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New contribution to Totally Novel on writing, update on Sweet Sixteen Killer

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I've been pretty quiet lately on the blog, sorry about that. I've been laying mostly low, though I did recently begin contributing to a new website for writers and readers called Totally Novel. My first contribution for members of the site is a post I titled 3 things that prevented me from writing a novel. To read the post, sign up for a free trial. Take a look around and if you don't wanna stay, don't renew membership. That said, it's a pretty cool effort being put together by a former Google+ member like myself. As a matter of fact there are several members on the site from the old Google+ days. (Side note: there is a free membership option)
I will be contributing to the Totally Novel blog bi-monthly for now. My next addition will be in August. I'm super excited for the site and I hope you can come join us and become a part of the groups, forums, blog, workshops, and more. 
All that said, I haven't given up here. This is still my primary site and blog. 👊

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Word lesson of the day: Dottle

I've been editing today in my novella, Sweet Sixteen, and my main character uses an old cliché in Chapter 4. Here's the passage:
She sat down and folded her legs. "I'm turning in my resignation. Effective immediately."

"Immediately?" He sounded shocked. "Why immediately? Did something happen?"

"No," Mercedes started, "I'm just done. Ready to move on. And when I'm ready to move on, I don't like to dottle."

The cliché in question? Dottle. If you're an American, you've probably heard someone say "don't dottle" in your lifetime. But I didn't realize where the word actually comes from, so here's a little background on that interesting word.

https://twitter.com/babylontales/status/913858037647015936

I am thoroughly in love with this knowledge.

via Studio for WP app.

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