Unfolding the Unknown Unknowns in Your Writing
We all know what we know. The smartest among us also know what they don’t know. These are the classic “known unknowns” and “unknown unknowns” [Read More]
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The Three Types of Book Cover Design Every Author Should Know
One of the great pleasures of browsing bookstores involves admiring the artwork — the cover designs on display, to be more specific. In the current [Read More]
Why Authors Are Earning Less Even As Book Sales Rise
A June 2018 report out from the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society found author earnings have dipped by 42% over the last ten years.Pexels.com HarperCollins [Read More]
Book recommendations from Charlie Munger
“In my whole life, I have known no wise people (over a broad subject matter area) who didn’t read all the time — none. Zero. [Read More]
When to Hire an Editor: 3 Professional Editors Weigh In
Want to write the best possible book? You need an editor. Editors are critical for making your writing “tight” and immersive. But before you hire one, you [Read More]
How to Overcome Writer’s Block Once and For All
Writer’s block is real. And it can destroy your chances for success if you let it. It’s that stuck feeling you get when you don’t [Read More]
Why I’ll Never Tell Anyone They Can’t Write
I was in a writing class once where the teacher decided to do a sentence-by-sentence critique of the first of page a student’s story. The [Read More]
Serial Box Creates Books for the Age of Peak TV
Some time ago, I found myself in need of a vacation read. I am a book critic, so this was an easily solved problem: I [Read More]
The Dictionary Is Telling People How to Speak Again
Since the 1960s, the reference book has cataloged how people actually use language, not how they should. That might be changing. An Object Lesson. It [Read More]
How to Take Feedback and Implement It
Knowing you’re about to receive criticism might be one of the worst feelings you can experience in a workplace setting. Your palms start to sweat, [Read More]
The Romance Writing Industry Is an Unexpected Content Marketing Innovator
If your perception of romances stops at racy titles and the bare-chested, long-haired cover models of (mostly) yesteryear, you’re missing out on the industry’s greatest [Read More]
The One Piece of Advice Every Aspiring Author Needs to Know
If you are one of the millions of people who aspire to be a published author, I have some writing advice for you: never listen [Read More]
How to Write a Book Without Losing Your Mind
Expert advice on ending procrastination and finishing that manuscript, dissertation, or other big project A few months ago, I promised some nice people in New [Read More]
Why Writing Helps You Figure Out What You Believe
Thoughts rush through your mental processes in a flash. In fact, many of your thoughts come and go in a hair of a second, never [Read More]
The Pros and Cons of Writing for a Content Mill
Starting out as a freelance writer requires more than a strong determination. You may need to accept low-paying assignments just to break into the profession. [Read More]
How to Build a Vivid Fantasy Setting
A fantasy novel with a lame setting is like a rock song played on kazoo. A strong setting adds richness and depth to your book [Read More]
10 Podcasts For Writers
There are many ways to document your time here on this planet, especially with the rise of social media. We take pictures, send videos and [Read More]
On the Art and Influence of Hemingway’s Short Stories
Seven years after winning the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1954, Ernest Hemingway, like Edwin Arlington Robinson’s privileged gentleman Richard Cory, “one calm summer night, [Read More]
17 Approachable Literary Journals
If you are just starting to submit your work to literary journals, or perhaps you just want to avoid rejection, this list is for you. [Read More]
4 Steps for How to Turn an Idea Into a Story That Rocks
Bar none, my favorite part of the writing process is the conception stage. That magical moment when an idea comes to me like a surprise [Read More]
At An Author Book Reading, You Should Never, Ever Do This One Thing
I have attended hundreds of readings and literary events, both as an observer and as a coordinator. I absolutely love attending readers, and every event [Read More]