Anne R. Allen's Blog... with Ruth Harris
Writing about writing. Mostly.
This is a post for every author who’s been in rejection hell—hoping, praying, and bribing assorted deities—living for that day when you finally land the book contract that will make all your dreams come true. You know who you are: you’ve spent forever learning to craft a perfect query, sent it off to carefully […]
by Anne R. Allen My life continues to zoom along at warp speed. Mark Williams just told me that THE GATSBY GAME is up at Amazon this morning–a week ahead of schedule. It’s a book I had to write–one that’s been sitting in my head for decades. It’s based on the mysterious death of […]
by Anne R. Allen I can finally say it: I have three brand new novels coming out this fall! Within a couple of weeks, THE GATSBY GAME will debut as an e-book. It’s a stand-alone mystery set in the Mad Men era that proposes a fictional solution to one of Hollywood’s most scandalous mysteries. (It’s […]
Today Ruth brings us a great pep talk from screenwriter and mystery novelist Michael Brandman, who this year was asked to take over the Jesse Stone novels of the legendary mystery writer, the late Robert B. Parker. How would you feel if you were suddenly asked to be the “continuator” of a book series written […]
While I’m teaching at the Central Coast Writers Conference this weekend, we have a guest post from the awesome Michelle Davidson Argyle, Literary Labster and author of the thriller, Monarch, which debuts this week from Rhemalda Publishing. Michelle did an in-depth study on her blog last year on small presses. That study helped me make my decision to go with a small […]
by Ruth Harris Today we have our first regular monthly post from Ruth Harris. Ruth is in NYC, so she very well may be without power today, so if we don’t hear from her, we can blame Irene. All of you East-Coasters, hang in there: you’re in our thoughts. I think the most common […]
by Anne R. Allen We’ve all fantasized about book tours, haven’t we? That glamorous trip we’ll take when our novel makes it big? Our publisher will send us off in a whirlwind of glamorous travel: booksignings, readings, and personal appearances with our adoring fans all over the country—maybe the world! But this week, BookTour.com […]
I have another Awesome Announcement this week: I now have a blog partner! She’s NYT bestselling author and former editor at Bantam, Dell and Kensington, RUTH HARRIS. I’ve had a lot of fabulous guest bloggers here in the last year, but Ruth is the only one whose post made it into my top ten most popular […]
by Anne R. Allen This is the stuff a writer’s dreams are made of. I got an email from an acquisitions editor last night that said: “I started reading Food of Love tonight… And I love it…the characters are so real and the situations so fascinating… Bravo. Wow, even. I’ll get a contract in the mail to you […]
by Anne R. Allen The summer writers’ conference season is upon us, and wordsmiths everywhere are packing up laptops, manuscripts, and literary dreams to head for those idyllic retreats where they can polish their craft, learn the latest publishing trends, and hang with successful authors, agents and publishers—for a hefty fee. At some of […]
by Anne R. Allen Some professional writers claim writer’s block doesn’t exist. They’ll tell you they never have any trouble banging out their daily pages—and laugh at people who do. William Faulkner said, “I only write when I am inspired. Fortunately I am inspired at 9 o’clock every morning.” Terry Pratchett—not earning himself any fans […]
by Anne R. Allen One of my favorite moments in film happens in Star Trek IV, when the Enterprise crew find themselves back the 20th century. Kirk refers to “the complete works of Jacqueline Susann, the novels of Harold Robbins,” and Spock replies, “Ah… The giants!” Funny bit. But the thing is—they were giants. Not great writers, but […]
by Anne R. Allen We’re in the midst of seismic changes in the publishing world, with new quakes altering the landscape on a daily basis. The pulp paperback is in its death throes, as mass market houses like Dorchester slink into ignominious bankruptcy. Kindle and the Amazon $2.99 e-book/70% royalty paradigm have changed an […]
