Before we turn our backs on 2021, it only makes sense that we reflect back on those books that lingered with us as we hunkered down and rode the waves of "Pandemic Year #2" (ugh! whatta year!).  In no particular order (well, okay, in the order in which they were received), here are the BRP bloggers and their stated favorites from the-year-that-will-not-be-named-again (at least in this post): Diana Hurwitz Jack Castle's fantasy/sci-fi books   Deborah Crombie's mysteries The Last Magician by Lisa Maxwell   Dani Greer Andrea Penrose's Wrexford & Sloane mystery series Mimi Matthews' Parish Orphans of Devon series Vintage 1954 by Antoine Laurain The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper by Phaedra Patrick Katherine Center's standalones Ann Parker Barbara Hambly's Benjamin January historical mystery series  (Hambly also writes a LOT of fantasy) Silverview by John le Carré Elle Carter Neal Middle-grade book  The House at the Edge of Magic by Amy Sparkes ,...

Often publications that do best-of series use a format of short bullet points: The best movies, the best books, the best food, etc, All with short lists of what the editors considered listing at the top for the last year or for the last decade. Here at the Blood-Red Pencil, we've been going a little more in-depth with what we consider the best for the past decade in terms of benefiting the writer, and perhaps the best to use going forward with our writing. For instance, we're looking at the best writers websites, the best writers resources, the best instructional books, and... Well, you get my drift. Here are some of what I consider the best instructional and inspirational websites for writers. I'd be remiss in not mentioning that the Blood-Red Pencil has a wealth of information and advice , but there are a few other blogs and websites I visit frequently. The first, and perhaps my favorite, is Writer Unboxed . I've been a fan of that website for a number of ...

When I pondered what to write about for this month's theme of "Best writing hacks ever," it occurred to me that better minds than mine have probably made lists and offered suggestions on the topic. I decided to do a little search and see what I could find. As you might imagine, I found plenty! Without further ado, here is a random compendium of offerings from the vast world of the internet, in ever-ascending numbers of suggestions per list... From Learn How to Write a Novel: 3 Hacks to Write a Rough Draft , by Michelle Griep From Freewrite: 6 Neuroscience Hacks to Beat Writer's Block (This one includes additional links to articles in Psychology Today , The Guardian , etc., about writing and writer's block.) From Positive Writer: 6 Weird but Awesome Hacks for a Happy Writing Life , by Shanan Haislip From Lifehack: 8 Great Writing Hacks Every Creative Writer and Blogger Should Know , by Ivan Dimitrijevic From The Writing Cooperative: 12 Writing Hacks Yo...

Before looking ahead to my hopes for 2020 when it comes to my writing, I want to share a couple of highlights from last year. While  I can't say that 2019 was a great writing year, there have been a couple of notable highlights. First was the publication of the fictionalized version of my mother's life, Evelyn Evolving: A Story of Real Life , which was published in May by Next Chapter Publishing. When the book was first released, it was a number one bestseller at Amazon in several categories, including women's biography and young adult biography. Since then, it has flirted with a number one spot off and on, and has often been in the top ten. Seeing that little tan best-seller tag on the book's Amazon page always made me smile. We dream often of having a best-selling book. And while this wasn't as prestigious as having a New York Times best-selling book, it certainly did this writer's heart good. Not just from a professional standpoint, but also knowing th...