Jayne Martin

“Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim.” —Nora Ephron

What Is Flash Fiction

What Is Flash Fiction

I have an author’s note on the writing of my flash fiction book, Tender Cuts, over at Mom Egg Review. What is flash fiction? I define in it the post. In my brief essay I write: I describe “Tender Cuts” as tiny tales for the time challenged. Most of us...
“T’was the Nightmare Before Christmas”

“T’was the Nightmare Before Christmas”

Stalking my ex on Christmas Eve was a bad idea. Even I could see that. First, there was that nasty restraining order I’d be breaking, but mainly because I’m supposed to be “moving on.” Or so my therapist, and yeah, maybe everyone else in my life keeps saying. Still, I...
Craft Matters: Imagery Versus Description

Craft Matters: Imagery Versus Description

We’ve all heard it ad nausem: “Show don’t tell.” That is especially true for microfiction, where imagery has to do the heavy lifting. And the more specific the imagery, the more likely your reader is to be drawn into your story and come away wanting more.  ...
Craft Matters: On Writing Strong Endings

Craft Matters: On Writing Strong Endings

Most of us labor over getting started. Finding that first sentence, the perfect entry into our story. Or any sentence, for that matter. For God’s sake, just type something! And then the relief when the page is no longer blank. We’ve got some momentum now and the story...
Craft Matters: On Plot and Plotting

Craft Matters: On Plot and Plotting

Character-driven or plot-driven? There seem to be two camps of popular thought when it comes to writing fiction: Character-driven or plot-driven. As if they were mutually exclusive, when most well-written work is a deft blend of both. Just different approaches....
On “Creating” Characters

On “Creating” Characters

The line extended as far as the eye could see, each of us hoping that today we would be among the lucky ones chosen to be part of some writer’s story.   I’ve led many lives; a pregnant teenager, the father of a murdered son – that was a tough one – a prison...