Category Archives: #writers

Finding the Right Words

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By Elaine Viets

Like most writers, I love words. I like to read about them, learn new ones, find old ones. I enjoy puns and wordplay. Naturally, I depend on my dictionaries. But did you know these websites are crammed with extra information?

These days, dictionaries are much more than spelling and definitions.

Here are two of my favorite online sites.

Merriam-Webster dictionary. https://www.merriam-webster.com/

This site usually has a topical essay about words.

After the untimely death of Catherine O’Hara, who left her mark on movies such as  Home Alone and TV’s Schitt’s Creek, Merriam-Webster had an essay on 16 words from Schitt’s Creek. The Canadian sitcom is about “the Roses, a rich family that loses its wealth and must temporarily move into a motel in a small town with the cheeky name of Schitt’s Creek,” Webster said. “By metrics of awards and international viewership, Schitt’s Creek became Canada’s most successful television series. Among the series’ memorable characters is Moira Rose, played by the late Catherine O’Hara, whose diction is, shall we say, a bit eccentric.”

One of the best words Moira used is bombilate, which means, “to buzz or drone.”

“The room is suddenly bombilating with anticipation,” Moira said.

Too bad her wonky usage of bombilate isn’t popular enough to make Webster’s. Other Moira words include Balaton, confabulate and dangersome.

I have problems sorting out affect and effect. I can’t keep those words straight. Or is it strait? Webster has this helpful article: “Affect vs. Effect and how to pick the right one.”

“The basic difference is this: affect is usually a verb, and effect is usually a noun,” Webster said. Much more useful than what my teachers told me: “An affect has an effect.” Huh?

Webster delves into the proper use of em-dashes, en-dashes and hyphens and has a list of top word look-ups. Here’s one: Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg.  That’s a lake, and it’s in the US, not Wales. The lake has the longest place name in our country. There are various stories about the name’s origin, but one says the name is Native American and commemorates an 18th-century fishing treaty. It’s jokingly translated as: “You fish on your side, I fish on my side, and nobody fishes in the middle.” The lake is in Webster, Mass., and many just call it Lake Webster.

Webster (the dictionary) has a helpful section on slang and trending words.

Know what a fridge cigarette is? “A cold, refreshing and addictive soft drink.” Gruzz is an older person. (I hope that one doesn’t catch on.) An almond mom is “a mother who pushes her daughter to be skinny, through diet.” Note that the term refers to daughters, not sons, enforcing expectations that women have to be thin. Bed rotting mean staying in bed all day. Zaddy is an attractive older man. There are more, lots more slang words Webster is watching. They’re fun to explore.

Webster also features words with tricky pronunciations, including ragout.  Don’t embarrass yourself by calling that meaty stew rag-out. It’s ra-GOO.

Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford English Dictionary

My publisher, Severn House in London, uses the Oxford English Dictionary, or OED. It’s a little more staid that its American cousin, Merriam-Webster, but I love the research for its Word Stories.

Here’s part of the story of glamor. Excuse me, glamour.

“The schoolroom, verb tables, and Latin class seem about as far removed from our current notion of glamour as it’s possible to get,” the OED said. But grammar and glamour  “were originally the same word.”

Dull, dusty grammar “first came into English from French with the meaning ‘learning or scholarship concerning a language’, and particularly, ‘a book which contains this knowledge’. The word soon extended to the principles of any kind of learning, and to books setting out such principles.”

Grammar took a turn into the occult, and words related to grammar began to refer to “knowledge of or expertise in magic and astrology, or to manuals for invoking demons and performing general sorcery.” These words included “gramarye and grimoire . . . and, finally, glamour.”

“Since glamour entered the language it’s taken on quite the life of its own.” It’s given us “glamour puss, (a glamorous or attractive person), glamazon, (a tall, glamorous, and powerful woman), and glampsite, (a campsite for glamping – the more luxurious way to camp).”

You can subscribe to the OED, but if you can’t afford a hundred bucks, you can still look up words for free, and enjoy word lists, world English, and the history of English.

Wordsmith Tom Stoppard wrote, “I don’t think writers are sacred, but words are. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones in the right order, you might nudge the world a little or make a poem that children will speak for you when you are dead.”

International sale: Two Dead-End Job mysteries, “Dying to Call You” and “Pumped for Murder” are $1.99 today at bookshop.org, Barnes & Noble, Google, Kobo, Apple and Amazon in the US and Great Britain.

Why Writers Write

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“If you want to change the world, pick up your pen and write.” ― Martin Luther

* * *

Every now and then we talk about why we feel compelled to write. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, and it occurs to me that our motivation for writing may change as we grow in experience.

For example, the reason I decided to write my first novel wasn’t because I wanted to change the world or as some kind of personal catharsis. It was because I was listening to an audiobook while out running one day, and I thought I could write a mystery that was better than the one I was listening to. (A monumental act of hubris.)

When I returned home from my run, I got out my laptop and started typing. It was like being in a canoe, carried down the river by a current so strong, there was no use to fight it, even if I’d wanted to.

