Research is always a tricky thing.  I've heard different, if not competing views, from almost every writer with whom I discuss this subject.  Some advocate for only internet using the Google approach.  I'm not the head cheerleader of this movement, but I will say that you can find a lot of info on virtually every subject.  Also with Google's satellites and imaging, Google also makes it easy to visit about anywhere without leaving the comfort, or the shackles, of your writing sanctuary.  I certainly see the merit of this, but I believe it is a[..]

One question I have struggled with and, likely will continue to just be befuddled about, is when do you share what you have written.  Particularly when the writing is going to be fiction length.I struggled with this concept while writing The Trust.  Not knowing the protocol - translate that I just had no clue when to let others read what I had written - when I finished the first draft of the Prologue to The Trust, I decided to have another set of eyes look over my efforts.  Not a success at all, but then[..]

Ideas just seem to be no problem.  Sometimes I literally feel like I have to turn off the tap on ideas for plots, sub-plots, characters, etc.  (As an aside, I do keep a log of these random ideas which I use a source of reference from time to time.)  However, the big motivation problem for me is getting motivated to actually write.  I mean what good does it do to have the ideas - sometimes even knowing where an entire book is going - only to never write.  Now that there is one book out,[..]

So no secret I am an attorney.  And no secret that I practice in Charleston, South Carolina.  It is also no surprise that many times the type of law I practice can have more twists and turns that a two lane mountain road.  Many times I find myself thinking that the dilemmas litigants work themselves into are situations I could not have imagined or made up - and I regularly craft plot ideas out of thin air.When I first started practicing law, I realized that one of the many lessons not taught in law school,[..]

As people are starting to read The Trust, I've been getting a number of questions about how I come up with character names.  I've also had a few interesting thing pointed out to me about some of the names I've used.  There have been several people who know someone who shares a name with a character.  Given that I've never heard of the real life folks that share names with my fictional folks I'm pretty sure we can go with coincidence.  A few of my more astute friends, or perhaps some that just know me[..]

So today started out pretty icky.  It was cold.  It started raining.  It kept raining.  In fact it is still raining. Then at one of my random breaks during the day, I decided to check Amazon and lo and behold there was the fruit of my labor available for purchase.  Nearly 7 years after I first decided to actually write the novel I had been talking about for longer than that it is up on Amazon.  When I first started writing I found myself sitting around thinking how amazingly great it would be if I could[..]