A lot of people ask me who the main character of the Holland Bay series is. It is, of course,… Read more Jessica Branson
Category: Writing
The Early Days
Once upon a time, I wrote for the helluvit. Writing was my happy place. I’d rather knuckle down on a… Read more The Early Days
When?
A friend of mine is on a 1970s binge as he tries to finish a novel. It could be nostalgia.… Read more When?
Point of View
I attempted to write a second follow-up to Holland Bay this summer. It reached sixty thousand words when I realized… Read more Point of View
NaNoWriMo
National Novel Writing Month. Write a 50,000-word novel in the month of November. Whoever thought this up knew how to… Read more NaNoWriMo
The PI And The Pandemic
Recently, on Sleuthsayers, I wrote about the PI and how the archetype might work in the present day. Gone is… Read more The PI And The Pandemic
Writing the Next One
Holland Bay has only been out a couple of months, and yet the question always turns to “When’s the next… Read more Writing the Next One
Where Did Monticello Come From?
Holland Bay did not start out as Holland Bay. It came together from several aborted projects: A pre-9/11 thriller where terrorists… Read more Where Did Monticello Come From?
You Took How Long?
There’s that old clip (several, actually) from Family Guy where Stewie makes fun of Brian for working on that novel… Read more You Took How Long?

World Building – It’s Not Just For SciFi
The other day, I listened to the Writer’s Journey podcast with guest J. Diane Dotson. The topic was worldbuilding. Diane… Read more World Building – It’s Not Just For SciFi