Anne R. Allen's Blog... with Ruth Harris
Writing about writing. Mostly.
Did you know you can make a decent income from freelance blogging? Blogging for money is a great way to add additional cash flow. The trick is finding good clients so it’s worth the effort. While not every website pays for guest posts, there are many brands and businesses that invest in blogging and pay […]
by David Brown and Michelle Barker Have you ever had what you thought was a great idea for a novel, sat down and wrote madly for fifteen pages, and then it just… fizzled out? Or maybe you managed to make it through a whole novel on the energy of that one idea, but somehow it […]
by Ruth Harris Fake it until you make it. It’s old advice, and for some people it works. Sometimes. But what if you’ve made it? You’ve finished your book (or books), you’ve been published or you self-published. You’ve sold copies, you’ve received checks from your agent, your publisher or from Amazon and iBooks, you’ve been […]
By William L. Hahn We often think of writing as a life filled with the once-and-done. There’s this book, we must write it; Muse willing you finish, then jot “The End” and it’s on to a completely different story. Each tale is complete, the characters exist only so long as you were penning more words […]
No one less than Stephen King has passed along some career-changing advice. “I got a scribbled comment that changed the way I rewrote my fiction once and forever. Jotted below the machine-generated signature of the editor was this mot: “Not bad, but PUFFY. You need to revise for length. Formula: 2nd Draft = 1st Draft […]
by Ruth Harris One of the primo, Number One “rules” for writers is write what you know. Writing what you know is generally excellent advice for writers who are in the early stages of their careers. Knowing your setting — whether it’s geographical, professional, familial, is one less issue you’ll have to face when you’re still not […]
by Mara Purl Every author wants their novels to be made into a film or a television series. Right? So let’s take a look at how these two worlds of “series”—both the readable and the viewable kind—connect, overlap, or compete. Some people discover a great series first on TV, then want to dig deeper by […]
by Anne R. Allen We all have a writing craft issue or two…or three or four or five, no matter where we are in our careers. Yes, even professional authors who have written ten or more novels. I’m wrestling with some myself with my forthcoming Camilla book, Catfishing in America, which is still, alas, only […]
by Ruth Harris A term used in scoring tennis, “unforced errors” are not caused by the actions of the player’s opponent, but they’re the responsibility of the player him/herself. S/he is caught wrong-footed, out of balance, unable to return the serve, incapable of making the winning shot. The concept of unforced errors can also be […]
Improve the action and get your characters moving! by Meghan Ward Page-turners aren’t the only books that employ action. In every story the characters’ actions drive the narrative forward. Without action, a book would be a series of scenes full of dialogue and description, a literary Dinner with Andre that would put the reader straight […]
by Anne R. Allen One of my personal writing issues is I tend to pack my books and stories with way too many characters. If a fascinating person walks into one of my stories, I feel it would be rude not to let them join the party. I suppose my inner Manners Doctor takes over. […]
By Melodie Campbell Yes, I’m at that point. The chaos point. Writing to a specific word count, three-quarters written, and my twentieth novel is an unqualified mess. If you are a veteran writer like me, you say it’s not going to happen this time. But it does. EVERY FREAKING TIME. Here’s why: THE LINEAR APPROACH […]
Newbie writers should protect fledgling ideas. by Anne R. Allen You’ve got a fantastic idea for a novel. It’s been hanging around for quite a while, knocking inside your noggin. The idea keeps saying, “Let me out! Release me! Put me in a book!” Maybe there’s a scene in your head that plays like a […]
Anne R Allen’s Blog With Ruth Harris