Shannon Lawrence

Hi, guys! I'm a presenter today for a two-part virtual program put on by Artists Standing Strong Together.  From 2 PM MT to 3:30 PM, there will be a discussion panel on writing ghost stories (this is specific to ghost stories, not all horror). Then from 5:30 PM MT to 7:00 PM, the panelists will be doing various readings and storytellings of ghost stories, so it's not solely an author reading. In fact, the author reading part is new to them, as this is usually an event done by oral storytellers.  Both events are completely free to attend! You can come for one or both. I got to meet all but one of my fellow storytellers in a virtual run-through last week, and this should be a fun event to get you in the mood for spooky season. If you've read Happy Ghoulidays II, you might be familiar with the Halloween story in that collection: The Pitter Patter of Tiny Feet . That's the story I'll be reading for the evening portion of this event. Here's a link to their website f

Today I welcome H.R. Sinclair! Her new book, Blood Stone,  is the first in the Lost Witch series, and releases September 22. I asked her to talk about switching between fiction and non-fiction for her visit. Switching From Fiction to Nonfiction I’m H. R. Sinclair, an urban fantasy author and artist living in New England. I also write nonfiction books including A Writer’s Guide to Color . Writing both fiction and nonfiction can be rewarding. They use different superpowers. One pulls from the creative side of you, allowing you to immerse into make-believe situations, the other charges up your analytical brain. A key difference is that, in fiction, the author holds back, drops clues, dangles red herrings. In non-fiction, the author writes everything down, right there, all together. To Shift to Non-Fiction, Leverage Your Skills  Use your storytelling skills to make those facts more interesting. Add narratives, descriptions, and use a clear structure.  Use your voice in non-fiction—seriou

Hello and Happy Wednesday! It's time for the next Insecure Writer's Support Group! That's right, it's time for the IWSG, a monthly blog hop created by Alex J. Cavanaugh where writers get together and share their insecurities. Anyone can join. Simply click on Alex's name and put your blog on the linky list. Or participate on the Facebook page . The co-hosts this month are Beth Camp , Jean Davis , Yvonne Ventresca , and PJ Colando . Be sure to hop by and thank them for hosting! The optional question this month is: Since it's back to school time, let's talk English class. What's a writing rule you learned in school that messed you up as a writer? I feel like a lot of the rigid grammar rules were things I had to let go of. Like not ending a sentence with a preposition. Not starting sentences with "and" or "but." Things like that. And I'm sure I'm missing a bunch of rules that I still wrestle with. I do believe in learning the &qu