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What Happens When You See Your Story Differently?
Sometimes, the ending of a story changes. I finished my latest novel today. And no, writing “The End” on a story—and I literally do that—never gets old. This story had its spark in 2019. I piddled with it off and on until New Year’s Day 2025 when I decided this book would be the book I finish this year. I intended to finish it by 1 April. That didn’t happen. But I’m really glad it took me this long because I never would have reached the ending I wrote. Am I Really Changing the Ending? As I walked the dogs on Thursday evening, I was pondering how and what to…
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How to Talk About The Life of Chuck Without Spoilers?
I work in marketing. Glad I wasn’t on the marketing team for The Life of Chuck. I mean how do you market a film arguably best viewed knowing nothing going in? A week or so ago, Mark Hamill, who stars in the movie, was on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert. They chatted up his role in the film, but then Hamill did the thing that must have frustrated the marketing team. He encouraged movie goers not to watch the trailer. Don’t read reviews. Just go in cold and experience the movie. That’s what my wife and I did on opening night. All I really knew about the movie was…
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Harlan Coben’s Back Spin is as Good as a Hole in One
Somehow, I fell into a Harlan Coben trough. It’s not really a rabbit hole, but when I finished Back Spin on Thursday and noted it on my “Books Read” list, I noticed something. Of the 11 books I’ve read this year, three have been by Coben. And of those, two feature Myron Bolitar, sports agent and righter of wrongs. In Back Spin (1997) is the fourth book in the series. I hadn’t planned on reading it immediately after I finished Coben’s latest, Nobody’s Fool, but a co-worker with whom I converse about books is, via audiobook, rapidly catching up to me. Easy for him considering his commute one way is…
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Sometimes a Story Sprint is Exactly What You Need
Sometimes you just have to sprint. I’ve been writing a novel for the entire year. Restarted on New Year’s Day with an end date on 1 July. We all know novel writing is a marathon, an endurance test of stamina and devotion. But last weekend, a fun thing happened. I was inspired to write a short story. A week ago yesterday, at work, I encountered a gentleman who works for my company. I’d heard about him, how his mind works, and how interacts with my fellow employees. In some ways, he’s on a different level altogether. In the course of my introduction, he dropped a quote about how he views…