Anne R. Allen's Blog... with Ruth Harris
Writing about writing. Mostly.
Dialogue is fun in fiction, but too much can be exhausting by Anne R. Allen Yes, I’m quoting an Elvis song (actually by his songwriters Mac Davis and Billy Strange) in a writing article. But the title is a good thing to keep in mind when you’re writing fiction. I recently paid money for a […]
by Anne R. Allen With the self-publishing revolution, we were warned of a “tsunami of crap,” but the real problem is the tsunami of scammers. They seem to invent a new way to scam writers every day. Not just indies, but the traditionally published as well. Unfortunately, there are plenty of uninformed wannabe writers […]
by Anne R. Allen Publishing Scammers get more brazen all the time, and there seem to be more of them every day. Sometimes I wonder if all those people who have mysteriously quit their jobs aren’t now working as con artists and phone scammers. Just recently, the respected site Wattpad ran a contest that involved […]
by Anne R. Allen One of the things that will get you an automatic rejection from most agents—and a swift toss to the DNF pile from a lot of readers—is an unsympathetic character. Especially an unsympathetic protagonist. Personally, I have to admit if there’s nobody in a story I care about, I’m out of there […]
Clueless advice abounds. Everybody’s an expert. by Anne R. Allen I’m always amazed at the people who start giving me advice as soon as they hear I’m a writer. Even though I’ve been published for over 30 years, they’re always sure they know more than I do. And it’s worse for new writers. They’re bombarded […]
Publishing scams target babes in the woods by Anne R. Allen I hear about new publishing scams all the time. Sometimes scammers approach me personally, but more often I hear a sad tale of woe from some newbie who has fallen for the latest con. This week I realized that almost all the victims of […]
by Anne R. Allen These days, an author’s online presence is of vital importance to a career, whether we’re published or planning to publish. Whether we’re indie, hybrid, or trad-pubbed, it’s not only essential to be easy to find online, but we need to keep a professional presence and guard our author brand and reputation. […]
Muse time: shut out the noise and let your subconscious get into “the zone.” Ruth and Anne Want to Wish You All a Very Happy Holiday Season! One of the most common themes we hear from new writers is fears that they’re not “real writers,” especially when friends and family ask when their “scribbling” is […]
Hollywood loves High Concept. by Anne R. Allen Here it is! My first “High Concept” novel. At least it’s a close to High Concept as I’m likely to write. I have to admit I’ve been a little terrified somebody might come out with a book with the same title or plot before my slow-writer self […]
by Anne R. Allen We live in a speed-obsessed civilization. Whatever it is we crave—cars, trains, electronics, food, dates—we want them ever-faster-and-furiouser. In fact, much of the developed world seems to be engaged some turbocharged drag race of the soul, hurtling our frenzied selves from cradle to grave, terrified of slowing for even a […]
by Anne R. Allen Social Media is both a boon and a curse to new writers. Online writing groups and forums are an excellent source of insider information on the publishing industry—stuff we once could only find at expensive classes and writers’ conferences. But social media is also a major source of misinformation and dangerously […]
