Most writers write in layers, using a writing process. That's how I know my most common mistakes so intimately. I'm not talking about those scattered typos and occasional wrong word use mistakes. I'm talking about craft, the skillfully (that's the goal) applied techniques that writers use to make their writing more immediate, realistic, and intense. 

My final stages are always laced with efforts to remove passive voice where appropriate, to flesh out more detail when needed, and to add depth to characters. I think this may be even more essential when you're a pantser, like I am. 

Through my Beta readers I know that I have a penchant for leaving in too much passive voice. I've discovered I often do this when my goal is to add more individualism and depth to a character by using internal dialogue or reflection. I have to consciously go in and take out as much as possible, though of course in some instances it just works better.

And though description is generally one of my strengths (probably because I'm an amateur artist) I sometimes get so wrapped up in what's "happening" in my action-packed stories that I forget to add setting or character features, the things that ground the reader and give the story that "movie" feel to it that makes a reader able to actually visual the story in their head.

Being aware is the key to continual improvement, which is something I hope to do. So what's your most common writing mistake?   

​You know I love Game of Thrones. Dragons, mayhem, betrayal and revenge. What's not to love? Another historical slam dunk. How dare they EVER end this series? LOL! Everyone must die! Why? Why? Why? 

Favorite characters? Daenerys and Drogon, and all the Starks, and then there's Tyrion, and...endless list, though they all keep dying, of course! LOL! I think this is the last season and I am so bummed about that! The settings are spectacular, the special effects, the costumes, the twisting scripts...wonderful stuff!

My family would probably disagree with the above quote. My husband in particular thinks my writing is absolute torture, especially in November. Why November? NANOWRIMO (National Novel Writing Month, in which one is expected to write a complete novel of 50,000 plus words in at least rough form), for which I have my husband trained to respond to "Not now, please, it's NANO!" with silence and walking away. 

He has asked me why I can't just write during his working hours, when he's not home, and doesn't understand that sometimes I'm in the middle of a brainstorm or the muses are flowing like crazy and I just have to get down a scene or a chapter while it's sparking in my head. 

And during brainstorming I may look like I'm vacuuming, dusting, or out for a run, but I am actually hard at work, so a distruption sometimes makes me lose my train of thought, that thought that was becoming a brilliant ending or plot twist! 

So how does my husband survive my crazy writerly behavior? He complains. He goes outside to do some yard work. He comes up with spontaneous compromises like write later when I'm at work or sleeping and I'll ..... Or, "Okay, 20 more minutes, tops, and then you're all mine the rest of the night." His imagination is fairly good too. After all, he's Irish!

The best undistrubed writing time in my house? During a Packer's game!