Vocal Expressions

Toni Morrison is a profound writer who that takes you on a journey of self-discovery in her novels. Her writing evokes questions about life, the choices you make, the heartaches you experience, the pain you feel, the joyous moments that uplifts you, the tragedies that plague your family, the regrets you ponder, and the list goes on. In her novella, Home , Toni Morrison pulls no punches when she writes about Frank Money's journey back to Lotus, Georgia. Frank aka "Smart Money" is a Korean war veteran who is angry, broke, occasionally delusional, suffers from nightmares,  hates where he grew up, but would risk everything to go back home to save his medically abused younger sister.  Life hasn’t been easy for this man who loses himself in a bottle of whisky and the occasional warmth of a woman’s bosom. All this would take a backseat once he receives a letter to come rescue his sister before it’s too late. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novella. It was chock full o...

So you want to enhance your writing skills, but don’t know where to start? Well, here are some pointers that will help get you started: 1.       Read something that is well written.   To be a better writer, you have to read what others have written, preferably, high quality content. Why? Because this helps to improve your writing style tremendously. Some places you can look to include Harvard Business Review, New York Times, The Washington Post, etc.   2.       Read something funny.  Most of my writing is relatively serious. However, I find that when I read something humorous it shakes up my brain and loosens up my creativity. So, every now and then I check out Buzzfeed and others. 3.       Read something outside your niche.  As a romantic suspense writer, I expand my reading to include books on a wide variety of subjects inc...

Author’s Bio: DB Corey lives in Baltimore with his wife Maggie and two dogs. Former Navy, he currently works in I.T., and wants desperately to retire so he can write full time. What inspired you to write your book? The wife. Before she was the wife. She thought I’d get rich. Fooled her. Is there any particular author or book that influenced you in any way either growing up or as an adult? I was never a big reader growing up. Comics mostly … but I guess that counts. Then in high school, Hemingway’s Old Man and the Sea was a reading assignment. I still remember much of it today. Santiago and the boy … and the fish … and the battle. Great book. As an adult, Patriot Games by Tom Clancy had me up all night. Could not put the book down. I think that’s when I began to realize the power of the written word. Is this your first book? How long did it take to start and finish your book? Yep. And too long. Five years and many fits and starts, frustration and determination. When i...

The other day I was listening to the lyrics of "Ginger Me Slowly" by Somi and thought how strikingly it applies to me as a creative writer. For starters, I love that the lyrics put me in a very sexy and seductive mood with words like "Ginger me, with pillow talk and pretty things...with poetry and roses in the  afternoon...with trips to Monaco and to the Nile...with power and humility..." These words take me to another place and have me thinking how things, places and people affect and inspire me as a creative writer. When I receive gifts from someone, it's special and close to my heart and I'm thankful for the time they spent thinking of me. When I travel  to places both near and far, I relish the newness of the culture and the energy I derive from the experiences. And when I meet new people, it's a joy to see how much they enrich my life even if it's just for a season. As a creative writer, these experiences ginger me and make me embrac...

Author’s Bio: Jeffrey Westhoff has served as a film critic, feature writer, reporter, and copy editor in his career as a journalist. Jeffrey wrote his first novel, The Boy Who Knew Too Much , while working as a freelance writer. He grew up in Erie, Pa., where he spent his Saturday mornings at the library and his Saturday nights at the movies. At age 13, he fell in love with James Bond movies when he watched The Spy Who Loved Me on HBO one afternoon. Jeffrey studied journalism at Marquette University in Milwaukee and worked as a film critic for 25 years. He lives in Chicago’s northwest suburbs with his wife, Jeanette. What inspired you to write your book? It was sort of an accident. While I was still a full-time feature writer at a newspaper in the Chicago suburbs, I was working on a story about teen spy novels (Alex Rider, Young Bond, etc.) I attended a book signing by my friend Laura Caldwell one evening and, looking for sources, I asked her if she knew anyone writing a teen ...