As writers, we often have too many things pulling us in too many directions, and it’s easy to let some things slide to the back. One of those things often forgotten is reading, but it’s essential to improving as an author. If you never read, you can’t be a good Read more
Today, I want to keep it short and simple. As writers, we need to convey a lot with just text, and part of that struggle is finding ways to convey specificity instead of vagueness. Let’s look at three easy tips that will strengthen your writing and enhance your story. 1. Read more
Today I want to talk about a common convention writers use in their stories to build intrigue: unreliable narrators. These add a bit of mystery and often leave readers talking about the story long after it’s finished. But not every story with an unreliable narrator is a hit. Let’s take Read more
Let’s get back into the Character Under A Microscope series where I dig deep into character development. Today, I want to talk about walking. Walk is one of those bland verbs that can be replaced with something more descriptive. Everyone crosses space at some point, but how does each person Read more
I’m a huge supporter of continuous learning. Obviously, right? This is, after all, one of hundreds of articles I’ve written on the author business and writing craft. But what I’ve realized recently is that learning can also be a crutch. Just like how writers get stuck worldbuilding, researching, or organizing Read more
Whether you’re a panster who makes things up as you write or a plotter who has a story outline before writing, your first draft will not be perfect. Overwriters will have too much fluff in their stories, and underwriters will have holes that need more. That’s just part of the Read more
This week I’m going to keep my post short yet hopefully powerful. I want to discuss what keeps readers interested in a story. Is it the villain? The setting? The romance? When we boil everything down to the very basics, what keeps people reading? It’s a lot simpler than most Read more
Info dumps happen when a large amount of information is given all at once in a story. Typically, these dumps are about worldbuilding or character backstory. As the writers, we know all these fun details about our characters and setting, and we want to share them with the world. However, Read more
Every story should have some tension in each scene, though the level of tension will vary. Major turning points in the plot, like the midpoint or climax, will be higher while the connecting scenes might just have a low level of tension. But beyond just putting your characters in danger, Read more
I’m not going to lie to you; I’ve never launched a book…yet. I considered waiting to discuss this topic until I had, but then I realized it didn’t matter. No one strategy for launching a book will work for everyone. Even if my first book launch is tremendously successful, there Read more