by Anne R. Allen The most dangerous concept in the universe is probably, “there is only one right way.” People who insist there is only one right way to live, think, behave, or believe are responsible for most of the world’s conflict and suffering. Merriam-Webster defines dogma as “a belief or set of beliefs […]
The Five ‘Insider’ Secrets Of Top Fiction Writers
The Five ‘Insider’ Secrets Of Top Fiction Writers by Dr. John Yeoman How do you write a ‘killer’ novel or story that brings you a contract with an agent or publisher? Or that leaps over the short-list to gain a top prize in a contest? There’s a secret to it. But more than 90% of […]
6 Reasons “Show Don’t Tell” Can be Terrible Advice for New Writers
by Anne R. Allen “Show-Don’t-Tell” is one of the most sacred commandments in the writerly bible. As Susan Defreitas wrote at LitReactor, “If writing advice were classic rock, this would be ‘Stairway to Heaven’.” “Show, Don’t Tell” is sound advice—up to a point. Nobody wants to read a novel that’s a dry recitation of incidents. […]
7 Ways To Rekindle The Joy Of Writing
FROM MIKE TYSON TO ALBERT EINSTEIN: Why Writers Need To Goof Off And Space Out by Ruth Harris “Everyone has a plan ’till they get punched in the mouth,” observed philosopher-pugilist, Mike Tyson. Not just boxers, Mike. Ditto for writers. Whether you’re a plotter or pantser, you start out with some kind of plan. […]
Beware the “Writing Rules Police”
by Anne R. Allen The Harvard Business School recently did a fascinating study of toxic employees and their effect on a company’s bottom line. The researchers discovered the most difficult and costly employees aren’t the lazy ones or the gossipy ones. It turns out the worst are the ones dead-set on following rules to the […]
Murder is More Fun with an Accomplice: A Guide for Co-Writing a Novel
By Melodie Campbell To the elderly man in the khaki sweater who lifted his reading glasses to stare open-mouthed… To the unknown person who gasped and knocked over a chair behind me… To the woman with the stroller who stared in horror, and then wheeled her toddler frantically away toward the exit… False […]
6 Steps to Hooking Your Reader: How to Write a Page Turning Novel
THE HAPPY HOOKER’S GUIDE TO THE ART AND CRAFT OF WRITING A PAGE TURNER by Ruth Harris “First you do it for love, then you do it for your friends, then you do it for money.” Ralph Ellison said it. Or was that Virginia Woolf? Depends on who you ask, but no matter where you […]
10 Misconceptions a College Education Taught Me about Writing
by Anne R. Allen I had what is known as a “good education.” I attended East Coast and European prep schools and Ivy League colleges. Both my parents were college professors with PhDs in literature. All of which left me uniquely unqualified for my chosen profession: writing novels. Why? Because I grew up knowing […]
THE E-PUBLISHING REVOLUTION IS DEFINITELY NOT OVER (Regardless of what you’ve heard)
We’re honored this week to host literary agent Laurie McLean of the Fuse Literary Agency. If you’re looking for an agent, we have great news for you! Although Laurie is not accepting unsolicited submissions, she will accept queries from readers of this blog! Scroll down for more info in Laurie’s bio. And now, here’s Laurie!… […]
How to Start a Novel: A Checklist for Editing Your First Chapter
by Anne R. Allen Happy New Year! Congratulations if you won NaNoWriMo in November. And even if you didn’t. In fact, you deserve congrats if you didn’t join in the madness at all, and you’ve been writing slowly and steadily all year. No matter how long it took you, pat yourself on the back […]
11 NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS FOR WRITERS WHO WANT TO LIVE DANGEROUSLY
by Ruth Harris With tongue firmly in cheek, Ruth Harris tells us what NOT to do in the coming year to further our writing careers. We both wish you the very best in 2016! If you’re a new commenter on the blog, you may have to wait for comment moderation. I apologize for that–we LOVE […]
10 Reasons Why Being a Writer Is Like Being Santa Claus
by Tara Sparling Tara Sparling is an Irish blogger and humorist. I stumbled onto her award-winning blog, “Tara Sparling Writes: A Sideways Perspective on the Bonkers Business of Books” through a Tweet, and I’ve been an avid follower ever since. Her take on the writing life is uniquely quirky and hilarious… and oh, so Irish. Seriously, […]
6 More Scams That Target New Writers
by Anne R. Allen Last week I talked about some of the writing scams that Ruth and I have heard about recently in my post 5 Scams that Target New Writers. Sometimes we’re contacted by the scammers themselves and sometimes we get questions from readers who aren’t sure if they should accept an offer […]
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