Feel the Heat: Sex and Fiction. 8 Tips for Building Tension
Will your fictional characters, at some point, hit the sheets? As most of us creative types enjoy a delicious romp in the sack in real life, it shouldn’t be too difficult to apply our trusty, book-enhancing observational skills to break down, scene by scene, moment by smokin’-hot moment, the escalating tension between our first horny thought […]
Author Teddy Wayne’s Tips for Book Publishing Publicity
I’ll be honest with you. I just wrote an entirely new scene in a different POV and tense for my novel RADIO HEAD, inspired by the phenomenal workshop I attended at UCLA with instructor Lisa Cron. She has graciously agreed to critique it for me, and so here I am, with breath held. I’m stymied because […]
The Biggest Mistakes Writers Make When Querying Literary Agents
Generally, I try to spare you overly lengthy blog posts. Most writers work from home and already have enough temptation to procrastinate from our craft with lame excuses such as folding laundry or taking the cat to the vet. This post is worth a sit-down. That is, if you’re serious about writing an excellent query […]
10 Life Lessons from Syndicated Writer, Author, Teacher and Chef Monica Bhide
This must-read guest post comes from the impressive and always lovable Monica Bhide, author of three cookbooks, the blog A Life of Spice and syndicated columnist of SEASONINGS, distributed by the Scripps Howard News Media to over 300 news outlets. In addition to her writing, Monica owns and operates her own cooking school, which has been featured in […]
Lit Agent Tina Wexler’s 6.5 Tips for Impressing Agents
6 ½. Take this getting-published thing seriously. There’s plenty of fun to be had, but remember, this is a business, not a hobby or a get-rich-quick scheme. Agents want hard workers, writers dedicated to their craft who view getting published as the first step of a long journey, writers whom they will want to be with on that journey.
14 Rocking Good NaNoWriMo Tips
With an entirely out-of-control outline tipping the scales at over 12,000 words, I dove headfirst this fine November 1st on a journey to make a messy manuscript my own personal heaven. Yes, I wrote fast and furiously, throwing editing, self-censorship and occasionally good taste out the window. I loved every minute of it. I wish […]
18 random thoughts about creativity – Not just for writers
What can we say about creativity? Joel Friedlander, a self-published author and book designer who blogs about book design, self-publishing and the indie publishing life at The Book Designer spends a lot of time being creative… and thinking about creativity. “Where do ideas come from?” he asks. If you don’t know, that’s okay. Friedlander asserts, “nobody else knows […]
Act One: 10 Essential Elements
I’m a little addicted to the The Script Lab. As I worry over and scrutinize my fiction novel, tweets about screen-writing from @TheScriptLab interject with lucid, helpful, applicable ideas. My blog is for creatives of all stripes, and ideas for good writing can come from any genre. I really like this list of elements; it reminds […]
The art of pitching your novel; advice from Ken Levine
As I mentioned in yesterday’s post about writing and self-doubt, my husband doesn’t want to hear about my writing process. He has, however, made it abundantly clear that my “pitching technique” needs serious work. I need to sell my story, and sell it like a champ. Ken Levine, a TV comedy writer with a killer […]
Self-doubt and writing: amicable partners?
It’s Monday morning, and I am dragging myself through the mud. Am I making any progress? Is what I’m writing any good, any good whatsoever? Over the weekend, my husband and I had the rare opportunity to enjoy a date night. It was a beautiful evening, so we sat outdoors at one of our favorite […]
