When you're writing in the zone, you feel confident and creative, ready for prime time, readers, agents, and publishers, right? But it doesn't always come that easily. When writers get stuck, those good feelings can drop away quickly. A lonely occupation Writing is a solitary business for … [Read more...]
The blog for writers
The Book Deal
Happy Birthday Tom Robbins! Time to revisit your advice to writers
I’ve never known a great author to be more generous with useful advice about the craft of writing than Tom Robbins. If you’ve yet to discover this fabulous author, Robbins has written many bestselling novels including Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, Jitterbug Perfume, Skinny Legs and All and … [Read more...]
Why should anyone give a shiitake about your book?
That's the first question to ask yourself, writes Guy Kawasaki in the opening chapter of a definitive new book on self-publishing, APE: Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur – How to Publish a Book, written with co-author Shawn Welch. Kawasaki is passionate about writers creating worthwhile books for … [Read more...]
Creating a compelling narrative voice
How does an author of memoir or personal narrative transform a naked self into a compelling voice that tells a story readers can’t put down? This question arises frequently in my work as a developmental editor. One of best books on this technique is The Situation and the Story: the Art of Personal … [Read more...]
Fear of editors
Are you a writer who worries about working with a developmental editor for fear of losing control over the project? You're not alone If so, you’re not the only one. One writer put it this way recently on an online forum: “I worry that an editor will erase my voice.” Another said, “I fear I’ll … [Read more...]
Ask the editor: How to untangle a plot
Q: An agent said my novel was “dense, over-plotted and difficult to follow.” I’m not sure what to do. A: You might have too much action and not enough content. If that's the problem, you need to punctuate any rapid fire twists and turns with dialogue, description, and the kind of pacing that’s … [Read more...]