A while back, I linked to 5 Awesome Top-Paying Online Fantasy & Sci-Fi Magazines. While it’s never a bad idea to submit to pro-paying markets, it goes without saying that the competition is very steep and it’s not uncommon for the more prestigious magazines to accept less than one percent of their unsolicited manuscripts. For […]
Writing a Synopsis for Your Novel
Now that you’ve read through your novel a few times and are pretty happy with how things look, it’s time to work on your query letter and synopsis. If you’re seeking a traditional publishing deal, this is a necessary step, but I’ll be frank with you: It isn’t very fun. What is a synopsis? So […]
Three steps of novel revision
You finished your first draft. Now what? Well, first things first, sit back and congratulate yourself. You did it! How many people can say they finished a novel? Even if you don’t plan to do anything with it (although I’d argue you should), you’ve made a great accomplishment. But here’s the bad news. Writing the […]
Write to Get Published
Has anyone ever told you that if you’re writing to be published, you’re writing for all the wrong reasons? If so, I hope you calmly and politely asked what exactly are the “right reasons” to be writing. The answer you were given most likely included some combination of the words love, passion, and free. But […]
Editing and the Creative Process
Here are a couple of quotes that I would like to share (I can’t tell you at the moment who to credit for them, but if you know, leave a comment at the bottom of this post.): “Editing kills the creative process” and “Writing is the honeymoon, editing is the marriage” Both quotes tell you […]
Making your characters stand out
One of the most interesting aspects of having kids is watching their distinct personalities develop as they grow. It’s so crazy to see. Our five-year-old and three-year-old have such different personalities that sometimes you’d think they weren’t even related. And our little two-year-old is now really starting to become a fun little person and letting […]
You Are “Good Enough”
I’ll often see writers talk about self-doubt, inner critics, and feelings of inadequacy. “I just can’t do it” or “I’m not good enough.” I never really understood it–until now. I always told myself things like: I have no self-doubt or any of that stuff. I know I’ll make it. Someday. I could do it faster […]
Word Problems: “That”
One of the biggest problems newer writers have is the word was. I overused it constantly when I first started: Henry was sweating. Margo was crying. The air conditioner was broken. Their daddy was hot. He was crying too. It’s an ugly habit, but also a fairly easy one to break once you become of […]
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