Back in September of 2012, when I was still a newbie writer, I typed “The End” on my first ever first draft. I immediately sent it to a few friends who had volunteered to read it, and then sat back to wait and realized: I had no idea what to write next. The problem hadn’t occurred to me until that point. I knew, from being online and seeing more seasoned writers talk about it, that the next step after finishing something was to start the next thing. But I didn’t have any othe

Hey y’all. It’s been a minute, hasn’t it? Happy New Year!  As some of you may know if you’ve been following me for a while, instead of resolutions the last few years, I’ve chosen a single word to be my driving force. 2015: Believe2016: Gratitude2017: Wait2018: Reach A year ago, I set my 2018 Focus Word as REACH. It was good for me. I didn’t want to do too much or push myself too hard, but I did want to get out of the rut I felt I was stuck in. Looking back, I can say with co

Hey guys! I’ve been thinking a lot about character motivation lately. This was brought on by a couple of books I was reading simultaneously, and realized that both of them had some things in common. First of all, they were books I LOVED, and the exact kind of stories I want to emulate in my work. Second, they were amazingly compelling and well paced. In trying to think about why I loved them so much, one of the things I realized was that each of the main characters had very t

HEY BLOGGER! Does anyone still read blogs anymore? Who knows. But I figure this is as good a place as any to update the world on the doings of Darci Cole. As you can probably see from the post history, it’s been A While since I posted anything. It’s been rough, and I’m just starting to work my way out of it. But now I’m back, and it feels good. Update #1: I started a youtube series? Click HERE to check out the first (very rambly) video to find out more details about what I’ve

Y’know, some people can multitask in life, and some people can’t. I see people in publishing doing so many things at once–reading slush, agenting, parenting, traveling, editing, revising, drafting, and the list goes on and on. But if there’s one thing I’ve learned about myself in the last five and a half years that I’ve been writing seriously, it’s how much of a binge-er I am. I am not a multi-tasker. I’m a binge-er. When I draft a novel, everything else in my life takes a ba

A few years ago, I posted an April Fools joke on here that I’d signed with an agent. Well guess what?! No, I still don’t have an agent. *snort* *** Yesterday I was going through some old papers and folders looking for some information and I came across a one-page handwritten outline for a story. It was vaguely like the one that eventually became the “first” novel I ever wrote, but based on the stuff it was around I knew I had to have written it long before I actually started

I’ve heard people say, “Never meet your heroes, you’ll only be disappointed.” Today I’m glad I didn’t take that advice. Last night I was privileged to attend a book signing at Changing Hands bookstore in Tempe, Arizona. My emotions were a weird mixture of anxious, excited, and downright giddy at the prospect of meeting my favorite author. Like, my All-Time-Favorite Author. If you read this blog at all, you know who that is. *cough*BrandonSanderson*cough* We called just before