What Should Newbie Writers Focus On?
Should young writers focus only on writing? Or is there value in experiencing a broad swath of life?
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How Fake Reviews Hurt Everyone
I had the idea for this post over a month ago after seeing a Slate article about the “epidemic” of niceness in online book culture. Their point boiled down to whether all the friendliness on social media made people feel they couldn’t say bad things about books. I was going […]
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The Inbox Explosion: How Do You Manage Yours?
I fully admit that one of my weaknesses is an out-of-control email inbox. Between my accounts for writing and day job, I have an obscene number of unread emails. (As in, a hundred times the number depicted in this picture.) Granted, the vast majority of those unread emails are list […]
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The High Bar of Finding an Agent or Publisher
I think this week might secretly be listed on agents’ and publishers’ calendars as National Rejection Week. *smile* Okay, not really. But judging from the online conversations I had with writing friends over the past couple of days, it certainly feels that way to many of us. In other words, […]
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How Much Are We Responsible for our Guest Posters?
Most of us who blog think having guest posts is a “good” thing. We bring in others outside our expertise. We expose our blog to their followers. We get to take a break in our blogging schedule. Heck, I’ve written about the benefits of guest posts. But there’s a hidden […]
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Small Publishers: Tips for Success — Guest: Susan Sipal
I’ve talked a lot about the issues facing authors on the Big 6 side of traditional publishing, from agent hunting to contracts. I’ve also discussed the self-publishing side of the aisle, from quality concerns to ebook pricing. In contrast, I haven’t posted much about small publishers. Honestly, I don’t know as […]
Are Your Characters Based on Real People?
One of the stereotypical author interview questions is “Are any of your characters based on real people?” And I’m always struck when an author answers “Yes.” Usually, they’ll even share that so-and-so was based on such-and-such person. Sometimes they’ve based a character on a friend or family member. Sometimes they’ve […]
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Immersion Master Class with Margie Lawson: Part One — Guest: Melinda Collins
Whoo boy, do I have a treat for you today. The lovely Melinda Collins recently returned from an Immersion Master Class with Margie Lawson, and she’s here today to share her experience. I’m playing this cool now, but it was a different story earlier. When I heard Melinda was going […]
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Michael Hauge’s Workshop: You’re the Hero of Your Life
Okay, I wasn’t going to do yet another post about Michael Hauge’s presentation at the Romance Writers of America (RWA) Conference. But an off-the-cuff, as-we-were-heading-out-the-door thought he gave to us at the end of his “Using Inner Conflict to Create Powerful Love Stories” workshop really stuck with me, and I wanted to share it with you. Over […]
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Spotlight on Subtext: When Characters Are Liars — Guest: Angela Ackerman
I’ve mentioned before that I love subtext. I’ve analyzed the Spiderman reboot for subtext. I’ve written about how to revise for subtext, how to use subtext in emotional scenes, and how character development happens in subtext. Yeah, I’m a tad obsessed with subtext. So when the fantastic Angela Ackerman of […]
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