MGOC Contributor: Nicole Peeler

NICOLE PEELER
EXCERPT from "Almost Finished" by Nicole Peeler in Many Genres, One Craft: Lessons in Writing Popular Fiction

I’m nearly finished with my rough draft of Eye of the Tempest. In fact, I’m just about to embark on (gutting and re)writing one of the mini-climactic scenes that will shortly lead up to the big bang climax. This is not to say that the book is nearly done. How hard it is to get oneself over that last hump which is the near-end of the book. I think this difficulty consists of a bunch of elements, including (but not limited to) the following:

* Commitment issues! We all have ‘em, to a certain extent. And let’s face it: finishing a book is a commitment. You’ve committed yourself to having written book X, when, conceivably, you could have written books Y, Z, or (unpronounceable symbol, a la Prince, here), instead.
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Nicole D. Peeler received an undergraduate degree in English Literature from Boston University, and a PhD in English Literature from the University of Edinburgh, in Scotland. She’s lived abroad in both Spain and the UK, and lived all over the USA. Currently, she resides outside Pittsburgh, to teach in Seton Hill’s MFA in Popular Fiction. When she’s not in the classroom infecting young minds with her madness, she’s writing Urban Fantasy for Orbit Books and taking pleasure in what means most to her: family, friends, food, and travel.

You can find her blogging at http://www.nicolepeeler.com, as well as at the League of Reluctant Adults and Pens Fatales. She’d love for you to add her on Facebook (Nicole Peeler), and on Twitter (NicolePeeler).

MGOC Contributor News: Heidi Ruby Miller Named Editor of Dog Star Books

Many Genres One Craft co-editor Heidi Ruby Miller was named managing editor of Dog Star Books, a new Science Fiction imprint from Raw Dog Screaming Press.

The announcement was made at DogCon by RDSP co-owner Jennifer Barnes. Visit the Dog Star Books blog for more information.

MGOC Event: Michael A. Arnzen Poetry Reading at DV8

If you live in the Pittsburgh/Greensburg area, join Many Genres, One Craft co-editor Michael A. Arznen for a horror poetry reading alongside Seton Hill Writer Stephanie Wytovich at DV8 Espresso Gallery and Cafe in Downtown Greensburg on November 10th at 7PM.

This "Halloween Resurrection" is free to the public. A book signing will follow.

DV8 is located on 208 S. Pennsylvania Avenue, Greensburg, PA 15601.
Phone: 724-219-0804.

MGOC Contributor News: Shelley Adina's Magnificent Devices

Many Genres, One Craft contributor Shelley Adina has a new novel out--Magnificent Devices.

An air voyage to remember turns into a disaster no one may survive.

With her orphaned charges, Lady Claire Trevelyan joins the Earl of Dunsmuir’s family on an airship voyage to the Americas. If she can stay out of Lord James Selwyn’s way until her eighteenth birthday, she will be of age and cannot be forced into marriage. What she doesn’t know is that Lord James is in the Americas, too, with Andrew Malvern closing in on him—and the wonderful device he stole. But when a storm cripples the airship and air pirates swoop in like carrion birds, Claire and the children must live by their wits to make their way across a harsh landscape. Will Andrew ever see her again and right the wrong he believes he has done? Will Lord James succeed in his monumental thievery? And how exactly does Rosie the chicken evade the soup pot?

Tighten your goggles, pull on your gloves, and prepare yourself for stratagems and strangeness in the third book in the series, Magnificent Devices!

MGOC Contributor: Lee McClain

Lee McClain
EXCERPT from "Time Management: Creative Paths to Productivity" by Lee McClain in Many Genres, One Craft: Lessons in Writing Popular Fiction

Time management? Ugh. Sounds like a seminar topic at a business event.

Careful management of time doesn’t come naturally to most creative writers, but that doesn’t mean it’s unimportant. Figuring out this skill often means the difference between success and failure as a writer.

I can hear the protests now. Many writers assume that their possibilities of success depend on skill, talent, and creativity. While these qualities are important, none of them can manifest themselves unless a writer is willing and able to devote time to her craft. That means time to read in the genre, time to draft, time to revise, and time to study the market. When I directed Seton Hill’s graduate writing program, I saw many talented writers fail due to not managing their time; conversely, I saw writers who started out with what looked like very moderate talent improve and succeed—and publish—due to the massive time they devoted to their craft.

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Dr. Lee Tobin McClain happily divides her time between teaching and writing and finds that the two pursuits enrich each other. She writes romantic suspense, fiction for children and teens, and nonfiction essays and magazine articles. Among her novels are My Loco Life, My Alternate Life, and Sizzle. Her teaching interests include children's and YA literature, magazine writing, composition, and creative writing. The former Director of the Writing Popular Fiction Graduate Program at Seton Hill University, Dr. McClain now mentors graduate students. Find her on Amazon at http://www.amazon.com/Lee-McClain/e/B001KIDROM