Tag: Mandy Webster

Writers on Writing

Wannabe Writer Wednesday: An interview with James Hedrick

Mandy Webster
Writer James Hedrick
James Hedrick is a PhD Candidate in Political Science living in Washington, DC. He spends his days writing about politics and his evenings writing about anything but. He will soon self-publish the first book in his urban fantasy series Hell Against Texas entitled Cauldron Bubble.

Welcome to Wannabe Writer Wednesday! This week’s interview is with urban fantasy writer, James Hedrick.

1. Tell us a little about your current work in process.

I’m currently working on an urban fantasy series titled Hell Against Texas. I submitted three short stories in the universe to Sword & Laser’s Anthology (fingers crossed) and I’m almost done with the final draft of the first book in the series, Cauldron Bubble. The first draft of Book Two, Shepherd’s Crossing, is about halfway done and I’ve got a couple chapters of Book Three, Fire Burn, drafted. I’ve outlined a couple of books passed that.

2. What’s your day job?

I’m a PhD Candidate in Political Science and will soon be starting a consulting job in the Washington, DC area.

3. When do you find time to write? Continue reading “Wannabe Writer Wednesday: An interview with James Hedrick” →

Novel Writing, Writing Prompts

Writing the rebirth plot arc: Rathilde

Mandy Webster
School Building
This building is very much what I imagine the Good Citizen Center to look like in my WIP. | School Building (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In a recent blog post titled, “The 7 Basic Plots: Rebirth,” Liz Bureman of The Write Practice discusses the structure of the rebirth plot type and challenges the reader to “write a rebirth arc for a classic villain in literature or film for fifteen minutes.” Rather than writing about a classic villain, I thought it would be interesting to write a rebirth arc for an antagonist in my own work in progress (WIP) and share it on my blog.

For this exercise, I decided to focus on Rathilde, a minor antagonist who does not play a huge role in this novel but will be a formidable figure in the third book of my planned trilogy. Rathilde actually attempts to help my protagonist in book one, but is unsuccessful and goes on her merry way to wreak havoc elsewhere while my protagonist lives through her own private hell.

I doubt that any of what you are about to read will make it into my current WIP, but it will give you a little insight into what I am writing. You will also have some insider knowledge when you finally get the chance to read my published novel (someday.) Here is my rebirth arc for Rathilde, according to the steps outlined by Bureman: Continue reading “Writing the rebirth plot arc: Rathilde” →

Domestic Violence, House and Home, Truth

Is it okay to wear a t-shirt that’s been laying around in a dusty box for 15 years?

Mandy Webster
Air Force T-shirt
The back of one of my Air Force t-shirts features my Training Instructors (TI’s), Tech Sergeants Hardy and Cute. TSgt Cute has to be *the* scariest woman I have ever met in my entire life. What I wouldn’t give to know that woman’s story!

In my quest to rid my house of stuff I don’t need, I’ve make several interesting discoveries and recovered many items I forgot I had. One of these items is a squadron t-shirt from my Air Force basic training days. When I found it, I laughed, threw it in the laundry, and then started wearing it non-stop. That’s not weird, is it?

When I separated from the Air Force, my ex destroyed most of my uniforms, my combat boots, and anything else I owned that might remind me I was ever my own person. Somehow, I managed to stash a couple of these shirts in a place where he wouldn’t find them. Continue reading “Is it okay to wear a t-shirt that’s been laying around in a dusty box for 15 years?” →

Writers on Writing

Coming soon: Wannabe Writer Wednesdays

Mandy Webster
Wannabe writer wednesday Wordle
Join us for Wannabe Writer Wednesdays.

Okay, so yesterday I put out a little teaser about a new blog thing I want to do. It’s called Wannabe Writer Wednesdays, and the goal is to highlight writers who are in the same boat I am in. In other words, I want to interview writers who either haven’t yet published anything or have published next to nothing. I want to highlight the wannabes like me rather than the already famous.

Why would I do such a thing? Well, several of the blogs I follow interview writers who are already publishing. These are usually writers who are marketing a newly released book. While I enjoy reading these interviews, and have even learned a thing or two from them, I think it would be equally interesting to read about writers who are still in the wannabe stage. Misery loves company, right? Continue reading “Coming soon: Wannabe Writer Wednesdays” →

Blogging, Holidays, House and Home, Parenting

Where have I been all this time? –And- My thoughts on STUFF

Mandy Webster
a graduate and her dad
My dad looks a little sleepy in this picture, but I look good, and he’s not online to see it and complain about it, so here ya go. I got my Master of Arts in English with a concentration in creative writing from Mount Mary College on May 18th, 2013.

Hello there. I’ve been MIA from my blog for some time now. I hope you all didn’t miss me too much. This may turn into a long, rambling post with little to no point. I hope you don’t mind.

