Writer Senses

I'm humbled  to share that my debut novel, Goddess from the Machine , was selected as one of Kirkus Reviews Best 100 Indie Books of 2025 . In addition, Goddess from the Machine was also selected as the Indie Editor's Pick in the August 15, 2025 edition of Kirkus Reviews . And all of this assumes the reception of a prestigious Kirkus Star: " One of the most coveted designations in the book industry, the Kirkus Star marks books of exceptional merit." In addition, Goddess from the Machine was listed as one of BlueInk Review's Best Books of 2025  and earned a BlueInk Review star: Yet professional accolades and positive reader reviews do not necessarily translate to New York Times Bestseller  sales. I've sold a few hundred copies, but would love to reach even more readers. If you've read Goddess from the Machine but haven't left me a review on Goodreads or Amazon , I sure would appreciate it! And if you haven't read it and science-fantasy is up your al...

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MY DEBUT NOVEL IS OUT!   I've tried to get a literary agent since 2012. I attended and later taught at writers' conferences. I paid to pitch and was always asked to follow-up. I listened to experts. I was form rejected and personally rejected many times for years and years. They wouldn't risk on me. It's a tough industry. I get it. But I decided 2 years ago that I can no longer wait on publishing pros to risk on me because if I wait for them, no one will see that I’ve produced something that’s worthy of an audience and worthy of risk. So I’m taking the risk myself by coming straight to you. It’s impossible to count all that's gone into writing, editing, producing, and commissioning as a professionally performed and mastered audio book, Goddess from the Machine (GFTM). GFTM is a tragic coming-of-age sci-fi/fantasy blend about an orphaned young genius named Reese and how her battle against unjust social forces that transform her into a powerful, dangerous en...

 

One of my biggest issues that I have with my writing is my inability to continue my story because I do not like the way I worded a certain sentence here or felt like a certain line was too cliche there and I constantly have to keep going back over it. Tweaking, editing, obsessing, etc. Is this something common for everyone or am I unnecessarily hindering myself? How do you deal with this in your writing if you do the same? ******** Dear Writer, Your problem is not common to all writers, but it is common to many. All writers have unique snags in their processes. Some write an entire book in half a year and decide afterward that it is trash, immediately starting on the next book which then ends up in the trash. Other writers linger on the same project for years; I lean toward the latter. (See this video of S. King and G.R.R. Martin for more.) You're wise to note that this is a snag in your process. Your task should be to identify the needed changes to accomplish your ...

When the actions or surroundings are important, you should add as many details as it's required. That's clear. What about trivial stuff? Examples: He sat on the floor and drank a beer. He sat on the floor, clicked open a beer can, and gulped from it. He sat cross-legged on the floor, clicked open a can of Budweiser, and took a few gulps from it. Same with mundane surroundings: He walked along a sidewalk. He walked along a tree-lined sidewalk. He walked along a sidewalk lined with bald zelkova trees. How much detail do you add in this type of situation? ******** Dear Writer, You answered your own question: "You should add as many details as [are] required." The principle is no different for mundane details and important ones. Your question is difficult to directly address because it operates in terms of isolated examples. At the least, we would need the broader context of a whole chapter or passage to determine if a certain level of detail per instance i...

I am at a loss where to even start. I have finished my first draft of my novel, I am powering through my editing and preparing my second draft for critique. I am getting really close to having my novel ready to send to the chopping block of the publishing world. I just don't know where to even begin this process. I want to go the traditional route and have a publishing company publish me. This is the first novel I have ever really finished, and I have been working on the idea of this story for years. To be honest, I never thought I would get to the point I would be close to ready to publish, and it is getting more real than I ever expected it to. I have been given a ton of positive feedback and feel that with a little bit more shine I have a good candidate for publishing. Any advice for those who have gone through this that knows where, who, why, what, and any other questions I should be asking or answering, your help is much appreciated. ******** Dear Writer, Congrats ...

I have read all over that the last thing you want to do is start your story with a dream. The thing is, it's not my intent to start my story out in a cheesy dream sequence. In fact, it's not even a dream. It's a premonition that is relative to the plot of the story. When I chose to start out this way, it wasn't because I thought "ah! I'm going to start my story in a cool dream just to throw the reader for a loop once they realize this isn't really happening". It's how I saw my story starting. And it's not intended to throw my reader for a loop, it's intended for the reader to want to know more about this premonition. Now after the premonition takes place, if you read further, you will see that it's not a dream. You will learn as you read that my MC has the gift of premonitions, and that this particular premonition has manifested itself in her waking state, as she received an injury from the premonition. So the problem is, I underst...

