By Linda W. Yezak I usually invite another author to join us when Billy and I work the Blueberry Festival in Nacogdoches, Texas. Having someone to display their covers helps draw readers to our table, but it also gives us someone to talk to during the long periods when nothing is happening. One year, my husband watched carefully as one …
Creating a Crazy-Good Critique Group
By J.A. Marx We fondly call each other critters, and I consider this group of serious writers essential to my writing career. I’m sure online critique groups work well, but I prefer face-to-face. For one, as the facilitator, I like to observe the newbies to ensure they are holding up under the initial shock—reading their story out loud for the …
Self-Editing
by Lynn Hobbs The technique I use on self-editing a novel is different when I self-edit a short story. Seems like it should be the same, right? For many it is. Whatever works best for you is what I recommend. On a short story, I write the first draft, use spell check, and print the pages. I look for repetitive …
Twisting “Write What You Know”
by Gail Gaymer Martin When writers search for plot ideas, seasoned authors often respond write what you know, but I’ve found that this phrase means more than I’d thought. If we stick with what we know, our books could become boring, but one way to write what I know is through experiences. I’ve done this more than once. Being a …
Finding the Motivation to Write
by Susan A.J. Lyttek I love writing. You’d think after that statement that I would jump out of bed and head down to my notebooks and laptop with unbridled enthusiasm each morning. Not so. In fact, I will often putter around and do anything other than write. I will suddenly need to spend a lot of time in Bible study, …
When Social Media isn’t Social Anymore
By Norma Gail Any writer who handles the majority of their own social media is frustrated. Facebook was fun when it was just family and friends. Now that it’s a necessary part of my platform as a writer, I’ve developed an intense dislike for it. I can’t take the sting out of hours spent on social media instead of writing. …
Story First, Novel Second
By Dennis Ricci “Literary talent is commonplace. Storytelling talent is rare.” Robert McKee, the Hollywood story guru who’s trained many of the great filmmakers and screenwriters of our generation, made that statement within the first hour of his Story Seminar, which I attended last March. McKee defined the differences between literary and storytelling talent: Literary: the ability to convert ordinary …
Pros & Cons – plus a few tips – for Writing a Novel Series
by Deborah Raney The fifth and final book in my Chicory Inn Novels series released recently, and I’m now working on the first book in a new series. Having written mostly stand-alone novels for most of my writing career, this has been an interesting experience and one I’ve learned so much from. First let’s look at the pros and cons …
Choose Your Publisher with Care
©2017 Deb Haggerty, MBA When an author begins to look at publishers to see where their book might fit, there are several things they should take into consideration. The same steps generally apply to agents as well. Does the publisher have a good reputation in the industry? With the proliferation of small, boutique publishers popping up constantly, you want to …
Plotting and Structure of Novels
by Brenda Taylor Plotting novels is a chore for me, because I am a panster by nature. Instead of sitting for a great length of time thinking, plotting, and structuring a story, I want to write and let the storyline fall where it may. I’ve learned, however, my panster method is not the best way. It leaves too much to …