Usually I blog about interesting facts I find in my research, facts I find fascinating and want to share. Lots of information about the textile crafts because I love them!
But today I plan to talk about something more personal; some of the tasks that go along with the craft of professional author.
Blogging and social media are certainly important parts of my new job.
But my favorite by far is speaking to groups. I am constantly surprised by how much I enjoy it. What did my readers not understand? What did they like? Were the characters appealing? I must confess that I learn as much from the back and forth, maybe more, than my audience does.
Why did I choose to make one character so strong or demented or whatever? Sometimes I honestly don’t know and I have to think about the motivations I had.
And sometimes a reader pulls out some interpretation from my story that I never thought of, not consciously anyway, but when I ponder it, it makes such sense to me I include it in my planning for the next book.
So, to all the people to whom I’ve spoken so far, I can only say thank you. You are helping make me a much better writer.