I have a scene where the MC wakes up in her boyfriend's bed. She talks with him for a while then makes an excuse to leave. At some point, I though, "Hm, they didn't even mentioned or ate breakfast." Note: the time is around eight a.m. In another scene, they meet for a date. In the first draft, they go to a restaurant, but then I changed the location to a library. At some point, I thought, "Hm, they don't eat dinner in the whole date." Note: the time is around seven p.m. Do you think this is an issue? Or the reader will just assume the characters ate between scenes (or behind scenes)? Or maybe the readers don't care at all? (Right now, I only make the characters eat when they are in a bar, restaurant, or while they are doing something else like using the computer.) ******** Dear Writer, There are two main ideas to consider. First is "Chekhov's Gun." Anton Chekhov argued that if a gun is present on stage in act I of a pla...

So I'm working on a book about grim reapers and I just discovered its almost exactly like the plot of "dead like me"....I'm so mad. Ive never even seen this show before. How can I fix it without redoing all my work? ******** Dear Writer, Audre Lorde said, "There are no new ideas, there are only new ways of making them felt." She is getting at the heart of your question. This concerns tropes and how to use them. Fact is, at this point in history, no one is going to write something that has never been seen before in at least some respects. Every writer must at contend with this truth, get over it, and keep writing. My advice is that you not concern yourself with how much your original work may overlap with existing work in your medium or another medium. This happens to all of us from time to time in varying degrees. Focus on the unique things you bring to the table. Research and be inspired. Your perspectives, passions, and expertise...

So I'm writing a book. This book is about Japanese people. It's a fictional book. I chose Japan as the setting because I thought it was different from my native USA. I read once that so many novels take place in the Anglophone world, it's boring. And I thought it would be interesting to explore Japan for a few other reasons that I won't go into here, but you can ask me if you like through PM. Anyway, I don't want to misrepresent Japan. I only know what little I've read about, and of course what they allow you to see through anime. I know from "educating" myself that anybody from any culture can be spunky and fiery. But it's hard to believe when you've never experienced that culture for yourself and can't vouch for the types of spunkiness allowed. Is it spunkiness filtered through misogyny? What sort? I want my one of my characters to be curious about Western things, but be ultimately patriotic and pro-Japan. I want another to be ...

My protagonist is a doctor who euthanizes the terminally ill and suicidal - anyone who asks for his help to come to a quick and painless end. Now I'm at a scene where he and another character are arguing their philosophies, with my intent of digging into the nuances of each position: life vs death. However, I'm so far stuck in my MC's head that I'm drawing a blank on his opposition. His argument: "Everyone suffered and died. He wondered why anyone lived these days." So what would justify a miserable existence suffering indefinitely to the mere possibility that life gets better? (Also note that this is a low-tech fantasy world, where there aren't psychologists or psychiatric drugs. So no one's going to get any professional help.) So can you answer him?: If someone wants to die, why don't you let them? Why shouldn't you help them come to a quick, painless, and humane end if their life isn't worth living anymore? If they're suffer...

Writer: Is it ever OK to deliberately write poorly, as long as it serves a function of the story? I have a character who, throughout the story, has their memory altered to forget certain events, or to influence their perception. From a critic's perspective, it would seem as though the character just isn't written well; they don't react the way a normal character would given their circumstances, except that's intentional on my part. Flowers for Algernon did something similar, I remember, with its main character's speech changing over the course of the story. The MC's dialogue, in the beginning, has poor spelling/grammar, but it's OK because the story allows for this. In Flowers for Algernon it's easy to accept the poor grammar and spelling because we, as readers, know it's a part of the story up front. Is this OK? Can poor writing be excused by the plot? What about if the plot requires it to be kept secret? Can it be conveyed in other ways that so...

Image courtesy of Pixabay.com. Writer: 1. Do you describe the surroundings only when they drive the plot/story forward? Or [do] you like to describe them to give the reader a sense of the mood/setting/atmosphere? 2. How long are your descriptions? How do you decide the length? Dear Writer, Questions of craft are tethered to context. That said: I often want the reader to be oriented to the immediate setting, even if the immediate setting isn't the most significant setting. In such cases, I choose a handful—usually no more than three—orienting details that engage some of the five senses and establish in broad terms where the characters are and what it's like to be there. Even in a film or television shot of a detailed setting, the camera often doesn't linger on the setting's details unless it is to draw attention to something significant (Chekhov's Gun). More often, the cinematographer will use wide shots to broadly establish the setting and then cut to c...

