Best Practices
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Get More Engagement on Instagram as a Fiction Writer: Indie Author Strategies
As a fiction writer, you know that getting people to read your work is only half the battle. Before and after they've read it, you need to find ways to keep them engaged and interested in what you have to say. This is especially important on social media platforms...
Some Seemingly Counter-Intuitive Advice For Your Amazon Release Day
The day is finally here. You’ve finished your novel, decided to go the Indie route, and have completed all the formalities on KDP. What’s next? Conventional wisdom suggests you set your book up for pre-order, then market the hell out of it. You tell your mom, your...
Criticism as a Fiction Writer: How to Listen, Learn and Grow
No one is born a great fiction writer. It takes time, practice and a lot of hard work to hone your skills and create stories that resonate with readers. Along the way, you will receive feedback - both positive and negative. How you handle that criticism can make or...
A Pantser and a Plotter Walk Into a Bar…And the Pantser Learns a Lesson
For months, that’s how I wrote my first book, and then my second book. Some days the words were like a thundering river, literally gushing onto the pages. Other days, it was more like a seasonal creek in the middle of a long drought. I was lucky if two coherent words trickled out. Mostly, I ended up just looking at a blank page. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was a Pantser.
Twist Villains: Hate them, love them, write them right.
Okay, so controversy in the writing world apparently means twists! Today, I want to address a character trope that's often said with a pointed eye roll: twist villains. I'm sure you know the type (anything by M. Night Shymalan). But here's the thing! This director...
Deleting a Draft: Don’t be afraid to make the cut
Upon request, I'm going to talk about deleting a draft. First draft, second draft, "final draft"... when you realize that it's not working, when you toy with the idea of delete, when should you do it? How can you do it? When you know you have to make the cut While...
Taking Care of Your Health As An Author
Superficially, writing may seem like one of the least physically taxing professions on the planet. How hard can sitting in one place and thinking be after all?
Worldbuilding for SFF – Your Story Takes Place Where??
So, you’ve got an idea for a book? Fabulous! It’s a work of SciFi/fantasy, you say? Awesome! Ah, and I see you’ve got a list of characters and a general plot of your story. You’re doing great! Now what about a worldbuilding outline?
Writing by the Seat of your Pants
Intricate worlds. Unexpected twists, A satisfying ending. This, and much more is what an author promises a potential reader to entice them to pick their book out of thousands on the market. But delivering this isn’t and will never be easy.
Can’t write? Quick Tips to Get Your Muse in Line
Can't write? Join the club. When it comes to motivation, I'm sure we've all hit that point where we just don't have it, can't find it. Sure, you want to write. Need to write, even. But actually doing it? Well, nobody's house is cleaner than that of a writer with a...