The new Vox Swift mystery is up on Amazon! The Girl in Gold is book 2 of the series and wow was it fun to revisit the world of Thornbury. I knew that I wanted to return to find out what Vox and Even and the others had been up to since the end of Thornbury Confidential. And I know that I will return again — book 3 is already brewing in the back of my mind. I was fortunate to have the help of the very talented Taryn Costello for the cover. She’s agreed to redesign the cover for Thornbury …Read more »
- About Beth Lyons
- How to Play English Eerie
- Lesbian Fiction
- LitRPG
- Request Editing Help
- Science Fiction Sample
- The Forest Grove Sound
- Privacy
- The Soul Thief
- Thornbury Confidential
- Contact Me
Tag Archives: Characters
Plot Problems Solved
I like to be surprised. Fresh implications and plot twists erupt as a story unfolds. Characters develop backgrounds, adding depth and feeling. Writing feels like exploring. ~ David Brin New writers tend to overthink plot. They outline and organize. Overthink and under-do. It’s safer to outline than to write. Feels easier too. Except that it’s not. Tell me a story Tell me a story. That’s all. The plot will work itself out. Unless you are telling an epic tale worthy of Tolkien or a mystery intricate enough to stump Agatha Christie, plot can take a backseat to good old fashioned storytelling. …Read more »
Fiction Engine
A novel is a machine. This is never more evident than during editing. Scenes come together like the gears meshing inside an engine. And for the writer, when the first draft is long done, and the story has lain fallow for a time, coming back to the story is like lifting the hood of your trusty car. You are now ready to edit! Editing When I was younger I did not care for editing. I thought that inspiration fell upon one from heaven and words flowed like a deep river. Poetry taught me the error of this thinking. I learned to …Read more »
Creation vs Editing
I’ve just started a new novel. It’s exciting, scary, and a little painful. I’ve been revising my murder mystery (coming soon!) for so long that it’s hard to shift into pure writing. The gulf between creation and revision is deep. In one realm you are trying to let your mind break free and in the other you concentrate on the minutia. Maybe it’s the difference between distance running and rock climbing. There — I like that analogy: running versus climbing. Running with only a basic idea of your path and plan, versus carefully, painstakingly climbing to a predetermined destination. I enjoy …Read more »
Time Travelers
True story: Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day — which is a rare thing in Portland in winter. Like the rest of the city, Debbie and I decided to take a walk along the waterfront, and it was there that we met three time travelers. They didn’t tell us they were time travelers — I mean, temporal prime directive, right? But it became obvious as they hurried away from us. We were on the west side, well south of the Hawthorne bridge and three young women approached us coming in the opposite direction. The short one said, “Can you tell us where this …Read more »
Running in the Rain
In a 1999 essay for the New York Times Joyce Carol Oates muses about running. She says: “Ideally, the runner who’s a writer is running through the land- and cityscapes of her fiction, like a ghost in a real setting.” I am beyond thrilled to know that I share a habit with one of the best (and most prolific) writers in the US. As I’ve said before, it’s a fairly new hobby for me, but one that has a great impact on my life, health, and art. These days I’m always wrestling with one story or another — at the …Read more »
My Books
Recent Posts
NaNoWriMo 2014
Recent Comments
Archives
- August 2021
- May 2019
- June 2018
- November 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- February 2016
- January 2016
- November 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- November 2014
- October 2014
- March 2014
- February 2014
- March 2013
- February 2013
- January 2013
- December 2012
- November 2012
- May 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- November 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007
Categories
Friends and Favorites
Our Hen House
Compassionate CookTag Cloud
Adventurer's Guide to StorytellingAnimal rightsBakingBooksCharactersdialogDivasDungeons and DragonseditingFictionGamesGiGGuardian GamesIndiraLesbian fictionLesbian love storiesLitRPGNaNoWriMoOrisheaPoetryResearchRunningSamplescience fiction short storiesSerenityShackled CitySpaceStalking HorseThe Soul ThiefThe VaalThornbury ConfidentialWritingArchives
- August 2021
- May 2019
- June 2018
- November 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- February 2016
- January 2016
- November 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- November 2014
- October 2014
- March 2014
- February 2014
- March 2013
- February 2013
- January 2013
- December 2012
- November 2012
- May 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- November 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- January 2008
- December 2007