Chapter Titles in Your Books: Genius or Disaster?
Every fiction book has a title. That’s a given. But chapter titles? That’s messier. The case against chapter titles… Most fiction books I’ve read don’t use chapter titles. They use numbers. More specifically, writers generally...
Do Modern Writers Lean Too Much on Blunt Shock Value?
Catching your readers off guard for a little shock value once in a while isn’t a bad thing. It can make your story seem more novel (pun intended). That freshness can motivate people to go...
4 Tricks to Write Faster
I’m a firm believer that writing should take the time it takes and shouldn’t be forced. After all, sometimes life happens. We all have times when we feel like crap or are overwhelmed. In those...
12 Things Great Writers Never Do
Writers are similar to any other professional in that they want to do their absolute best in their craft and have best practices (e.g., ALWAYS back up files, get feedback on drafts). Most successful writers...
Fighting Boredom as a Writer? This Is Probably Why
You know the feeling. You stare at your computer screen or pad of paper and, in boredom, think, “Meh.” Does this feeling really mean putting words on the page isn't interesting anymore? Should you stop...
Support Groups: Why Every Writer Needs One
In a post on his website, author Max Florschutz wrote about the need for writers to have support groups. The stereotype of writers sitting lackadaisically in cafes is far from accurate. Writing, Florschultz rightly notes, comes with...
Querying Agents: How Many Times Should You Try?
If you’re thinking about querying agents about your book, or if you’re in the middle of that process, then you’ll quickly find that the most efficient way to go about it is to send off...
Writing Markets Are Polarized (and That’s Bad)
In a previous blog post, I lamented the fact that genre labels can be limiting for writers, both creatively and when it comes to publishing. But as I’ve thought more about the issue, I’ve also realized...
