So You Want to Run a Twitter Event: Lessons From #Write4Life
It’s coming! Don’t miss #Write4Life this Saturday, all day! (You can also enter early.) We’ll be giving away editing packages ranging from query letter to full manuscript, with something for every...
View ArticleShow vs. Tell: On Nuance (Author Toolbox*)
NOTE TO MY #AuthorToolbox FRIENDS: unfortunately, this is going to be the week I miss. I recently helped run #Write4Life and it put me so far behind in my work that I can’t spare the time for the blog...
View Article11 Lessons on Running a Twitter Event
Recently I helped organize and host #Write4Life, a big charity fundraiser to benefit Sarah, a writer who has a rare illness. Whether you plan to host a book launch, a charity event, or something...
View ArticleMaking the Leap from Book One to Book Two (#AuthorToolbox)
Hello to my regulars and to my #AuthorToolbox blog hop friends! Today I’ve decided to share my journey from Book One to my first full manuscript request, which I earned in March or thereabouts. Note:...
View Article11 Tips on Choosing and Attending a Writer’s Conference
Since I will be away at the Writer’s Digest Conference this weekend and too tired to write a blog post next Tuesday/Wednesday, I’ve brought this one out of the archives for your viewing pleasure. I...
View Article#WDC17: How to Plot Your Protagonist
I’m not one of those people that holds to the adage of creating a character sketch. I grab some reference pics, and I go – otherwise I just get bored and forget whatever things I wrote about my...
View Article#WDC17: Creating a Character Web (AuthorToolbox)
As a part of my series of session recaps for the 2017 Writer’s Digest Conference, I’m figured I’d pass along the wisdom of character webs to my readers (as well as my AuthorToolbox friends). These...
View Article#WDC17: 7 Steps to Crafting a Short Story
If you’re anything like me, you have trouble with short form. According to Windy Lynn Harris, Writer’s Digest presenter and author of Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays, writing...
View Article#WDC17: The 3 Steps to Successful Author Branding
Yet another session recap from #WDC17. Save money on conferences by reading my recaps! This one is on developing your author brand: Step One: Develop a Brand Compass The first step to building an...
View Article#WDC17: The 2 Keys to Platforming and Publicity
According to this session of #WDC17, the size of an author’s advance generally translates into the size of a publisher’s investment in that author. To that end, authors with low advances may need to...
View ArticleHow to Structure a Query (#AuthorToolbox)
Hello to my regular readers and to my #AuthorToolbox friends! The Internet is brimming with articles on how to write a query, but in my year of critiquing them, I’ve noticed something: many authors...
View ArticleThe Basics of Starting a Newsletter
Starting a newsletter can be daunting, but it doesn’t need to be. Here’s what I learned at an informative #WDC17 conference session on the subject. Types of Newsletters Just for definition’s sake:...
View Article16 Tips to Designing a Newsletter and Pop-Up Forms
This week, I’m expanding on my last post’s newsletter basics and going a little deeper into designing a newsletter and its accompanying pop-up forms. (To reiterate, for beginners I would recommend...
View ArticleThe 5 Levels of Dialogue Tags
Let’s talk about dialogue tags. The very complex world of dialogue tags turns out to be a lot simpler than you’d think. Below you’ll find dialogue tags broken down into one of five “levels” with easy...
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