But as I got further into the story, I found there were things I wanted to say—about the world, society, myself—that changed my view of why I was doing this. By the time the book was published, I had arrived at a whole new perspective and a new “why” of writing.

* * *

So why do most writers write? Is there one overriding reason? Famous authors have offered their own opinions on this subject. As I read through some of their motivation for writing, I found themes of suffering, love, self-satisfaction, societal problems and more. Here are a few quotes:

“Any writer worth his salt writes to please himself…It’s a self-exploratory operation that is endless. An exorcism of not necessarily his demon, but of his divine discontent.” – Harper Lee

“When I sit down to write a book, I do not say to myself, ‘I am going to produce a work of art.’ I write it because there is some lie that I want to expose, some fact to which I want to draw attention, and my initial concern is to get a hearing.” – George Orwell

“All that I hope to say in books, all that I ever hope to say, is that I love the world.” ― E.B. White

“I don’t know why I started writing. I don’t know why anybody does it. Maybe they’re bored, or failures at something else.” – Cormac McCarthy

“I write because I don’t know what I think until I read what I say.” – Flannery O’Connor

“I believe there is hope for us all, even amid the suffering – and maybe even inside the suffering. And that’s why I write fiction, probably. It’s my attempt to keep that fragile strand of radical hope, to build a fire in the darkness.” – John Green

“That’s why I write, because life never works except in retrospect. You can’t control life, at least you can control your version.” – Chuck Palahniuk

“I write for those that have no voice, for the silent ones who’ve been damaged beyond repair; I write for the broken child within me…”
― Nitya Prakash

“I write because I love writing. I think I became a writer in order to explore my ideas and responses to the world around me, which I often found it difficult to share with others. Also I liked my autonomy, and a writer can choose his or her own working hours – midnight to dawn or whenever.” – Alex Miller

* * *

But you don’t have to be famous to have a gripping reason to write a book. A few weeks ago, my husband and I hosted a local author event for the community we live in. I had asked each of the ten published authors to send me a statement about why they write. Take a look.

As a former ICU nurse and family caregiver, I want to bring God’s hope to anyone facing a health crisis. —Tracy Crump

“I love teaching and encouraging young children. What better way than through story telling! In my barnyard adventures, I teach values and character building in relatable situations. I love how it gives parents a way to spend time with their child while learning values.” —Becky Thomas

“My stories are tales of trials and victory against impossible odds, carrying the message of enduring hope—because fantasy teaches us that with courage and resilience, we can persevere through the most extraordinary things.” —Beth Alvarez

“I created a coloring book to help kids and kids-at-heart relax and take some quiet time to bring color into their lives. We should live life in every color!” —Annette Teepe

“I write because I want to reach out to young readers who may currently have no spiritual interests that they might discover the difference Jesus can make in their lives and consider following Him.” —Larry Fitzgerald

“I write for the Lord, Kay, Arthur, myself, decency, and to add a drop to the sea of literature.” —Frank DiBianca

“My five mystery novels are set primarily in the historic Memphis area during the post war 1940s. They include action, some gun play, humor and even a little romance now and then.” —Nick Nixon

“Countless books have been written about every Beatles song ever recorded, but I really wanted to read a book about all the hits they had as solo artists. Since that book didn’t exist, I decided to write it.” —Gary Fearon

“I write mysteries because they reflect what I believe—that truth is worth pursuing, and that critical thinking, perseverance, and faith will lead us there.” —Kay DiBianca

* * *

So TKZers:  Why do you write? And more specifically, why are you writing the current book you’re working on? Or any book in your backlist. Has your reason for writing changed over time?

 

Only a single star could reveal the truth buried beneath decades of lies. And only one woman had the courage to follow its light.

Click the image to go to the Amazon book detail page.

Celebrating Public Domain Day – Part 2

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Montage of 1929 Works

by Debbie Burke

Y’know what they say about great minds?

Well, Kay DiBianca and I independently had the same idea this week: Public Domain Day 2026.

When I went to schedule my post, I noticed Kay had already scheduled hers. So we put our great minds together and decided that1930 was such an exceptional year for books, films, and music, there was enough to cover without duplicating each other.

So here is Part 2 featuring music and recordings.

George and Ira Gershwin published four great tunes:  I Got Rhythm, I’ve Got a Crush on You, But Not for Me, and Embraceable You.

More hummable earworm songs: Georgia on My Mind, Dream a Little Dream of Me, Body and Soul, Just a Gigolo.

Music and lyrics have their own copyright dates as sheet music but recordings of those songs by particular musicians may fall under different later dates. For 2026, these specific performances entered the public domain:

In an interesting side note, the soundtracks for a number of cartoons were built on musical compositions that had earlier gone into public domain. For boomers, our first introduction of these tunes often came from cartoons, singing along to: “A Hunting We Will Go”, “The Farmer in the Dell”, and “Pop Goes the Weasel”. I have clear memories of several  cartoon heroes playing a flute to coax a cobra from a basket with the “Snake Charmer Song”.

How many of us boomers were called to the TV by the siren song of the “William Tell Overture,” the theme for The Lone Ranger?