How much research do you do for a story and how faithful are you to said research? Are there times when you knowingly take a creative liberty for the sake of your story or do you stick to the research for the sake of authenticity? With fairy tales I tend to go either way. As long as I keep the rules internally consistent, I'm not too concerned with hardcore research. When I'm writing mystery, I am married to the research. But having a bit of world knowledge allows me to find reasonable loopholes that others might consider a Critical Research Failure. For example, without the amount of required hours and training a civilian cannot be a private investigator. But a consultant or paid informant can assist the police in an investigation, which is how I got away with having a stage combat trainer as an amateur sleuth. ******** Dear Writer, You've essentially answered your own question in paragraphs two and three. To a large extent, genre determines the degree to whic...

As I explore this new world of writing, I come across some “rules” that can be amusing, if one recognizes them for the holy mantras they are, or confusing, if one doesn’t. Recently, the “no adverbs” religious utterance came to my attention. Why should a writer exclude those incredibly beautiful words? (Please don’t start your answer with the words “Stephen King”.) ******** Dear Writer, Two things on this. First, on the concept of "rules" in writing. "Rules" are usually overcorrections. The fundamental principle of art is: "Do what is effective." Sometimes adverbs are "what is effective." Often, they are not. Second, on what those who parrot such rules are getting at: Adverbs are often redundant. Certain verbs are neutral and will require an adverb to bring out nuance. "I walked to the store" implies something different than "I ran to the store." Both of those sentences are fine. It's also fine to write, ...

"Poppy Field" by Claude Monet. Image courtesy of Pixabay.com. To dialogue or not to dialogue? What does dialogue do for fiction? Is it necessary? Generally recommended? Vital? Or is it completely optional and its absence has no bearing on the quality or palatability of the writing? ******** Dear Writer, Nonfiction writers regularly do not include dialogue in their work. In many cases, we would find it strange to do so. The core question, as with any craft-related issue, is what is necessary for a given work to succeed. This is largely dependent upon the goals, skill, and style of the author. In fiction, it behooves most writers to include dialogue since stories are told from the perspectives of sentient characters or through anthropomorphized, otherwise inanimate, characters. (For a great example of this, see the old Animaniacs episode, " A Gift of Gold .”) Failure to do so for avant-garde reasons will likely isolate a large portion of your potential au...

I've read that prologues are acceptable if written well and are not blatant info dumps. But I've also heard they are a death knell in the minds of agents and editors who might be considering a work and think they are amateurish. ******** Dear Writer, If you are still in the process of writing, my recommendation would be to just write the story and ignore professional sensibilities. You need to finish the story and have fun doing it. Maintain your artistic integrity as long as possible, and understand what your goals for the story are. If, however, you are looking at a second or above draft and desire professional publication, consider the following: Prologues are frowned at by contemporary professionals because they are often unnecessary. To the gatekeepers in the traditional publishing world, a prologue should be relevant to the main plot of the story but should have significant thematic, perspectival, or chronological differentiation. If your prologue star...

I was surprised to learn that I received an honorable mention for my third quarter, 2018 entry of the prodigious WRITERS OF THE FUTURE CONTEST. Image source. Honestly, I submitted on a whim because it had been about six years since I'd tried. Although I did not win, I consider this a win because it means professional, working writers and editors think highly of my work. One day I will win one of these things.

Collect and celebrate the small victories. We reach our goals one hill at a time. I'm happy to report that I received an honorable mention in 2018's Writing Contest for the category of *Prose: First Chapter (Novel).* This contest is judged by professional authors from outside Utah, so that's something. If you don't follow my FB author page, Daniel Rodrigues-Martin , I'd love your support. I'm also on Twitter , but only because I have to. The honorably-mentioned chapter, "The Fates of Stars and People," comes from the beginning of my third book in the Ark Saga , Goddess from the Machine , and is included below. THE FATES OF STARS AND PEOPLE (c) 2014-19 by Daniel Rodrigues-Martin. All rights reserved. It was poetry to die like this, rain falling in sheets from the mouth of an angry sky, all the cosmos peering through the cloud cover at the man’s last moments. Did the stars ponder the fates of humanity as humanity pondered the fates o...