Anne R. Allen's Blog... with Ruth Harris
Writing about writing. Mostly.
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 […]
by Ruth Harris The Tyranny Of The Time Stamp. We all live under the lash of the digital clock and the tyranny of the time stamp. It’s not just us, it’s everyone everywhere — Fast food and even faster fashion. Pro chess players have 2 minutes to make their moves. On each move 12 seconds […]
by Anne R. Allen As a reader, I’ve recently developed some pet peeves that never used to bother me. Maybe it’s age. These days I find it almost impossible to follow a novel with wild head-hopping, where every spear-carrier is a POV character. I’m also bored by stories where everybody is horrible and there’s nobody […]
by Ruth Harris We all know them. Each of us has encountered them. They are the pilot fish and blood suckers with literary stars in their eyes who wannabe — drumroll — A Writer! Wannabe writers come to you with gauzy fantasies about “inspiration” and visions of overnight fame and instant riches. And they have […]
by Ruth Harris I’d been planning to write my April post about outlines. Which authors do outlines? And which ones don’t? (I don’t and neither does Anne). I’d done a bit of research and made some notes when along came AI, the hot new kid in town. How could I ignore AI when everyday I […]
by Anne R. Allen Back in 2002, a New York Times survey showed 81% of Americans want to write a book. With the indie ebook revolution, the percentage has only expanded. Of course, most of that 81+% won’t ever write a word. There’s an old, unkind joke that says, “Most people think they have a […]
by Joseph Perry Congratulations! You’ve received an offer of representation. The next stop is the bestseller list. But before you start planning your book tour, you should take a few minutes to review your literary agent agreement (or lack thereof) Oral Agreements Some literary agencies do not have written contracts. They work with a verbal […]
