M.Q. Barber

Oof! Doing my homework! Epic gratitude to @SueCampbell_ of Pages&Platforms for her marketing mindset talk for @ProWritingAid Romance Week. If your #authorlife struggle is anxiety about marketing, watch youtu.be/RI31yWK0j7A & learn to reframe intrusive/unhelpful thoughts. 🤯

Friday night #authorlife fun? Studying craft and taking a slew of notes during a replay of the @jennamoreci romantic chemistry seminar for @ProWritingAid Romance Week. Just preordered her writing book, too, because that seminar was 😍😍😍

Choosing an excerpt from the new work-in-progress for the newsletter tonight. No matter how many times I do it, I'm always chewing my nails with nerves. "Did I pick a good one? Do they like me?" #authorlife

The characters have informed me that what I thought was 2 chapters is actually 4, and I've broken them up all wrong, and also (jumble of thoughts spill onto paper) -- THAT. But other than that, #amwriting time today is going great! They give such good pep talks. #authorlife

Brief pause in this morning's #amwriting session on the next Henry, Alice, and Jay book because a friend sent me this video by Beth of @thecool_table, and Henry has a dog named after him!!! And I am just 🤯😍🤯😍🤯🥰 tiktok.com/@thecool_table/vi…

My favorite is when you're writing and thinking "Nothing much is happening in this scene; do I really need it?" and then the characters take a left turn into DEEP conversation and you're all, "OK, OK, I was wrong, please continue." #amwriting

First full day at the annual writing retreat. Shaping up to be a great one! #amwriting

The trouble with being a sympathetic yawner is that when you mention a character's yawn, you spend the next five minutes yawning as you try to finish the paragraph. #amwriting #amyawning #deargoditwontstop

Yardwork is my #amwriting superpower. An hour of weeding, and suddenly a puzzle is solved, an entirely new chapter is written, and five plot threads tie together in a beautiful bow. #lifeisgood #indieauthor

TFW you have a great writing morning and love everything you've written ... except it's for the book on the back burner, not the one you're supposed to be writing. #amwriting #yayIguess #didwejustwin

Oh Jay, Jay. I'm not saying it's a bad idea. It's actually a great idea, and it fixes that plot hole. It just also adds complexity and more scenes to set up and... Dagnabbit, I'm going to do it anyway, so I don't know why I'm arguing with you. #amwriting #charactersknowbest

TIL that the touchscreen on the laptop is responsive to the dog's tongue. 🤦‍♀️ I'm thankful I didn't lose anything in the manuscript while learning that lesson. #amwriting #thatsnotfood #whyjustwhy

Today's the day! The newsletter is ready to go out in a few hours, and inside is the first look at Binding Their Hearts: Neighborly Affection Book 7. #sonervous #icantlook #amwritingromance

Choosing an excerpt from Binding Their Hearts today to be the first look at Henry, Alice, and Jay's next adventure in this month's newsletter. I hope I pick a good one! #nervousenergy #fingerscrossed #thisisfine #amwritingromance

I wrote most of the first draft of Minding Their Manners with this pencil. Thinking it's not going to last through the sequel. 🤔 #writingcommmunity #AuthorLife #amwritingromance

Jay started chattering even before I got out of bed this morning. Seems like it's going to be a good day for writing. #amwriting #whencharactersspeakyoulisten

Author studies notes and picks up pencil: OK folks, not sure where we're going with this scene. Help me out? (3 characters erupt into dialogue at once) Author: Slow down! I can't go from brain to page that fast. Uh, but keep talking. Just keep talking.

Listening to the characters tonight and jotting down their words. Mental note: Buy pencil grips before the callus on my finger becomes permanent, because I don't think these folks are going to stop talking anytime soon. #amwritingromance

Loving all of this right here. 🥰

Sat down intending to type in notes for a scene I'd written earlier. Ended up writing an entirely different scene. #authorproblems #amwritingromance #goodproblemtohave #feedthemuse