Marylee MacDonald

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Born
in Los Angeles, The United States
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Influences

Member Since
September 2013

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Are you looking for info on how to write fiction and get it published? If so, go here. https://maryleemacdonaldauthor.com

If you're curious about who I am and what kinds of books I write, then head to a different website.
https://maryleemacdonald.com

I'm an award-winning author, writing coach, and caregiver advocate, although doing anything in the latter realm is taking a backseat to the writing itself.

Body Language, the most recent collection of my short fiction, allowed me to share my thoughts, both in the introduction and in the stories themselves, about the importance of human touch. The stories were fun to write and reminded me of how much pleasure I've derived from Solzhenitsyn's A Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich., a book that has now
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Marylee MacDonald Writer's block happens to every writer, and I'm no exception. Every day we stare at a blank page and have to come up with something, but good gracious…moreWriter's block happens to every writer, and I'm no exception. Every day we stare at a blank page and have to come up with something, but good gracious, what should it be? I have two strategies. One is to never let more than two days go by without working on my manuscript, even for fifteen minutes. That keeps the story alive in my subconscious. My second strategy is to take a nap every day. Yes, like a toddler! It's not so much that I'm lacking sleep, but I take naps because whatever I've tucked away in my subconscious rises to the top and floats there, waiting for me to put on my glasses. Often, my subconscious will hand me a plot complication or a bit of dialogue. I happily head back to my desk with new information about what's going to happen next.(less)
Marylee MacDonald I am picking a cover for my forthcoming short story collection, BONDS OF LOVE & BLOOD, and I'm trying to get back to my historical novel, THE VERMILLI…moreI am picking a cover for my forthcoming short story collection, BONDS OF LOVE & BLOOD, and I'm trying to get back to my historical novel, THE VERMILLION SEA. I need to write two more scenes, and then I will have the first draft done. At that point I'll begin the painful and embarrassing task of reading through the manuscript from start to finish. It is so great to have one book published, another ready to go to the publisher, and a third that I hope readers will be as excited about as I am.(less)
Average rating: 4.18 · 642 ratings · 320 reviews · 17 distinct worksSimilar authors
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More books by Marylee MacDonald…

The Greeks Believed in Fate

Does Fate still play a role in our lives?

In ancient Greece, Fate wasn’t a single divine being. The three Moirai of Greek mythology were women with a subtle, but awesome, power. They decided a person’s destiny and determined whether that person was good or evil. They also chose how long a person’s life would be.

Clotho, the spinner, spun the thread of life;Lachesis, the measurer, chose which lot in Read more of this blog post »
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Winston Groom
“Life is like a box of chocolates.”
Winston Groom, Gump and Co.

Nadezhda Mandelstam
“I decided it is better to scream. Silence is the real crime against humanity.”
Nadezhda Mandelstam, Hope Against Hope

Darynda Jones
“Well, that sucked more ass than liposuction.”
Darynda Jones, Fourth Grave Beneath My Feet

“Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.”
Ira Glass

Nathaniel Hawthorne
“Happiness is like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.”
Nathaniel Hawthorne

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message 4: by Maria

Maria Hernandez Thank you for the friendship.


message 3: by H.L.

H.L. Carpenter Thank you for accepting our friend request!


message 2: by Maria

Maria Lynch Thank you for being a Goodreads friend.


message 1: by Kira

Kira Hawke Hey there, Marylee! Thanks for the friend request - I recognize you from Twitter and it's nice running into you again :D


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