Want to stroll farther down memory? Check out Duke University’s annual public domain summaries.

~~~

TKZers: Did any of these characters, books, films, cartoons, or music inspire your writing? Which ones and why?

Would any of these songs play well for the soundtrack of a movie based on your book? Which ones?

~~~

Tawny Lindholm Thrillers will probably enter public domain around the beginning of the 22nd century. Meanwhile, you can read them at this sales link.

Debbie Burke website.

New Year’s Thoughts from Fifteen Authors

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by Debbie Burke

The New Year is a time when many writers ponder what we want to accomplish.

I thought it might be fun to see what well-known authors, past and present, think about the New Year. Here’s a collection of advice, musings, and cautions:

1. “Cheer up! Don’t give way. A new heart for a New Year, always!” – Charles Dickens (1812-1870), English novelist

2. “We went nowhere without figs and never without notebooks; these serve as a relish if I have bread, and if not, for bread itself. They turn every day into a New Year which I make ‘happy and blessed’ with good thoughts and the generosity of my spirit.” – Seneca, who lived at the cusp of BC and AD.

Frances Burney

3. “I opened the new year with what composure I could acquire…and I made anew the best resolutions I was equal to forming, that I would do what I could to curb all spirit of repining, and to content myself calmly—unresistingly, at least, with my destiny.” – Frances Burney AKA Fanny Burney (1752-1840), English novelist and playwright

4. “‘A merry Christmas, and a glad new year,’
Strangers and friends from friends and strangers hear,
The well-known phrase awakes to thoughts of glee;
But, ah! it wakes far different thoughts in me.
[…] I, on the horizon traced by memory’s powers,
Saw the long record of my wasted hours.” – Amelia Alderson Opie (1769-1853), English novelist and abolitionist

5. “Ring out the old, ring in the new,
Ring, happy bells, across the snow:
The year is going, let him go;
Ring out the false, ring in the true.” – Alfred Tennyson (1809-1892), English poet

6. “New Year’s Day: now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual . . . New Year’s is a harmless annual institution, of no particular use to anybody save as a scapegoat for promiscuous drunks, and friendly calls, and humbug resolutions. Yesterday, everybody smoked his last cigar, took his last drink and swore his last oath. Today, we are a pious and exemplary community. Thirty days from now, we shall have cast our reformation to the winds and gone to cutting our ancient shortcomings considerably shorter than ever.”– Mark Twain (1835-1910), American author and humorist

7. “For last year’s words belong to last year’s language. And next year’s words await another voice. And to make an end is to make a beginning.” – T.S. Eliot (1888-1965), American poet

8. “Drop the last year into the silent limbo of the past. Let it go, for it was imperfect, and thank God that it can go.” – Brooks Atkinson (1894-1984), American theatre critic

9. “Youth is when you’re allowed to stay up late on New Year’s Eve. Middle age is when you’re forced to.” – Bill Vaughan (1915-1977), American author and columnist

10. “I made no resolutions for the New Year. The habit of making plans, of criticizing, sanctioning and molding my life, is too much of a daily event for me.” – Anaïs Nin (1903-1977), French-American author

11. “The object of a New Year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul and a new nose; new feet, a new backbone, new ears, and new eyes. Unless a particular man made New Year resolutions, he would make no resolutions. Unless a man starts afresh about things, he will certainly do nothing effective.” – G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936), English author

Benjamin Franklin
Photo credit: Wellcome CC BY-SA 4.0

12. “Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man.” – Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), American author and a founding father of the U.S.

13. “I have always loved New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. Even though our sense of time is arbitrary and human, it still means something. I love the feeling I always get on New Year’s Eve that I am lucky — that the universe has been generous to me, to have let me stick around for another year, and to now erase the slate and give me another chance. Tomorrow I will be gifted with a brand new year — with no mistakes in it yet, and no heartbreaks yet, and no failures yet. I get to try again. Amazing. You will be gifted with this huge blessing, too. A clean and empty book awaits us all. Maybe we will be able to write things differently this time. Maybe a bit better. Maybe we will be wiser this time. At least we get to try. We have all been given a fresh chance. Let’s close the old book, and open a new one.” – Elizabeth Gilbert (1969-), American author

Woody Guthrie Statue
Photo credit: Cosmos Mariner, CC SA-BY 4.0

14. Woody Guthrie (1912-1967), American songwriter, offers his list of resolutions:

  • Work more and better
  • Work by a schedule
  • Wash teeth if any
  • Shave
  • Take bath
  • Eat good—fruit—vegetables—milk
  • Drink very scant if any
  • Write a song a day
  • Wear clean clothes—look good
  • Shine shoes
  • Change socks
  • Change bed cloths often
  • Read lots good books
  • Listen to radio a lot
  • Learn people better
  • Keep rancho clean
  • Dont get lonesome
  • Stay glad
  • Keep hoping machine running
  • Dream good
  • Bank all extra money
  • Save dough
  • Have company but dont waste time
  • Send Mary and kids money
  • Play and sing good
  • Dance better
  • Help win war—beat fascism
  • Love mama
  • Love papa
  • Love Pete
  • Love everybody
  • Make up your mind
  • Wake up and fight

15. And last from Susan Sontag (1933-2004), American author:

“I want to make a New Year’s prayer, not a resolution. I’m praying for courage.”

~~~

TKZers: Which of these quotes resonated with you? Why?

Do you disagree with any of them? Why?

Did you make writing resolutions or set goals? Want to share them?

