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May 10, 2015 By Dr. John Yeoman 42 Comments

How NOT To Win A Writing Contest: 7 Deadly Story Sins

How NOT To Win A Writing Contest: 7 Deadly Story Sins

by Dr. John Yeoman   Have you ever entered a short story contest and failed to win? And wondered why? You may have made one or more of these seven ‘killer’ mistakes. How do I know? Since 2009, I’ve judged more than 6000 entries in the Writers’ Village short story award. And I’ve given every […]

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Filed Under: Writing Craft Tagged With: how to win writing contests, John Yeoman, short fiction, short stories, Writers' Village Short Story Awards, writing contests, Writing tips

May 3, 2015 By Anne R. Allen 68 Comments

13 Reasons Why You Should Write a Short Story This Month

13 Reasons Why You Should Write a Short Story This Month

by Anne R. Allen Mashable reported this week that the buzzword of the moment is “snackable content”—described as “bite-sized chunks of info that can be quickly ‘consumed’ by its audience.” That’s why short fiction is hot. Ditto creative nonfiction essays. But the word hasn’t reached all writers. Recently I saw a newbie writer ask for […]

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Filed Under: Social Media and Marketing For Writers, The Publishing Business, Writing Craft Tagged With: EBUK, Fuse Literary Agency, how to write a novella, short fiction, Short stories made into films, Short story markets, Why Grandma Bought That Car, Why You Should Write Short Fiction

March 8, 2015 By Jodie Renner 68 Comments

How to Write a Prize-Worthy Short Story: A Step-by-Step Guide

How to Write a Prize-Worthy Short Story: A Step-by-Step Guide

by Editor Jodie Renner   Writing short stories is a great way to test the waters of fiction without making a huge commitment, or to experiment with different genres, characters, settings, and voices. Even if you’ve published a novel or two, it’s a good idea to try to release a few high-quality, well-edited short stories […]

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Filed Under: Writing Craft Tagged With: Captivate Your Readers, how to win writing contests, how to write, Jodie Renner, short fiction, Why Short Stories are Hot, Writing tips

May 11, 2014 By Anne R. Allen 69 Comments

The New Golden Age of Short Fiction: 12 Reasons to Write a Short Story This Month

The New Golden Age of Short Fiction: 12 Reasons to Write a Short Story This Month

by Anne R. Allen I recently heard from a writer who said she felt disrespected by her writing group. They were all working on novels and memoir and didn’t take her short fiction work seriously.I saw another writer on Google Plus asking for help because his work kept coming in at around 40 pages—like that […]

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Filed Under: The Publishing Business, The Writing Life, Writing Craft Tagged With: Day One magazine, Kindle Serials, Kindle Singles, Shirley S. Allen, short fiction, short is the new long, short stories, Short stories made into films, Short story markets

January 19, 2014 By Anne R. Allen 88 Comments

Six Pieces of Bad Advice New Writers Need to Ignore

Six Pieces of Bad Advice New Writers Need to Ignore

by Anne R. Allen   A couple of weeks ago, when I wrote a post about writing as a hobby as opposed to a profession (hint: they’re both good choices), I got a couple of comments from new writers who were discouraged to read how much work and dedication it takes to become a professional writer. They […]

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Filed Under: Self-Publishing, Social Media and Marketing For Writers, The Publishing Business, The Writing Life, Writing Craft Tagged With: Amazon reviews, Anne R. Allen, critiquecircle.com, how not to publish, How to get a book published, Ltd. SheWrites, querying agents, Sherwood, short fiction, short stories, WANAtribe, Writing myths

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writers digest 101 best websites for writers award

Anne R. AllenAnne R. Allen writes funny mysteries and how-to-books for writers. She also writes poetry and short stories on occasion. She’s a contributor to Writer’s Digest and the Novel and Short Story Writer’s Market.

Her bestselling Camilla Randall Mystery Series features perennially down-on-her-luck former socialite Camilla Randall—who is a magnet for murder, mayhem and Mr. Wrong, but always solves the mystery in her quirky, but oh-so-polite way.

Ruth Harris NYT best selling authorRuth is a million-copy New York Times bestselling author, Romantic Times award winner, former Big 5 editor, publisher, and news junkie.

Her emotional, entertaining women’s fiction and critically praised novels have sold millions of copies in hard cover, paperback and ebook editions, been translated into 19 languages, sold in 30 countries, and were prominent selections of leading book clubs including the Literary Guild and the Book Of The Month Club.

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