Talk to any author and they will each have different advice on self-editing your novel self-editing your novel. The reason for this is there is no right way to edit. Everyone has different strengths and weaknesses when it comes to writing. Because of this, every first...
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A Year with Dictation for Writing
From the beginning of 2019 and up to 2020, I have been using dictation for writing fiction. It is known as speech to text software. The year has not been an easy learning process. Dictation for writing is a steep learning curve. It is also worth it. In this blog post,...
Handling Project Burnout
For the first blog post of 2020, I figured we could tackle project burnout, a concept that is common among many people, not just creative types. Of course, this is tailored towards writers. If you haven’t experienced project burnout, you are godlike, or you haven’t...
How to Finish NaNoWriMo in Two Weeks
November is upon us! Another year of NaNoWriMo. For those that do not know, NaNoWriMo is the National November Writing Month. You can find out more on their website. 2018 was the first year I’ve participated since 2015. You can learn a lot in three years away from...
How to Craft a First Chapter
By J.J. Reichenbach As an editor, I read a lot of first chapters and coach authors on what does and doesn’t need to be included in them. The rules vary a little bit depending on which genre you’re writing in (for example, literary works are allowed a much slower pace...
The Agony and Ecstasy of the Short Story
by Sarah L. Johnson Life is like an owl pellet. Why? I dunno. Owl pellets are cool and there are worse things life could be like...the owl itself, for instance. Thing is, I've wanted to write an owl pellet story for a long time and I had an idea once, but it turned...
Guest Post: Four Steps on How to Start World Building
Author Kelly Charron was kind enough to have me on her blog to discuss World Building tactics. Some of the most captivating fantasy and science fiction stories have immersive worlds, creatures, and items that entrance the reader. It is important to lay down the...
Opening Page Checklist: 4 Must-Haves to Hook Your Reader
By: Kelly Charron, Author of thrillers Pretty Wicked and Wicked Fallout The goal of page one in any written piece is to grab the reader’s attention. The million-dollar question is how do you successfully do that? It helps to have a great understanding of what genre...
Hire an Editor
As the title says – hire an editor. No ands, ifs, or buts. There, blog post done. You can stop reading now. This is a question that comes up often from aspiring writers, new authors, or in interviews. Perhaps I just hear it more since I’ve gone the self-publishing...