~~~

Is 2026 the year you want to learn to write fascinating villains and antagonists? Please check out Debbie Burke’s bestselling craft guide, The Villain’s Journey-How to Create Villains Readers Love to Hate.

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Apple

Kobo

Interested in taking a villain workshop from Debbie? Please visit debbieburkewriter.com to learn about upcoming zoom and in person classes.

NATIONAL CLEAN OFF YOUR DESK DAY

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“Cleanliness is indeed next to godliness.” —John Wesley

* * *

Yes, that’s right. Today is National Clean Off Your Desk Day. Oh, great. I just finished putting away the holiday decorations and was working on tax info to turn over to our accountant, and now they tell me I have to clean off my desk. I don’t have time for this.

But I’m a good team player, and my desk definitely needs some reorganization, so I went to the National Clean Off Your Desk Day site to get some inspiration and advice on exactly how to proceed. Here’s what they say:

This day is an opportunity to begin your new year with a clean and organized workspace. Whether your desk is in a private or shared office, cubicle, home or a make-shift desk on the counter, having your workspace uncluttered and organized will help you work more efficiently. A clean workspace improves productivity and inspires us, too. It often gives us a sense of serenity. (My emphasis)

They go on to outline a step-by-step process:

  • Remove everything from your desk. Yes, everything.
  • Clean the surface. As you replace items, clean them with the appropriate cleaning supply. Usually, a damp cloth is sufficient, but other electrical items need specific care.
  • Get out the shredder and the garbage can. Shred, file, scan documents, business cards, recipes, photos as needed.
  • Place all documents and photos in the appropriate locations.
  • Shred and toss outdated documents, non-working pens, junk mail.

That’s good advice, and I was just getting ready to start on Step One when something occurred to me. Maybe there’s another way to look at this.

* * *

“Cleanliness is the scourge of art.” —Craig Brown

I don’t know if Craig Brown is correct, but since I place myself on the messier side of humanity, I want to believe it. Is it possible that creative people are messier than others?

I found evidence in an article on sciencedaily.com entitled “Tidy desk or messy desk? Each has its benefits.”

Working at a clean and prim desk may promote healthy eating, generosity, and conventionality, according to new research. But, the research also shows that a messy desk may confer its own benefits, promoting creative thinking and stimulating new ideas.

Well, that’s a relief. Maybe I can ignore the chaos for a while longer.

In an experiment overseen by psychological researcher Dr. Kathleen Vohs, 48 participants were asked to come up with novel uses for a ping pong ball. Half the participants worked in a messy room and half in a neat room. The result?

Overall, participants in the messy room generated the same number of ideas for new uses as their clean-room counterparts. But their ideas were rated as more interesting and creative when evaluated by impartial judges.

“Being in a messy room led to something that firms, industries, and societies want more of: Creativity,” says Vohs.

And we all know creativity is the lifeblood of good fiction.

So my desk isn’t messy. It’s simply a manifestation of my creativity. I like that.

Now where did I put that stapler?

* * *

So TKZers: What does your desk look like? Does a messy desk inhibit your work? Or does it inspire you?

* * *

 

My ten-year-old protagonist and aspiring novelist, Reen, understands the signs of creativity. When her 9-year-old cousin points out a smudge on Reen’s shirt, she replies, “No problem. Authors are supposed to be sloppy. That’s because we’re creatives.”

I like the way she thinks.

Click the image to go to the universal book link.

New Words, New Worlds

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By Elaine Viets

 New words are multiplying faster than mosquitoes in a Michigan summer. I mean “official” new words. The ones enshrined in a dictionary.

New words are a sign that English is a living, active language. This year, the Merriam Webster Collegiate dictionary added some 5,000 new words and a thousand new phrases.

Some of us are already using these new words. Take “farm-to-table,” which Webster says means food that is “sourced locally and served directly to customers. Old news.

Here are a few other new words and phrases I’m pretty sure you already know:

“Cold brew” is coffee “made by steeping grounds in cold or room temperature water.” That phrase has been around for so long, Starbucks has about nine different cold brew flavors.

“Hard pass,” means not just no, but hell no. Excuse me, it’s a “firm rejection.”

Here’s one new word I’m not familiar with: “petrichor,” which is a “distinctive, earthy, usually pleasant odor that is associated with rainfall especially when following a warm, dry period . . .” I didn’t realize there was a word to describe that smell.

The Oxford English Dictionary has added another definition of the noun  “goo”: “characteristic babbling noises or vocalizations made by babies and by people interacting with them.” The OED reminded us to check out “goo-goo,” which has a similar definition for baby noises.

“Para-athlete, a physically disabled athlete,” is another already familiar OED addition.

