By Anne Baxter Campbell I’m not a really patient person. I want the shortest line at the store, gas that pumps in excess of the speed limit, and meals I can prepare in fifteen minutes or less. Worst of all, perhaps, I want to go from “Once Upon a Time” to “The End” to “Released” in sixty seconds flat. If …
There Is No Magic
by Eddie Jones When it comes to book promotion there is no magic. Authors may think a version of pixie-dust can be purchased and sprinkled on their book, but they are mistaken. The book buying business is mysterious but the formula for success is not. Write a great book and get it into the hands of influencers of that genre. …
Six lessons from writing a weekly book column
By Judy Christie Earlier this year, the editor of the local newspaper asked if I’d be interested in writing a weekly book column for a new arts section. At first I balked. I write books, after all, so how could I write about them? And I certainly didn’t want to criticize authors, whether I liked their books or not. It’s …
Teach by Example
by Jennifer Sienes When my children were small, I went back to college to earn my bachelor’s and teaching degrees, even though in my heart, I wanted to be a writer. Not the most practical profession when one needs to earn an income. School meant being gone two nights a week and every other Saturday for more than two years. …
Seven Ways to Increase Your Novel’s Pace
By Becky Wade Here are seven ways to increase your novel’s pace: 1. Know what your story’s ABOUT and understand your genre. 2. Don’t begin at the beginning of your story. Say, for example, that you want to write a historical romance starring a heroine who’s rebuilding her life after adversity. It might seem logical to begin at the beginning, …
To Fight or Be Still
by Brenda S. Anderson The writing life is a battle. Raise your hand if you feel like you’ve been fighting hard at this writing business. You’re doing everything the right way, but still you’re getting nowhere, and you’re losing. You’re going to conferences, taking classes, getting critiques, yet no publisher or agent wants you. Or you’ve written a fabulous book, …
Invest in Your Writing Dreams
By Donna K. Rice My other career is as an estate planning attorney. In that capacity, I’ve spent many hours visiting with clients about what will happen when they pass away. To me, the personal matters, family values, and legacy development are most important, but money is what most people think about when considering estate planning. With that in mind, …
Stimulus Plan: Five Tips for Re-Igniting Your Writing Career
By Janice Hanna Thompson Many writers-even published ones-go through career stalls. Things fizzle out. Interest (among editor, agents or readers) wanes. Some authors face tough times, even after experiencing great success with a first or second novel. Still others feel the downward spiral after being on the best-seller’s list. I know, from personal experience, that these seasons can be discouraging. …
A Time to Write
By Loretta Eidson God must think our time is extremely important for the Bible to reference it with such repetition. In Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (NIV), a brief explanation of time is mentioned twenty-nine times, and thirteen of those are found in the first four verses: “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: A time …
When No Becomes Yes
by Davalynn Spencer During my first fiction-writer’s conference, I didn’t know what I was doing and I’m sure it showed. Hoo boy, but I did not want to be a rookie in a new field-a freshman-especially as a seasoned journalist with a master’s degree in my back pocket, two grown children, and the ability to parallel park and back up …