So, where have I been? First of all, I made it to graduation and crossed the stage on May 18th. I may now officially refer to myself as Mandy Webster, MS, MA. Wow, look at all those letters behind my name! I also got an A on my creative writing thesis (go me!) Graduation and all that goes with it is part of the reason why I’ve been largely absent from the blogosphere.

I was also wrapping up all seven of the courses I taught this semester (or quarter depending on which school I was teaching at.) Needless to say, after teaching seven courses and writing a thesis in one semester, my house was a bit of a wreck. Since graduation, I’ve been on a cleaning streak that has completely distracted me from all things academic. Continue reading “Where have I been all this time? –And- My thoughts on STUFF” →

Poetry

What makes a poem a poem?

Mandy Webster
Walt Whitman's use of free verse became apprec...
Walt Whitman’s use of free verse became appreciated by composers seeking a more fluid approach to setting text. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What is a poem? Some may think a poem has to rhyme. (I disagree.) Others believe the syllables must be counted, or that a poem must be stuffed full of alliterative language. But what about free verse? What makes a block of words, a sentence chopped up onto several lines, a poem, rather than a mere chopped-up sentence or a paragraph scattered over several lines?

To me, writing a poem is about capturing a moment. It could be a feeling, a natural occurrence, or a quick glimpse into the life of one person. Most of my poetry describes just one, very small moment. These moments might last only a few seconds, or as long as several minutes. Rarely does the poem capture more than a very short block of time. Continue reading “What makes a poem a poem?” →

Novel Writing

I’m dreaming up my next novel project

Mandy Webster
I... Dreaming
Does anyone really want to hear stories from my dreams? | I… Dreaming (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Last night, I dreamed I was reading a novel synopsis on the cover of a book. I woke at 2 a.m. with the words of that synopsis echoing in my head. I lay in a half-sleep thinking, “That sounds like a good book, I should really read that one.” Then it occurred to me the synopsis had come from my head, not from any now-published novel, and it hit me: I’d better write that down!

I tapped my tappable bedside lamp for some light, reached for my bedside pen and notebook, and started scribbling the words from that dreamed synopsis before they could dissipate into the night. I filled one notebook page then, thinking I was done, put it aside and shut off my lamp. I thought I would drift back to sleep. Continue reading “I’m dreaming up my next novel project” →

Novel Writing, Write Your Novel this Summer Challenge

Sometimes it’s okay to tell a story rather than showing it

Mandy Webster
Staring at a blank page will get you nowhere
It’s true. So stop staring and write something!

Do you ever find yourself staring at an empty page, afraid to put down that first word because you do not know if it is exactly what you want to express in your story? Do you worry about each sentence, afraid you are going to write something that (heaven forbid) tells rather than shows your story?

I know you want to sit down and write a complete and perfect story. We all do. But most of the time it just doesn’t work that way. If you let yourself get bogged down in the details of perfection in the first draft, your first draft will never be complete. Continue reading “Sometimes it’s okay to tell a story rather than showing it” →

Novel Writing

It’s a theme, not a scene

Mandy Webster
English: Chimpanzee Typing
What this story needs is a theme, something for the literary geniuses to expound upon in Freshman Lit. | English: Chimpanzee Typing (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This morning, I’m typing up a couple of “found” scenes I wrote in a notebook almost four years ago. (I mentioned these scenes in an earlier post.) When I wrote these, I wasn’t really thinking about them in terms of scenes, but was scribbling out a freewrite with some ideas I had for a novel.

Many of my freewrites begin with me telling myself about something I want to do, and then they morph into scenes as I enter “the zone.” So it was no surprise to me when the first few paragraphs I typed up were back-story. But as I was typing, it occurred to me that what I had on the page at this moment was a theme, not a scene or even back-story. Continue reading “It’s a theme, not a scene” →

Novel Writing, Write Your Novel this Summer Challenge

Featured Writer Prompt: How do you prep for a new novel writing project?

Mandy Webster
P writing blue
Do you outline first, or just start writing? |writing blue (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

At Write Your Novel this Summer, we just launched our Featured Writer series where we will feature individual writers who are participating in our summer novel writing challenge. To become a Featured Writer, all you have to do is ‘like’ our Facebook page, look for Featured Writer Prompts, and submit a response to the prompt along with a link to your blog or online writing portfolio. If your submission is chosen, we will feature you and link to your page from our Facebook page (see the Notes section of our Facebook page for more details.)

Yesterday, I posted our first Featured Writers Prompt, but I have yet to receive any submissions. So I thought I would answer the prompt myself to try to get the ball rolling. I want to also encourage my readers to submit. This is a great opportunity to drive readers to your blogs and writing portfolios. It’s also a great way to find out about other writers and learn how they approach the novel writing process. Continue reading “Featured Writer Prompt: How do you prep for a new novel writing project?” →