And every TKZ reader and writer knows about the dreaded phrase “plot hole.”

The OED likes to add foreign words familiar to many English speakers, including “pobrecita.” The OED says, “Among Hispanic Americans and in Spanish or Latin American contexts” it’s “a poor or unfortunate girl or woman, especially one who deserves pity or sympathy…”

“Perreo” is defined as “a type of dance originating and popular in Puerto Rico and usually performed to reggaeton music, typically characterized by a female dancer  . . .” I’ll stop there. The rest of the entry is a bit spicy, especially for the venerable OED.

The most puzzling word of the year is Dictionary.com’s choice of “67” or “6-7.”

That word has been driving teachers crazy. When they tell their class to “turn to page 67,” or ask students to recite numbers one through ten, “six-seven” can cause pandemonium.

Avoiding ’67’ can be a mark of respect. TKZ reader Alan Portman said, “I was at a class last week. The instructor stopped saying 6 or 7 things and started saying 8. There were several middle school teachers in the room.”

What’s it mean?

Dictionary.com, which nominated “67,” isn’t sure.

“Perhaps the most defining feature of ‘67’ is that it’s impossible to define,” the site said. “It’s meaningless, ubiquitous, and nonsensical. In other words, it has all the hallmarks of brainrot. It’s the logical endpoint of being perpetually online, scrolling endlessly, consuming content fed to users by algorithms trained by other algorithms. And what are we left with in the wake of this relentless sensory overload? ‘67.’”

Don’t underate the power of “67.”

“ . . .it remains meaningful to the people who use it because of the connection it fosters. ‘67’ shows the speed at which a new word can rocket around the world as a rising generation enters the global conversation.”

Six-seven (never sixty-seven) belongs to Gen Alpha, mostly children born from 2010 to the present, though I doubt many babies care about 6-7.

SlangSphere.com gave an erudite explanation. It said, “Simply put, ‘67’ is a slang term that means ‘kill,’ or more broadly, to get rid of, drop, or even ‘leave’ something or someone. . . If someone tells you to ‘67 that plan,’ they mean scrap it.”

The article also has helpful hints on how to use 67:

“Do: Use it with close friends or in casual texting where informal slang is welcome.

“Do: Keep it light and playful—this is slang, not a serious threat.

“Don’t: Use it in professional or formal settings—your boss might get confused (or alarmed).

“Don’t: Use it toward strangers or in sensitive contexts—tone can get lost.

“Do: Use 67 when you want to sound casual and meme-savvy.

“Don’t: Panic if someone says ‘67’ to you. It’s slang, not actual harm.

“Do: Pair it with an emoji to soften the tone, like 😂 or 👋.

“Don’t: Use it to seriously insult someone.

“Do: Remember context is king—know who you’re talking to!

“So, next time you want to digitally ‘kill’ a dull plan or leave a chat dramatically, ‘67’ is your shorthand hero. It’s quirky, a little mysterious, and definitely meme-worthy.”

It’s mysterious, all right. So mysterious, I still can’t figure out if 67 means to kill something, or if it means nothing.

Is it a word with clearly defined rules of etiquette? Or is it a feeling?

67.

 

Preorder now: “Sex and Death on the Beach,” my new Florida mystery, will be published in paperback Dec. 16. https://tinyurl.com/mrc87fm7

The Villain Goes on a Journey

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by Debbie Burke

As writers, we send our characters on long, convoluted journeys to solve mysteries and create exciting compelling stories.

Today I’m going to tell the story about the journey of a book that traveled from point A to point B to point Q to point G to point X to point D to…you get the idea.

In July, my book The Villain’s Journey-How to Create Villains Readers Love to Hate was published.

My custom is to send print copies by snail mail to people who helped develop my books. They may have contributed research, beta read, or otherwise supported the growth from a teeny-weeny seed of an idea to a finished product. Without their help, my books wouldn’t exist. So I’m grateful and want to say “thank you” in a small way.

Let’s back up to 2022. The teeny-weeny seed for The Villain’s Journey came from a comment made by TKZ regular Marilynn Byerly. In response to a post I’d written about villains, she mentioned the hero’s journey was well known but was there a corresponding book about villains?

That sent me down the rabbit hole.

Amazingly, I only found one book devoted to the villain’s journey and it focused on sci-fi and fantasy.

During a conversation with TKZ emeritus Steve Hooley, he said, “Why don’t you write that book?”

Sounded like a great suggestion since there did appear to be a gap in the crime reference library that I could fill.

I wrote a proposal and sent it to TKZ’s wise guru Jim Bell to see what he thought of the idea. He encouraged me to go for it.

Fast forward to summer 2025. I finished the book. Jim wrote a wonderful blurb for it, as did Christopher Vogler, author of The Writer’s Journey: Mythic Structure for Writers.

These two respected powerhouses gave my book invaluable credibility in the writing craft world. I’m overwhelmed with gratitude to Jim and Chris for their support.

When the print books arrived, of course, I wanted the first two copies to go to Jim and Chris. I inscribed them, packaged them in padded envelopes, and took them to the post office. The clerk double-checked the addresses in the computer, printed out labels with bar codes, and off they went. Easy-peasy.

