The day is starting under a smudged sky and I’m happy to report rain arrived last week–a lovely relief in our baked, thirsty part of the world. And autumn is in full swing–halleluja. Yesterday I walked along leaf-strewn paths on a small nearby mountain and while it’s covered mostly in Douglas fir trees, the big […]
Read the rest of this entry »Archive for the 'Jessica Page Morrell' Category
Marie Kroyer: an artist’s tale
In case you needed some quiet beauty today, this painting is called The Orange Glass Jug and Green Cutting. It was painted in 1894 by Marie Kroyer Let me pass along some information about Kroyer. I’ve been learning about the Skagen Painters lately and am fascinated by this flourishing artist colony who were part of […]
Read the rest of this entry »Make Your Character Out of Sync and Uncomfortable
Tension must be intricately laid throughout a story, not just appearing in moments of distress or while a character strives for a goal. A great trick for inducing a constant underlying tension is to portray your protagonist as uneasy, uncomfortable, or at odds in each scene. She can be hot, cold, bored, nervous, lonely, hungry, […]
Read the rest of this entry »It’s a Calling, Margaret Atwood
It’s not a profession, this track you’re on. It’s a vocation – a calling. There’s no pension plan, there are no guarantees, and there’s no magic potion. What you’ve chosen to do is brave and risky, but it’s also necessary – increasingly necessary as we move into a future for which no one, right now, […]
Read the rest of this entry »Stories are Like Life Rafts
Autumn is whispering to me. It reached 92 today and 100 is forecast for tomorrow, but regardless of the coming temperatures, the seasonal change is beginning around here with burnished colors. Last week I camped–in a tent–and woke early with the temperature a brisk 46 degrees. Unfortunately, campfires aren’t allowed now in Oregon parks because […]
Read the rest of this entry »Leaving Home, Portals and Thresholds
After a fabulous thunderstorm last weekend, the weather quieted and more rain arrived, a rarity in August. Be still my grateful heart. I’ve even kept my windows open all day a few times. I’m gardening in the mornings and battling moles–and if I might add, they are worthy adversaries. During the last heat wave I […]
Read the rest of this entry »You could be writing the book that changes your life. The spark could be starting a fire for you as well. You don’t know, and you can’t know. That is the thrill of being an artist, of working for yourself, and of telling the stories you want to tell. Don’t give up. ~ Brandon Sanderson
Read the rest of this entry »Blue Sturgeon Moon Wonderings
I was moon gazing last night because I couldn’t sleep so plunked down on my front steps looking up at it’s pearly face and endless mystery. I’d recently returned a manuscript and memo to a client and so my thoughts drifted to her story and characters. And just for fun, I imagined Kate the protagonist […]
Read the rest of this entry »Secrets are the enduring motor that make fiction run: what you aren’t telling me, what I’m keeping from you, what the neighbors know about the love affair. ~ Rebecca Makkai
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