Miscellaneous

Is Romance Necessary in YA?

Romance sells. (Or, as they usually say, sex sells.) And now more than ever, sex is being introduced into young adult literature every day. But that’s another debate for another day. Instead, I wanted to focus on the overall umbrella term of romance in YA. Is romance necessary in every YA book? The short answer… Continue reading Is Romance Necessary in YA?

Miscellaneous

#MondayBlogs An Author Who Fears Public Speaking

Despite working with the English language every day—as a writer, as an editor, and as a reader—I have difficulty speaking. I stumble and stutter a lot. Perhaps this is one of the reasons I worked so hard to master the written language. I was making up for another aspect of the language I didn’t excel… Continue reading #MondayBlogs An Author Who Fears Public Speaking

Miscellaneous

#MondayBlogs Authors I’ve Met Who Inspired Me

Every Monday I rewrite a post from the past in a new and different away. Today’s post, for instance, is simply inspired by my older post: Relax & Read: A Dog Named Christmas by Greg Kincaid. I wrote this post after reading A Dog Named Christmas, but this book means more to me than what… Continue reading #MondayBlogs Authors I’ve Met Who Inspired Me

Writing Tips

Website Wonders

 Website Wonders: Every month, I share all of the websites I come across that I find helpful, humorous, or just awesome. Below, you’ll find all of August’s Website Wonders categorized into Reading, Writing/Authors, and Cats! If you enjoy these websites, be sure to follow me on Twitter because I share even more websites and photos… Continue reading Website Wonders

Miscellaneous · Writing Tips

#WW The Difference of Pronunciation and Writing

#WW Pronunciation and Writing Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris demanded my attention simply from the title. Despite working with the English language every day—both as a writer and as an editor—I have difficulty speaking. I stumble and stutter a lot. Perhaps this is one of the reasons I worked so hard to… Continue reading #WW The Difference of Pronunciation and Writing

Miscellaneous

The Sequel Can Wait

Announcements: The third section of my interactive poetry series has begun, and you can read the first poem - Miscarriage - by clicking the title. Here are the opening lines: If I hadn’t stepped outside, I would not have seen the cloud buried deep in the approaching storm I vaguely remembering hearing about. (Vote, share,… Continue reading The Sequel Can Wait

Miscellaneous

Books That Changed My Childhood

Announcements: First, I would like to thank Between the Lines for nominating ShannonAThompson.com for a collection of wonderful awards, but second, I would like to thank the two latest reviewers of Take Me Tomorrow:  The Modest Verge wrote, “The characters in this novel are just as complex, and just as complicated as The Timely Death… Continue reading Books That Changed My Childhood

Miscellaneous

Writing Tips: Mother’s Day & Childhood Inspiration

Now, I have to admit that I'm unsure if this qualifies as "writing tips" or not, but I can't seem to think of another way to explain it other than to explain recent events in my life and how I got to this decision to post about this. On Friday night, I was driving home… Continue reading Writing Tips: Mother’s Day & Childhood Inspiration