More than a month later, the post office returned Jim’s copy to me. A label said: “Return to Sender, address unknown, no such number, no such zone—” Oh, wait, that was Elvis.

This label claimed insufficient address, unable to forward, return to sender. Someone had written in red marker “Wrong address” above the printed post office label.

I double-checked the mailing address with Jim. Yup, I’d used the correct one and the post office label was indeed correct.

So why did the book come back to me?

I typed the tracking number into the search box for usps.com. The shipping history showed a long and winding road.

On August 13, the book began its journey from Kalispell, MT where I mailed it. It then travelled to distribution centers in Missoula, MT, Spokane, WA, Los Angeles, Santa Clarita, and landed at Jim’s neighborhood post office on August 18. So far so good.

Then the journey started twisting.

On August 18, the book was delivered to an address with a notation in the tracking history “delivered, front door/porch.”

On August 27, the next notation said, “insufficient address” followed by a notation “return to sender processed.”

Huh?

It then traveled back to the Santa Clarita distribution center and arrived August 29 in Aurora, CO. The same day, it was sent on to the Billings distribution center.

Okay, Billings is in Montana.

Two days later, it apparently took the wrong freeway off ramp, headed south, and arrived at the Phoenix, AZ distribution center.

Uh, Phoenix is not in Montana.

It sat in Phoenix for two days then was sent back to Aurora, CO distribution center. It sat there for two more days.

Then it went to Billings again.

Okay, at least it’s now back in the right state.

Then it took another wrong freeway exit. Whoops.

A day later, it shows up at the Denver, CO distribution center.

Three days later, it’s at the Missoula, MT distribution center. Then it’s sent 120 miles north to Kalispell and arrives there to be processed.

Whoops, U-turn back to Missoula for another day.

Another U-turn from Missoula back to Kalispell.

Finally, more than a month after the book began its journey, it was returned to me in Kalispell as “undeliverable, insufficient address.”

This poor villain had been on a journey that was a cross between Where’s Waldo and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride.

 

Cyril Thomas, CC BY-SA 3.0 <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/>, via Wikimedia Common

Putting on my Sherlock Holmes’ deerstalker hat, I’m guessing a mail carrier delivered the package to someone else’s house in Jim’s neighborhood. That resident probably wrote “wrong address” on it. If the carrier had rechecked the address, they should have realized, “Oh, shoot, that’s the house down the street” and delivered it. Instead, they dumped the package into the system.

This Villain’s Journey should have been 1350 miles. Instead, it turned into an epic road trip of 7700 miles.

I wish the lost, wandering package qualified for frequent flyer miles—I’d have enough miles for a plane ticket from Montana to California to personally deliver Jim’s book. After all the years of following TKZ, I would have finally enjoyed the pleasure of meeting Jim in person.

The villain is now on its second journey. I hope by the time this post goes live, Jim will have received his book.

In our stories, we send our characters on long, convoluted journeys to solve mysteries. 

The mystery of why the post office sent this book on a 7700-mile journey may never be solved. If only the book could talk…

~~~

TKZers, do you have a story about unexpected detours courtesy of the post office? Please share.

~~~

This blurb makes me very proud:

“Debbie Burke has filled a critical gap in writing craft instruction…authors of any genre will benefit by using The Villain’s Journey to take a deeper dive into the antagonist of their story.” – James Scott Bell, International Thriller Writers award winner, author of more than 30 bestselling craft of writing books.

 

If you’d like a print copy of The Villain’s Journey, Amazon and Barnes & Noble have good track records of delivering books without unexpected side trips.

Fear of Failure

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* * *

Babe Ruth played professional baseball for 22 years (1914-1935) and is considered one of the greatest players who ever lived. He had almost 3,000 hits in his career, averaging more than one hit per game. For many years, he held the record for the number of home runs hit during a single season (60 in 1927). His total number of home runs over his professional career was 714, a record which stood until 1974.

But there’s another statistic you may not have known: Babe Ruth struck out 1,330 times. Apparently, he never let the fear of failure keep him from playing the game.

* * *

Fear is part of being human. It goes along with the DNA, and it can be healthy because it instills the instinct for survival we all need. But fears can be unhealthy if we give in to them and become more cautious than we need to be.

Once we let our fears control us, things can get out of hand. A phobia is defined as an irrational fear of something that causes anxiety when a person is exposed to that particular thing.

We all know about fear of heights (acrophobia) and fear of spiders (arachnophobia), but when I searched around for a complete list, I found more than one hundred things on healthline.com to be afraid of! Here are a few I found interesting.

 

Fear of flowers (anthophobia) – Better not go for a walk in my neighborhood.

Fear of numbers (arithmophobia) – I have a friend who insists she “can’t do numbers”

Fear of books (bibliophobia) – Oh no!

 

Fear of failure (atychiphobia) – Ah, now here’s one we can relate to.

* * *

Failure is something we all experience, but I suspect the fear of failure is more acute in disciplines that require creativity than in other areas. The very word “create” implies something new, and that means it may not work.

