Read more →

This first week's prompt is to use a song as inspiration. It's a familiar idea, but I saw the suggestion on Chuck Wendig's Terrible Minds blog, back in 2014. This week, open up Google Play, iTunes, your own library, etc, and pick a random song. Now write a Flash Fiction... Read more →