August 2014 – Ellis Morning's Blog

Blood’s Force: The Quest On The Horizon

August 25, 2014 Ellis Morning Comments 6 comments

(Cover art by Chris Howard) I can hardly believe it! I’ve balled up the manuscript for Blood’s Force, the first of the Sword and Starship books, to hand to my editor, RJ Blain. I’ve been performing my own editing and rewriting pass, with significant feedback from my spouse, since February. In that time, Dame Jessamine’s quest has undergone drastic improvement. The manuscript lost a few thousand words, gained them back, and lost them again: 88,000 words across 22 chapters at…

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Pacing: Seize Control Of Your Story’s Tempo

August 18, 2014 Ellis Morning Comments 0 Comment

(Image credit: imagebase.net) Along with the million other things writers must worry about, there’s pacing! Basically, pacing is how fast the story moves. Ever hear someone describe how a book took off running from the first page? Or how it started slow, but picked up toward the end? What creates those impressions? How do you control them? Each individual sentence of your story has an effect on overall pacing. If it’s advancing the plot in a meaningful way, then it’s…

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Self-Promotion: Baby Steps for Total Beginners

August 11, 2014 Ellis Morning Comments 0 Comment

No one said this would be an easy climb. Let’s get started! (Image credit: imagebase.net) When one works Tech Support, one tends to develop a dim view of salespeople. Many of them are the former jocks who gave you hell in high school, now sporting fake tans, classy suits, and leased BMWs. They care more about meeting their quotas than actually assisting people. When their customers call Tech Support to complain that what they bought isn’t appropriate for their needs,…

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Be In The Present

August 2, 2014 Ellis Morning Comments 0 Comment

My spouse does long-form improv- similar to what you see on Whose Line Is It Anyway?, only a given scene lasts several minutes instead of a few seconds. It requires tons of practice to keep such a long scene engaging and funny off the top of one’s head. Sometimes, an improv scene peters out when characters get stuck talking about stuff they already did, or plan to do in the future. During rehearsal, coaches will yell “CUT TO THAT!” In…

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