I’ve read research that shows high achievers are very likely to experience fear of failure. (I imagine some of us here at TKZ fall into this category.) Having achieved success in their professional lives, these folks see anything less than a fabulous accomplishment as inadequacy.

Many high achievers will work hard to avoid that stigma, but others would rather drop out of the race than risk what they perceive as failure.

So how do authors stay in the game and handle that scary thought that they won’t be able to write another book as good as the last one?  There are ways to minimize those concerns. According to an article on betterhealth.vic.gov.au, the same things that enhance creativity can be used to fight the fear of failure.

“There are several ways you can try to fight your fears.… Simple changes, like exercising regularly, can reduce your stress levels. So can eating healthy meals, getting enough sleep, and reducing or avoiding stimulants like caffeine and alcohol.”

And don’t forget the Babe. You can’t hit a home run if you don’t step up to the plate.

 

So TKZers: Do you experience a fear of failure in your writing? How do you fight it?

* * *

The saga continues with Knights in Manhattan, the second novel in the Reen & Joanie Detective Agency middle grade mystery series.

  • Joanie is afraid of flying.
  • Reen is afraid she might not catch the thieves.
  • Mrs. Toussaint isn’t afraid of anything.

Join the fun with the R&J Detective Agency as they track down nefarious crooks in Manhattan. New York will never be the same.

$1.99 on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, and Google Play

ARGGH! Words We Love to Hate

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By Elaine Viets

You know, some words and phrases are getting on my nerves. Most people would say it is what it is and at the end of the day, let it go. I know, right? But I’ve been doing some online research. There are certain sayings that tick people off. And readers are people, too. You don’t want to turn off your readers with annoying phrases. Just sayin’.
These outstandingly irritating phrases are garnered from various corners of the web.
Think carefully before you use them in your writing. You may want to save them for your most hateful characters.

Just sayin’. The winner! Nearly everyone hates this redundant phrase. I mean, you’ve already said what you were going to say, right?

Literally. I confess I’ve used this one and thought it was pretty clever – the first time. Then I noticed that word in every novel I picked up – literally.

It is what it is. This meaningless phrase is enough to send me screaming into the night. Please don’t use it.

At this moment in time. What’s wrong with “now”? Can this pretentious phrase.

Everything happens for a reason. Usually said after some meaningless tragedy, and meant as consolation. If you don’t have that comforting belief system, this phrase triggers an urge to slap that person silly. Also avoid this phrase: Whenever God closes a door, he opens a window. I had a roommate like that. Very annoying.

Honestly. Often a trigger word indicating the person using it is lying. Use it carefully.

My bad. A cutesy way of glossing over a mistake. This phrase says, “I know I did something offensive and I don’t care.”

I want 110 percent. Right, boss. Except your math doesn’t add up.

No worries. Some people find this phrase a little passive-aggressive. In other words, when someone says, “No worries,” they’re really telling you that you should be worried.

At the end of day. As in, “At the end of the day, getting a new CEO won’t make any difference. This company is doomed.” This crutch will cripple any sentence.

With all due respect. The warm-up to an insult. “With all due respect, even in your prime you weren’t that good.”

That’s my list, and it’s pretty good, in IMHO (oops, there’s another one.) Now’s your chance. What tired words and phrases would you like to see retired?

Now hear this! SEX AND DEATH ON THE BEACH, my new Florida Beach mystery, is now an audio book. https://tinyurl.com/9amkzaf4

Fluff, Flab, and Filler

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Canada wildfires are affecting the air quality in my area. The National Weather Service wrote, “acceptable; however, the air quality may pose a moderate health concern for a very small number of individuals.”

Strange statement, considering three out of four of my closest friends feel like they have a sinus infection or head cold. I wouldn’t classify 75% as a “very small number of individuals.” Also, who writes for the National Weather Service? Can’t be a professional writer, or “very small” wouldn’t be the term they used.

Substitutes for “very small”

  • Tiny
  • Minuscule
  • Minute
  • Few
  • Diminutive
  • Limited
  • Trifling
  • Teensy-weensy
  • Slight

The subject of fluff arose last week while I was reading a brand new writer’s partial manuscript, including a prologue that was all backstory—important for her to know but irrelevant to the reader.

Rather than teach her how to tighten her writing, I focused on scene structure and techniques to force her characters to do something, anything. After several pages of notes, the fluff conversation could wait. The last thing I wanted was to obliterate a young writer’s dreams. Instead, I gave her a gentle nudge in the right direction.

For those farther along in their journey or career, recognizing fluff is an important subject. Those pesky buggers that sneak into first drafts and weaken our writing are better known as filler words and phrases aka fluff or flab.

If a filler word serves a purpose, such as to enhance characterization in dialogue, keep it. The objective is to tighten the writing by eliminating unnecessary words or phrases that might distract the reader.

Filler/Fluff/Flab Words 

Just

Just should almost always be deleted.

Original: I just couldn’t bear to say goodbye.

Rewrite: I couldn’t bear to say goodbye.

That

That litters many first drafts, but it can often be deleted without any harm to the original sentence.

