REVIEWS!!! I have to admit that I was ready to take a break from writing. My plan was to spend the next six months editing old work and then reassess where I was at, to see if I wanted to try it again. This was spawned by a combination of frustration with my horror novel … Continue reading Writing Update – November 2021
The Wonderland Awards – November 2021
I got a chance to be around some of my favorite people on this planet, a “second family” as someone called it that weekend. I’m speaking of the Wonderland Awards that took place last week. The awards celebrate the best bizarro fiction novel and collection each year. Thirty-some authors and artists converged at the picturesque … Continue reading The Wonderland Awards – November 2021
Back to Bizarro
These past six months I’ve dedicated myself to horror—reading it, writing it, watching it. As a newcomer, there was so much to learn, so much to consume. These have been some of the most fun and most terrifying (in a good way) months of my writing journey. I even had a story accepted in a … Continue reading Back to Bizarro
The Best Cat a Boy Could Have
Queenie at age 19, still looking like a kitten A week ago, I lost one of my dearest friends. My cat Queenie, my constant companion of these past 19 years, passed away. She left this existence peacefully, but still it has hit me hard. I’ve found some solace reflecting on the 19 years of memories … Continue reading The Best Cat a Boy Could Have
Writing Update – October 2021
This might be a shorter post than usual as I’m devoting every moment of free time to writing my novella (still without a title). Speaking of that novella, it’s coming along great. There are, of course, the struggles, the neurotic wordsmithing, and lots and lots of self-doubt, but overall, I’m doing better than I thought. … Continue reading Writing Update – October 2021
Writing Update – September 2021
My productivity this month has been good but not great. I took a week off to visit my brother’s family in El Paso. The desert climate and the company of loved ones thoroughly reenergized me. But on returning to Seattle, the gray, autumn-like weather dampened that. Still I’m chugging along, albeit a little slower than … Continue reading Writing Update – September 2021
Announcement: My 1st Print Acceptance!
While in El Paso last week visiting family, I received an email from Ghost Orchid Press about a story I submitted a while back (you may remember me mentioning it here). I opened it with my mother, expecting another rejection slip to add to my collection. That was not the case. My eyes alighted on … Continue reading Announcement: My 1st Print Acceptance!
10 Favorite Writing Tips
My writing library When searching the Internet for writing advice, you’ll come across a lot of the same information. These are the basics: avoid adverbs, use an active voice, utilize all five senses, etc. And while these are important tips (I don’t like to use the word “rules”), there is so much more out there. … Continue reading 10 Favorite Writing Tips
Writing Update – August 2021
In last month’s update, I lamented how each month I seem to abandon a writing project in favor of a new one. Well, I’m proud to admit I’m still working on the same novel from last month. I’m passionate about this project—in a way I haven’t been in a long time. I still haven’t come … Continue reading Writing Update – August 2021
Writing Update – July 2021
All month I’ve noticed a lack of inspiration and a decline in the quality of my writing. I’m still fulfilling my promise to myself to write a short story each week, but I’ve been unimpressed with the results. At first, I thought that it was me, that I was failure as a writer, that I … Continue reading Writing Update – July 2021
Zé Burns | Blog 