Author Archives: Mary Fran Says

About Mary Fran Says

I am an artist, crafter, designer and writer. I enjoy working with mixed media-- applying visual and tactile manipulations to telling a story. Not a lot of market for that, though, :), so I'm focusing on short story submissions and novel completions. Yes, plural. Lots of beginnings, too many ideas, not enough focus.

Warrior Pride

Posted on April 15, 2019

1984 was a great book. A decent movie. A groundbreaking commercial. It was an Olympic year, back when they were held every four years. And also an election year. But, by far, the reason it was the BEST year was … Continue reading →

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Spring Cleaning

Posted on April 8, 2019

There’s just nothing quite like the first real day of open windows and cross-breeze in the spring. That day was Sunday for me. Sure, it was kind of humid, it rained a little, but honestly, the air felt fresh and … Continue reading →

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Free Time, a short story

Posted on April 1, 2019

I was talking to a reader about my novel Pocket Money yesterday and in a slip of the tongue, it was called Pocket Change. That reminded me I had written a short story titled Pocket Change. Pocket Money is a … Continue reading →

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Thank You Social Media for making Me a Better Person

Posted on March 25, 2019

Yes, you read that right. The subject for this post came to me the other morning as I was looking up a “fact” I read on Facebook. I usually hit delete on incendiary posts, things that shock, mock, attack, or outright … Continue reading →

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The Devil Made Me Do It

Posted on March 18, 2019

It’s been a very long winter…and much television has been consumed. I’ve referenced binge-watching a couple of times in my posts. I’ve always mentioned how it’s not really my thang. With the DVR and Netflix, we already watch enough TV in … Continue reading →

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Does Word Count Matter?

Posted on March 11, 2019

Word count for novels comes up frequently at my meetings and conferences. Yes, there are guidelines. There are averages and expectations. Agents, editors, and publishers might actually give you a number goal, but I hold to the idea that the story … Continue reading →

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5 Tips for (New) Writers

Posted on March 4, 2019

After a decade of serious writing, classes, conferences, workshops, critiques, and six novel publications, I don’t consider myself a “new” writer anymore. But, that takes effort. I mean, I have done this stuff before, am still doing it, yet every … Continue reading →

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