Original: I believe that all writers should kill their darlings.

Rewrite: All writers should kill their darlings.

The original sentence has another problem. Did you catch it? Believe in this context is a telling word. Any time we tell the reader things like “I thought” or “He knew” or “She felt” or “I believe,” we slip out of deep POV. Thus, the little darling must die, as I did in the rewrite.

So

Original: So, this huge guy glared at me in the coffee line.

Rewrite: This musclebound, no-necked guy glared at me in the coffee line.

Confession: I use “so” all the time IRL. It’s also one of the (many) writing tics I search for in my work. The only exception to eliminating this, or any other, filler word is if it’s used with purpose, like as a character cue word.

Really

Original: She broke up with him. He still really loves her.

Sometimes removing filler means combining or rewording sentences.

Rewrite: When she severed their relationship, his heart weakened.

Very

We’ve established where the National Weather Service went wrong with very, but I’ll include it anyway.

Original: He made me very happy.

Rewrite: When he neared, my skin tingled.

Of

To determine if “of” is necessary read the sentence with and without it. Makes sense without it? Delete. Doesn’t? Keep it.

Original: She bolted out of the door.

Rewrite: She bolted out the door.

Up (following an action)

Original: He stood up tall.

Rewrite: He stood tall.

Down (following an action)

Original: He sat down on the sofa.

Rewrite: He sat on the sofa.

Want(ed)

Want/wanted are telling words. Rewrite to preserve deep POV.

Original: I really wanted the chocolate cake.

Substitute with a strong verb, such as: I drooled over the chocolate cake. One bite. What could it hurt?

Came/Went

Both are filler words because they’re not specific enough.

Original: I went to the store to buy my favorite ice cream.

Rewrite: I raced to Marco’s General Store to feed my craving for coffee ice cream.

Had

Too many had words give the impression the action took place prior to the main storyline. If it is used in a flashback, one had in the opening sentence signals the beginning, one at the end closes the scene. But if it’s clear the action occurred in the past, had can often be omitted.

Original: I had gazed at the painting for hours, waiting for the eyes to move.

Rewrite: For hours, I gazed at the painting. The eyes never moved.

Well (to start a sentence)

Original: Well, the homecoming queen attended the dance without the homecoming king.

Rewrite: The homecoming queen attended the dance, stag.

Literally/Basically

Original: I basically had to drag her out of the bar by her hair.

Rewrite: I dragged her out of the bar by her hair.

Original: I literally laundered money today. Still plucking bills from the lint filter.

Rewrite: I laundered money today. Still plucking bills from the lint filter.

Actually

Original: Actually, I did mind.

Rewrite: I minded.

Highly

Original: She was highly annoyed by his presence.

Rewrite: His presence infuriated her.

Totally

Original: I totally didn’t understand a word.

Rewrite: Huh? *kidding* I didn’t understand a word. Was that English?

And any other -ly adverb. Can you substitute with a strong verb or noun instead?

Anyway (to start a sentence)

Original: Anyway, I hope you laughed, loved, and lazed on your summer vacation.

Rewrite: I hope you laughed, loved, and lazed on your summer vacation.

Fluff Phrases

Most of these phrases should be omitted. If used for a purpose, like to enhance characterization with a catch phrase, feel free to keep it. Otherwise, delete. It’s even more important to eliminate fluff if you’re still developing your voice.

A bit

Original: The movie was a bit intense. Lots of blood.

Rewrite: Intense movie. Blood galore.

There is no doubt that

Original: There is no doubt that football season begins in the fall.

Rewrite: Football season begins in the fall.

The reason is that

Original: The reason is that I said you can’t go.

Rewrite: Because I said so, that’s why (shout-out to moms everywhere!).

The question as to whether

Original: The question as to whether the moon will rise again is irrelevant.

Rewrite: Whether the moon will rise again is irrelevant.

Whether or not

Original: Whether or not you agree is not my problem.

Or worse: Whether you agree or not is not my problem.

Rewrite: Whether you agree is not my problem.

This is a topic that

Original: This is a topic that is close to my heart.

Rewrite: This topic is close to my heart.

In spite of the fact 

Original: In spite of the fact that he said he loved you, he’s married.

Rewrite: Although he professed his love, he’s married.

Or: Despite that he claimed to love you, he’s married.

The fact that

Original: The fact that he has not succeeded means he cannot do the job.

Rewrite: His failure proves he cannot do the job.

In order to

Original: In order to pay bills online, you need internet access.

Rewrite: To pay bills online, you need internet access.

At the end of the day

Original: At the end of the day, we’re all human.

Rewrite: We’re human. Fallible.

Not gonna lie

This phrase irritates me, is overused by the younger crowd, and only raises questions.

  • Why would you lie? We’re having a friendly conversation.
  • Never considered you’d lie, but now I’m suspicious.

Original: Not gonna lie, that chocolate cake almost killed me.

Rewrite: That chocolate cake almost killed me.

I’ve joined the crowd affected by air pollutants from the wildfires. Please bear with me today. Not feeling my best. But don’t let that stop you from adding filler words & phrases I missed.