Hi! How are you? I hope things are going great for you. We’ve got a busy few days, so I’m trying to squeeze in some stuff before things get moving.

If you haven’t done so already, be sure to check out the new page on my website: D&D stories. They’re short stories inspired by the D&D game I’m playing in. I started writing them as a way to bring in new characters, add dimension to what happens outside of game time. Sometimes you can’t get things to fit into the actual session, and all the players enjoy my in between stuff. I’m hoping you will, too.

On to what’s on my mind.

Last week, I was working on rewriting the blurb for one of my books. Updating those every few years isn’t a bad idea. It’s a pain, though. LOL. I have yet to meet an author who enjoys writing blurbs. Anyhow, I asked several other authors I know, privately, what their thoughts on the new blurb were. Most responded, tweaks were made, and the change was made.

One author, though, took it on themselves to go after my writing itself. Not the blurb. But the style in which I write. They said I was too ‘wordy’. That I needed to simplify things, because people didn’t like that I used ‘big words’ like ‘constrictive, scrutinized, exasperated, marginally more ornate’. And that the names I use for the characters are ‘too hard to pronounce’ – Kade, Talin, Arwenna.

Granted, Y’Durkie’s an interesting one! LOL. But no worse than Daenarys Targaryen.

Here’s the thing. No two authors write the same way. Some of us write using simpler language than others. Others can get more expressive with their vocabulary. I’ve got a good vocabulary, I know how to use it, and I’m not shy about it.

But that’s no excuse for us to attack each other. While I understand the other author thought they were being helpful, it was unsolicited and I felt like I was being attacked. No, I won’t identify who they are. I don’t believe in publicly shaming people in this manner. I let them know I wasn’t about to change my style.

I don’t care if you write differently than I do. If we all wrote in the same style, readers would be bored. In fantasy, strange names are expected. They’re the norm. I grew up reading David Eddings and Patricia Kennelly Morrison. I love Scottish and Irish history. I’m going to get creative with names and places. I’m going to assume my readers understand the words I use.

It’s not like I’m using disenfranchised, defenestration (my fave word, even though I’ve never used it in a book), and giving my characters Welsh names. But, yes, I’m going to say constricted over tightened, if for no other reason than to keep word repetition down.

If my books aren’t selling like I want them to, it’s not because of the way I write them. They’re good stories, written the best way I know how. Stories that don’t talk down to the reader. The only reason my books aren’t selling is that most readers don’t know I’m out there. Yet.

I’m working on that. Every day. It’s going to happen. I believe in my writing. If you’re reading this, I hope that means you do, too.

BB