Author: Leslie
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Cycles and Seasons
We all go through cycles of life, but so do characters in your book. Have you stopped to consider the way that these cycles can differ from your MC and secondary characters?
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Visual Inspiration
I’m a visual learner. I am the kind of person who used to be able to picture charts and images on a test from my notes. I didn’t learn how to use that to my advantage until well into my college career, though. Now, I use visuals to get inspiration whenever I need a story…
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Envisioning the future
Check out the four things I’ve done to craft a better, stronger, clearer vision of what I want my future to hold.
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The “why” behind your “what”
At the beginning of the school year, we got a talk from our area superintendent and he asked us all: What is the “why” behind your “what”? This was a really introspective question for me, and not only in the way that I look at my teaching career or lesson plans, but in the way…
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Currently Consuming June 2019
My last post, I shared some of my favorite tools and items. It got me thinking about how fun it could be to really track and share my journey through what I read, watch, listen to, etc. in case you are looking for something new to try or have heard of something and would like…
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Another year…
Tomorrow is my birthday! And I’m really excited with the way that this past year has really shaped up and is projecting me into the future. Here are a couple of things that I am reflecting on as I log another year in the books: I am only capable of so much The past few…
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The Power of “No”
I recently started freelancing and picked up a few jobs that went fairly quickly. It was exciting and I quickly took on a larger editing project and a smaller, ongoing one. However, it was soon clear that the smaller job was actually a lot more work than I had anticipated, and, paired with tight deadlines,…
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Revision Part 2: Layering
Now that I’m knee-deep in the revision trenches, I wanted to share exactly how I go about my revisions and the way that I layer what I’m looking for as I read through my manuscript. When it comes time to revise your draft, it can seem overwhelming to look at all the words you’ve written…
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Revisions Part 1: Getting Organized
I’m finally in revisions! Cue fanfare and vacations and winning the jackpot! Okay, maybe not, but it sure feels that awesome. Until….I turn back around from my daydream and see this hulking beast of a manuscript staring back at me (one reason I took a break before jumping in to revisions). Does anyone else feel…
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How Life Informs Craft: People We Admire
If you missed my first post explaining what this series is about, check it out HERE. Event There is a particular woman in my life that I admire greatly. She is strong, wise, kind, funny, and an awesome person to be around. The other day, I overheard someone recalling a memory of her and I…
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How Life Informs Craft : Celebrating the “Other”
So, I was dwelling the other day on an event that I happened to be fortunate enough to witness. As I continued thinking about it, I realized that so much of the day-to-day experiences we have can actually inform the way that we approach our writing. That’s why I’ve decided to start a new series…
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Character Profile Freebie!
This month on Instagram, I’m focusing on character. It is interesting when I am looking at revising my draft to think that I need to rework my characters. Shouldn’t they already be “done” and good to go? Not really. I wrote characters in draft one who did and said what they needed or wanted, but…
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Creating Tension
A few days ago, I posted a question on Instagram about how other authors add tension to their stories. Most of the responses that I got went something like this: -Identify what you character wants -Then, use what your character needs as an obstacle to keep him/her from that want Sounds simple enough, right? In…
Leslie Arambula 