In the ink well

o, I’m not making a reference to my series on erotica – that’s done for now. I’m just writing about, well, writing. And the passion of doing it. It used to be that I wrote every workday at lunch. It worked well for me, it cleared my head, it made me see angels (and devils). Going back to the cube was so much easier after working the magic of writing, of seeing things first that later readers would marvel and delight over (even if it was only erotica) was a head-kick. There is an angle on writing that is pure […]

felt jilted by one of my purest pleasures, reading. As you read in last week’s DOG EAR, I had just suffered a ham-strung horror of self-published nonsense, a book by a person who didn’t understand classic noir or basic English. I wasn’t even sure I wanted to read anything soon afterwards. Like a jilted lover, I wasn’t ready to start dating again., Then I stuck my nose in an old yellowed western and my blood flowed again. I’ll review City of Widows soon enough. It’s a great book. Why? Because it has characters who were dusty and trashy and archetypical […]

knew this was going to happen. And sure enough, it did. Was at a local bookstore and picked up a little self-published tome (it’s sooooo easy to self-publish now). And what have I said about writers who can get published nice and cheap? It’s why I don’t like people without training (or sense) getting hold of firearms. Some writers simply are not qualified to be published. First off, he didn’t seem to check his pagination and word-flow. Right-justification can really cause some issues, ones that might need manual correction. So occasionally you’ll see three words on a line, floating on […]

o I’m happy as a clam. My manuscript has an agent, who hooked me up with a publisher. I’ve actually seen a couple of examples of cover art. I’ve talked to the editor and worked some issues. And so I’m at work and the phone rings. It’s the editor. Do I have time to talk to some folks in legal? And did I get that emailed PDF file of the current manuscript? Good. Good. Fifteen minutes later, I’m in a conference room with a spare laptop, ringing New York back, set on my end. And there’s is my editor. And […]

o here was the dilemma – I had a 13 year old historic figure who marries her uncle. He, the high priest of Tyre, has agreed to this as a protection for her against her brother the king. The brother wouldnt dare hurt them, given the uncle’s position, right? Sucker. Anyway, as I was writing the story, I saw (like a motorist seeing an obstruction on a dark road, gradually manifesting in the headlights) that there was a problem ahead. Really, what sort of man is going to take a risk like that and not seek some advantage (i.e. comfort)? […]

nonymity or no anonymity, that is the question. Is it better to be recognized by one’s works and hailed as the writer one knows one is? Or better to not suffer the slings and stalks of those seeking one out… Me, I’m of the second opinion. Why? I don’t see an advantage to letting the information go out, not just yet. If I find myself in a Fifty Shades of Grey success moment, then I have the option. But for now? Why damage my rep, especially since my novel Indigo could easily be re-rigged for the YA market? It doesn’t […]

ynthia Woodelston Pratt stepped out of her front door, the sun shimmering along the sassy golden locks of her long blonde hair which hung halfway down her back. She had solient green eyes and a cute button nose, and lips shaded to pastel pink by a generous swipe of lipstick, She was comfortably clothed in a pink polo top. Her delightful bottom was sheathed in tight cut-off jeans, faded, their bottom edges across her thighs frayed into white fluff. On her feet, very casual light brown Doc Martins. She was an American girl, just out for a day’s shopping at […]

t all started years back with this dynamic woman I used to share weekly lunches with. I was moaning about an inability to place work (as opposed to my successful current self, who is unable to place work). She looked across the table and asked, quite frankly, “Have you thought about erotica?” The deal was, she knew a friend who made scratch doing just that. Oh, you won’t get rich (it kept Steve King alive in his early years), but you can make some money at it – if you are a real writer. After all, writing erotica/porn/smut is no […]

erailed. It’s a book by James Siegel which I picked up out of a bin in front of Sanford’s Maya Used Books. It was a hot day, I was flipping through their sidewalk bin of hardbacks, caught on the name (I’m a train fan), read the flap, noted the price (a buck) and added it to my stack. It sat next to my bed (in the pile of potentials) for over a year. I think, twice, I must have moved it to get up the dust and cat hair. And finally, between other books, I read it. Wow. I won’t […]