Set-backs in writing are…frustrating. And discouraging. I know set-backs are common for writers. Stories not working out, characters falling flat, readers not understanding something in the book, etc. There are always scenes to revise and stories to sort out. And it takes humility to see it, to say, “It’s not ready yet,” and be willing …
Category: The Writing Life
How Our Company of Fools Changed My Writing
Fueled by an explosion of inspiration and angst, I wrote Our Company of Fools at the beginning of January 2016. I’d never written a book of that length that quickly. I’d never written a more personally emotional book. I never wrestled so much with a story through the ebbs and flows of editing and revision. …
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Reading Recap 2021
Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, and Happy Holidays! 2021 is coming to an end, and that means it’s time to ring in what’s becoming an annual tradition for me: my reading recap of the year! Since I read nearly 40 books this year, I'm only going to go over a few of the highlights. I’ve …
Writing Update: December 2021
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Here’s my present to you: a Winter Writing Update! My latest writing update can be summed up in one simple sentence: I’m going all in to the Whitman Court series. While this isn’t necessarily shocking or new, it’s reflective of my state of mind to actually declare the series as …
My 10th Novel Wasn’t What I Expected…
On September 30, 2021, I hit a special milestone. I finished my 10th original novel. “Finished” used very, very loosely—there’s still a lot of editing to come. The funny thing is...I didn’t expect this book to be No. 10. I’ve been waiting to hit this milestone for nearly three years now, and I never would’ve …
August 2021 Writing Update
I’ll admit, it’s weird to reach the start of a new academic semester and NOT have homework to do. And...no sugar coating about it, I don’t miss it. It’s SO GOOD to be done with school. Though earlier this summer I thought I’d start up my monthly schedule writing updates again, I’m just going to …
Lessons from Over a Decade of Writing
I usually mark my birthmonth (August) with a reflective post about personal life. While the season of transition from graduate school into a full-time job certainly merits a robust personal reflection, I’m not quite ready to try and put into words all that I’m thinking and learning right now. Instead, I wanted to take a …
June 2021 Writing Update
The monthly writing updates are back, and with TWO exciting announcements! First, a brief life update: I graduated with my master’s degree in May and started my first fulltime job earlier this week. I’m so excited to be done with school, and hope to replace evening homework time with daily writing. I’m setting a goal …
What God is Teaching Me During Grad School
This is not an easy post for me to write. One, because what I’ve been reflecting on and growing in feels super complex to distill down, and two, because it is hard for me to be vulnerable these days. A lot of my growth over the past two years in graduate school relates back to …
An Overdue Writing Update – March 2021
Long time, no post! Honestly, I haven’t had much time to write, and when I’ve had the time I’ve lacked a lot of motivation and energy to do so. Grad school is as demanding as ever, even in the last semester, and I was in a wedding last month, which meant I tried to get …
By Madelynn Orion 