Book Release Day Twins
Help the Chicks celebrate book release day twins Ellen Byron and Patricia Sargeant (writing as Olivia Matthews). Continue reading Book Release Day Twins
Author: patriciasargeant
I write romantic suspense and contemporary romance Patricia Sargeant, and cozy mysteries as Olivia Matthews.
Character Lessons
One of the many things I love, love, love about storytelling is channeling the characters who inhabit the worlds I create. Becoming those characters during my writing sessions is like playing virtual dress-up. I can be clever, courageous and well-organized. And while I spend time in their world, my coffee mug is never empty—or at least not for long. Continue reading Character Lessons
Guest Chick: K.D. Richards
I cannot cook. This malady largely stems from the fact that I do not like to cook and have put only as much effort into learning this skill as is required to keep myself and my two young’uns alive. My cooking style would most aptly be described as ‘how fast can I cook this meal’? (Insert my mom yelling “you can’t cook everything on high.”) “Fast” is a technique that doesn’t work well when cooking but it has worked for me with respect to writing. Continue reading Guest Chick: K.D. Richards
Will we ever learn?
Personal experience provides the best life lessons. I firmly believe that. To be clear, I’m grateful when people share their experiences with me. It shows a generosity of spirit when someone takes the time to explain a lesson they’ve learned just to spare us the same unpleasant experience. Continue reading Will we ever learn?
What’s so funny?
Humor is subjective. I think we can agree on that. What we each find humorous depends on a slew of things, including life experiences, mood and whether we have even one humorous bone in our bodies. Continue reading What’s so funny?
Guest Chick: Deborah Fletcher Mello
With Valentine’s Day behind us for the year, I am reminded of how I transitioned from writing romance to writing stories with characters that don’t make it to the end of the book. Continue reading Guest Chick: Deborah Fletcher Mello
Take a hike
We were dumped on. Where I live, the winter storm delivered about a foot of snow. And I must say, I’m not a great fan of these negative numbers masquerading as “temperatures.” As I’m typing this, it’s 3 degrees. Not a fan. It’s getting warmer, though. Thank goodness. Continue reading Take a hike
It Sounded Better in My Head
This great story idea came to me in the shower almost a year ago. I’ve heard stuff like that happens a lot at least to novelists, songwriters and screenwriters. It’s supposedly because our minds are more relaxed in the shower or the bathtub. Continue reading It Sounded Better in My Head
That’ll Leave a Mark
I’m obsessed with bookmarks. I don’t know why so please don’t ask me to explain. I don’t have an allegiance to a particular type or style of bookmarks. Pretty pictures, patterns or simple words. Cardboard, fabric or plastic. Fancy or simple. Big or not so big. If it’s a bookmark, I want it. Continue reading That’ll Leave a Mark
Didn’t See that Coming…
I used to enjoy The X Files. You probably remember it. It’s the science fiction series that ran from 1993 through, I think, 2004. It starred David Duchovny as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder, Gillian Anderson as FBI Special Agent Dana Scully and Mitch Pileggi as their boss, FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner. Mulder and Scully were partners assigned to investigate cases that defied traditional … Continue reading Didn’t See that Coming…
Talk to Me
Dialogue can make or break a story. Would you agree?
There are so many rules to writing good dialogue. Characters have to sound different enough from each other that readers would know who’s speaking without reading the dialogue tags. Continue reading Talk to Me
Wanna Arm Wrestle?
I’ve never considered myself to be a competitive person. We can’t control what other people accomplish or the rewards their achievements earn. It seems frustrating to try to “beat” someone when so much is out of our control. Continue reading Wanna Arm Wrestle?
Chicks on the Case 