A little history: Diamonds, a gem stone women love and one men love to buy for women, comes from carbon. Carbon, which is neither loved by women nor very frequently purchased for them by any man in his right mind, is what we call an element. Not too exciting, you might say. Carbon, however, needs to be given a bit more credit than that since it is one of the most abundant elements in the universe, and, oh yeah, just happens to form the basis of most living organisms. Diamonds are one of carbon’s high points. The earth hit a homerun when it began spitting out diamonds.

Diamonds as a precious and highly prized stone has a long history, going back to Cleopatra, Nefertiti, and Helen of Troy. But here’s the thing. Diamonds aren’t the most attractive things when they come out of the ground. Put them in the hands of a master diamond cutter, however, and then you’re on to something special.

Fiction is not that different. Fiction, like all writing, comes from the most basic of linguistic element: a collection of letters that form a collection of words. Yes, I know, too obvious even to mention. We are all aware of the letters, and we’re all pretty handy with the words. But the best fiction is, like the millions of years that the earth spends turning carbon into diamonds, a high point in the use of those words. It takes time, and it’s well worth the effort.

There are lots of diamond cutters. There are only a few masters. That is not to disrespect any of those you enter the field.

There are lots of people who venture into the field of writing, and I applaud them all. It’s when you string those letters and words together in such a way that a reader can’t put your book down that you’ve come close to turning your rough-cut diamond into a gemstone worthy of your girl friend or wife or a woman named Cleopatra.