Rachel A. Brune

Author: RachelABrune

  • The editing has begun!

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    RachelABrune
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    One of the things that doing this anthology has reinforced for me is how much I enjoy the process of working with authors to help them improve their craft. After this month, I will be opening back up for freelance editing and coaching clients, looking for authors I can help get from idea to first…

  • Reading Between the Lines

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    RachelABrune
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    Something happened when I started getting back into this reading groove. No matter what I was reading, whether it was about the rise of splatterpunk, how the rule of three makes for an effective public speaking strategy, or the latest adventures of Joe Pike and Elvis Cole, somehow my synapses in the writing part of…

  • Always Forward

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    RachelABrune
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    This weekend was grueling, challenging, and emotional–but in the end, it was a good weekend. It was the Santa Barbara Long Course Triathlon, and it was the first triathlon longer than a sprint that I have attempted AND finished!

  • Try, Tri Again…

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    RachelABrune
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    That’s a lot of failure. Especially packed into one week. And I really caught myself sinking into a mopey, grumpy, crappy state of mind. I’m still a little there, to be honest. But … none of these mistakes or failures are terminal.

  • Marketing, Promotion, Time Management, oh my!

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    RachelABrune
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    My daily schedule can get crammed full of stuff faster than I can jot it down in my bullet journal. Finding the time to write, especially when you’re feeling less-than-motivated, can be hard enough, let alone finding the time to come up with a plan to market and promote that writing. Conversely, I’ve also found…

  • Trail Running the Old Fort Ord

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    RachelABrune
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    There’s nothing like a little panic to motivate one to train more consistently, and so the past few weeks I have been lacing up the sneakers and getting out to do some trail running in the Old Fort Ord. The views are beautiful, the hills are killer, and every once in a while I stumble…

  • Post in which I recommend speculative fiction novels…

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    RachelABrune
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    I usually try to warn people who strike up literary conversations with me at bars, because I will come straight out of my introvert shell and bend their ear (quite possibly both their ears) talking about all of my favorite speculative fiction authors (this list goes on for pages…) until they throw down a twenty…

  • Writing and Fighting–Writing Fighting?

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    One of the fight writing aspects I hit on is rhythm. Fights, especially those between two people squaring off, have a tempo, a dynamic, that varies from moment to moment. As writers, we must capture this rhythm in our work. One of the best ways to do this is to also vary your rhythm, or…

  • Another Conversation with Clay Gilbert…

    Another Conversation with Clay Gilbert…

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    RachelABrune
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    Good morning! (Or afternoon, wherever you are, I hope it’s good.) Almost exactly a year ago, I hosted author Clay Gilbert here to talk about his release, Cassie’s Song, a sequel to his novel, Dark Road to Paradise. I enjoyed what he had to say about worldbuilding and drawing on topics of the times to…

  • A Conversation with Holly Ellis…

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    RachelABrune
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    As I make my way through the SNHU MFA program, some of the assignments dovetail neatly with what I am already doing, both literary content-wise, as well as working on our author platforms. This week’s assignment was to conduct an interview with one of the authors in our class, and so I present for your…