Effectively and efficiently prepare to write your short story and set yourself up for success.… Read More How To Plan Your Short Story (+ Free Planning Workbook!)
Writing is like a relationship: you have to put effort in to keep the spark alive. If you don’t feed your love for writing, your inspiration well dries up, and it becomes difficult to continue creating. But how do we make sure our well runneth over? Writers, that’s what we’re talking about today.… Read More How I Stay Inspired to Write (Even During a Pandemic)
As writers, the last thing we want to do is appear amateurish.… Read More 10 Warning Signs of Amateurish Writing & How to Fix Them
Subplots are my jam! Most of my stories are like 80% subplot. I like them because they don’t conform to the basic rules of main plotlines; you get more creative liberty.… Read More 20 High-Stake Subplot Ideas That Aren’t Romantic
Though I killed off a lot of characters back then, I wasn’t careless: it was all intentional. Those deaths moved the plot forward, as any character death should, and had been placed strategically. But what were those strategies? How did I kill off characters so meaningfully, it hurt the reader while still advancing the plot? That’s what I’m here to share today!… Read More How to Make a Character’s Death Heartbreaking (2019 edition)
Often I’ll see a writing tip that sounds great, until I think about it and realize, “Well, it sounds simple, but how do I even go about doing that?” These five tips aren’t like that. These are my favorite, most impactful tips, so basic that you can implement them into your own writing immediately. Sound good? Let’s get started!… Read More 5 Tiny Tricks That Improve Your Writing Instantly
Fun fact: writers love writing prologues. But readers hate having to read them! So what are you, a writer who loves prologues, going to do? Most advice you’ll find will tell you to avoid them at all costs. But there are better solutions, writers! Which is why I’ve written down my top 4 tips & ideas on how to write a good, un-skip-able prologue. Your book deserves it!… Read More Writing a Prologue Your Reader Won’t Skip
You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this update. (Here’s a hint: years.) As an organization nut, the thought of systematizing my Pinterest profile even further was magical. But unattainable. Think a unicorn. But that’s not a very good analogy, because unicorns weren’t added in a recent update. “Sections” were! So, based on that, we can logically assume the new Pinterest sections are better than unicorns. It’s quite a statement, but I won’t deny it.… Read More The Best Uses for Pinterest “Sections” for Writers
Questions just about every writer has asked him- or herself: Just how many words does it take to make a novel? Is there a certain word-count? And how do I know if my novel is too short/long? If you are that writer, here is a quick, simplistic post for you, based entirely on the research I’ve been doing lately. (Yes, I research word-counts. I swear I’m this cool in real life.)… Read More How Many Words Make a Novel?
you definitely need an ideal reader. There isn’t any going around it, so please don’t try. I’ve said this in many other posts before, but here it is again: don’t write a novel for a broad audience. Write with one person in mind (i.e. an ideal reader) to make it deeper and more personal… Read More Why You Need an Ideal Reader (& How to Find Yours)
