Today is Cinco de Mayo, International Tuba Day – first Friday in May, National Hoagie Day, Oyster Day, Space Day – first Friday in May, and the birthday of Nellie Bly, Soren Kierkegaard, Henryk Sienkiewicz, Helen Merrill, Christopher Morley, Floyd Gottfredson, Leo Lionni, Adam Hughes,

Tip: What are the rules for the genre you’re writing? Historicals have to have the era right (clothing, society, etc.); mysteries have to have a crime, clues, a perp, and a solution; romances have to have a “happily ever after”. You have to understand the rules before you can break them.

Thought: “The greatest part of a writer’s time is spent in reading, in order to write; a man will turn over half a library to make one book.” – Samuel Johnson

Teaser: You’ve been hired to appear on a talk show to promote your latest work. How do you describe what you are currently working on?