Anne R. Allen's Blog... with Ruth Harris
Writing about writing. Mostly.
by Ruth Harris Your agent is your representative in the publishing world. A good or great one will have wide knowledge of the current trends — are historicals hot? Is alien sci-fi romance coming up? Is medieval adventure staggering along on its last legs? Your agent will know where best to target your work, which […]
by Leah Paulos Many authors would rather chew off their own arm than stand in the spotlight promoting a book. They say things like, “I don’t want to seem narcissistic,” “I hate being like, ‘Me, me, me!’” or “I just want to write.’” If this describes you, I am here to explain why — and […]
By Yvonne Osborne Note from Anne: Yvonne is a long-time reader of this blog. When her writing dreams came true and a traditional publisher was about to release her first book, I asked her to write about the process. THE OFFER I’m writing this guest post from behind two boxes of books just delivered […]
by Kenneth Strange, Jr. As a former FBI agent and true crime author, I seem to be more in demand for speaking engagements than ever before. However, to set the record straight, I will often begin a talk debunking FBI myths including the notion that we FBI agents have experience working in the realm […]
By Laurie McLean, Fuse Literary Publishing woke up from the pandemic years of big backlist profits and came out of the gate swinging in 2023. Publishing houses did not buy as many books as in 2022. (Anecdotally, I sold 24 books in 2022 and had a million-dollar sales month, but I only sold 4 […]
by Anne R. Allen So you won NaNoWriMo! You had to skip Thanksgiving dinner with your brother-in-law’s fabulous spatchcocked turkey, and watching the game with your favorite cousins. Plus your houseplants died, your cat evaporated, and you still have your Halloween decorations up. Tip: Make some Santa hats for all your bats, witches and […]
Rudyard Kipling needed a literary agent by Mark Williams As last September ended, a report from the Association of American Literary Agents painted a bleak picture of the American literary agent — working long hours and struggling to pay the bills, worrying for their future. Among the members of the author community who had ever […]
Is your query letter the problem? by Anne R. Allen I’ve often wondered why some wonderful writers never get a nibble from an agent, and others get a request for a full manuscript after a handful of queries. I had an insight into the issue this week when I heard from a friend of a […]
Writing advice to keep the turkeys from getting you down. by Ruth Harris Helpful writing advice— “There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.” — Somerset Maugham “Writing has laws of perspective, of light and shade just as painting does, or music. If you are born knowing them, […]
by Anne R. Allen A lot of people hope to write a book when they retire. And that’s a great plan. Late blooming writers can do very well for themselves if they learn to write well and have something unique to say. Some writers who became successful authors in their later years were Laura Ingalls […]
by Anne R. Allen I see terrible advice in online writing groups and blog comments all the time. Sometimes I step in and gently disagree. But mostly I don’t. Arguing with people on social media is an exercise in futility. So I get to express my opinions here. It’s great to make friends on […]
by Anne R. Allen I’m often approached by parents or grandparents of children who’ve shown a talent for writing. They ask how a child can learn to be a writer. Or sometimes a person going through a mid-life job change will ask my advice about going back to college to pursue a long-deferred writing dream. […]
by Anne R. Allen Recently, a blog reader asked me why readers dislike it when the POV character dies at the end of chapter one, when most TV cop shows start with the victim being murdered — and nobody complains. As I said in my blogpost on 8 Ways Not to Start a Novel: “This […]
Anne R Allen’s Blog With Ruth Harris