Tag: Writing a First Novel
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On Writing and Storytelling: The Price of a Missing Paragraph
Or: Why Editorial Blindness Isn’t Just Annoying—It’s Expensive There’s a special kind of heartbreak reserved for writers who reread their own work and discover something missing—a line, a transition, a comma that once held the rhythm together. It’s called editorial blindness, and it’s not just a cognitive quirk. It’s a budget line. This weekend, I…
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I Wrote the Book, Now I’m Trying to Read it
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Amazon Reviews, Amazon Spain (Amazon.es), Amazon UK, Books, Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Creative Writing, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Writing a First Novel, Writing as a CraftHow one missing passage reminded me I’m still editing—even when I’m reading “We write the books we most want to read; so it is of no surprise that we may still want to read those books sometime later.” — Hannah Fielding I’m a writer. Not a household name, not a bestseller (yet), and certainly not…
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On Writing and Storytelling: The Rewards of Being a Storyteller
✈️ A Chewed Cover, a Plane Ride, and the Gift of Lost Love: Gratitude Reflections Sometimes, the most meaningful moments begin with a bit of chaos. Last night, my friend Dayna Pitcher shared a story that touched me deeply—not just because she praised Reunion: A Story, but because of how the book found its way…
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On Writing and Storytelling: How – and Why – I Wrote ‘Reunion: Coda’
🎼 Writing the Coda: How Music, Memory, and Missed Chances Shaped Reunion: Coda When I first wrote Reunion: A Story in 1998, I didn’t imagine it would become the central panel of a literary triptych. It was a novella born from grief, memory, and a quiet experiment in fiction—an elegy for a classmate lost too…
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On Writing and Storytelling: Why a Prologue Was Necessary: Reopening the Door to Jim Garraty’s Emotional Past
Why a Prologue Was Necessary: Reopening the Door to Jim Garraty’s Emotional Past When I returned to the world of Reunion: A Story nearly 25 years after its original publication, I wasn’t simply revisiting old characters—I was confronting the emotional residue they left behind. Reunion: Coda demanded more than a sequel; it required a bridge.…
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More Lessons I Learned from Writing a Novel
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Books, Comings and Goings (Short Story), Comings and Goings: The Art of Being Seen, Copyright, Creative Writing, Garratyverse, Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Novella, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Stephen King (Author), Writing a First Novel, Writing as a CraftUnexpected Lessons in Writing On April 4, nearly four months ago, I published Reunion: Coda, the second book in my Reunion Duology and my first novel. The first book, Reunion: A Story, is a novella. I spent a little over two years writing this novel. I began in March 2022 while living in Tampa, wrote…
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The Sixth of June…Now, Then, and Again…
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, D-Day (June 6, 1944), Kindle, Kindle Create (Publishing App), Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), Life in Florida, Life in Madison (NH), Life in Miami (1972-2016), Life in Miami….Again, Life in New Hampshire (December 2023 – October 2024), Life in South Florida, Life in the Tampa Bay area, Life in the United States, Music, Reunion Duology, Reunion: Coda, Summer 2024, Summer 2025, Summer in Florida, The D-Day DarlingsMidday/Early Afternoon, Friday, June 6, 2025, Miami, Florida The weather system that brought that rainy opening to meteorological summer earlier this week has moved on, and the Florida Travel Bureau can rest easy because it’s sunny, clear, and hot enough to go to the beach. (Ah, bikini weather!) I’d argue, though, that – climate change…
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Quality Matters in Independent Publishing: Fixing ‘Reunion: Coda’…and Other Matters
Afternoon, Wednesday, May 28, 2025, Miami, Florida Hi, there. It’s another scorching late spring day in South Florida on this last “Hump Day” of May 2025. Outside, it’s 89°F (32°C) under mostly sunny skies. With humidity at 63% and a gentle 9 MPH (15 Km/H) breeze from the southeast, it feels like 98°F (37°C). We’ve…
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Dear Reader, Let Me Tell You a Story About Friends and Beers—But Not the Whole Story
Afternoon, Monday, May 26, 2025, Miami, Florida Hi, there, folks. It’s a hellishly hot late spring day in South Florida. Currently, the temperature is 90°F (32°C) under mostly sunny skies. That’s hot, but with 66% humidity and a southeasterly breeze blowing at 12 MPH (19 Km/H), it feels like 97°F (36°C). The original forecast high…
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Summer-like Springs, Rave Reviews, and Sleepless Nights
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in Alex Diaz-Granados, Amazon, Book Reviews, Books, Creative Writing, Florida Weather, Life in Bogota, Life in Florida, Life in Madison (NH), Life in Miami (1972-2016), Life in Miami….Again, Life in New Hampshire (December 2023 – October 2024), Life in South Florida, Life in the Tampa Bay area, Miami-Dade Community College, Personal Thoughts, Reunion Duology, Reunion: A Story, Reunion: Coda, Semester in Spain Program, Semester in Spain Program – CCIS, Spring 2025, Spring in FloridaAfternoon, Thursday, May 22, 2025, Miami, Florida Hi there! It’s one of those gloriously vibrant late spring days that feels like summer has arrived a bit early. The temperature is sitting at a toasty 94°F (34°C) under cheerful, mostly sunny skies—high for May, or at least higher than what I remember from my younger days…
A Certain Point of View, Too 