Should You Pay to Have Your Query Letter Critiqued?
Sometimes a little investment goes a long way Oh, querying. That lovely process that is required for most writers to go from writing a book to traditionally published. That same process that, at best, consists of a love-hate relationship for…
6 Self-Editing Hacks to Make Your Manuscript Shine
There’s a lot you can do to edit your book without hiring a professional editor So you’ve finally written that book you’ve been working on for what seems like your entire life. You’ve followed your outline precisely or, if you’re…
I Tested Out Paid Beta Readers So You Don’t Have To
To beta read, or not to beta read, that is the question Oh, beta readers. If you’re a writer in the midst of writing and editing a novel, you’re probably quite familiar with the term. It’s the idea that you…
The Ins and Outs of Book Pitch Events
Is pitching your novel — online or in-person — a worthwhile endeavor? If you’ve written a novel, you’re probably familiar with something that all writers dread: the pitch. Summing up a novel you’ve spent countless hours revising, proofreading, and developing…
How to Write a Logline for Your Novel
Condensing your story into one sentence is nervewracking, but not impossible I recently attended a writing conference where there were pitch appointments available for all attendees. This is one of the biggest perks of attending a writing conference in my…
4 Steps to Write a Novel Manuscript in 4 Months With No Plan
The key is to actually write So you’re writing a novel. Or thinking about writing a novel. Either way, you have dreams of becoming a published novelist one day and making the New York Times best-seller list (don’t we all?)…
How to Leave Breadcrumbs in Your Story
Foreshadowing is an artform you should learn to master if you want to be a successful writer When you read the title of this article, what do you envision? For many, it probably brings images of a “Hansel and Gretel” movie…
The Art of the Synopsis
Planning that even a pantser can use. So you’re writing a book. Or planning to write a book. Or you have an idea for a book to write one day, that for now sits in the back of your mind,…
Why I Don’t Like NaNoWriMo
Don’t come after me, it just doesn’t work for everyone. If you’re like me, you probably start hearing buzz from your writing community about National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) every year starting in September and October. I have countless friends…
Create Characters Your Readers Will Fall in Love With
It only takes one thing to make your characters more relatable: motivation. We all can undoubtedly think of characters from our favorite works of fiction that stick with us. Some stories are propelled forward by amazingly realistic characters that kind…