Category: writing

end of road at the ocean with sign and bicycles

On Endings: You Won’t Have a Second Chance at a Last Impression

The last words of your story are naturally memorable without even trying. No other words come after these. By luck (good or bad) of their ...
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Do Proofreading Right

You want to do it, and you want to do it right—which means a quality job involving the least amount of hassle, time, and money. ...
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Save Your Nonfiction from a Fate Worse Than Death

The poor book exists, but nobody wants to read it. Haunting thoughts fill the author’s mind…how did this happen?! Do you have a destination in ...
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b/w photo of two swans in profile in the water

Reap the Benefits of Foreshadowing: Fascinated Readers

If your beta readers are giving you a “huh?” reaction to certain events or details, it’s possible that you’ve dropped the ball on the setup/payoff. ...
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a tiny fish in a clear bowl, all lit with iridescent shades of green

Know Your Genre… or No One Will Find Your Book

Dozens of blogs discuss it, written for both writers and fans of specific kinds of books; books have been written about it; publishers and literary ...
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Why It’s a Good Idea to Compare Your Book to Others

The people selling books think about comps, readers are constantly comparing your books to other books…and so should you. Not just as part of your ...
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black and white subway steps with text You Know You're Good

Write with Style: Apostrophes and Lists

I want to talk about lists, and everyone’s favorite abused punctuation mark, the apostrophe. Remember, the point of style guidelines is consistency in the service ...
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red apple and fountain pen on open book

Commas and Spacing and Style, Oh My! on Editorial and Authorial Choices

People have strong reactions to what seem like small details to others. Recently, a book project I was working on was nearly undone by a ...
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a color photogoraph of the Tin Man, Scarecrow, Dorothy, and Lion from Wizard of Oz

Consequences: What Happens in Your Story Matters—and Gives You Structure

Books are about consequences. What characters do or don’t do matters. What the reader can learn or change matters. How your personal story transformed you ...
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a row of blue hardcover books with orange bookmarks with soft focus

Why Should They Care? Workshop for Writers of Memoir & Fiction

You’re writing a book! But why should anyone (not related to you) read it? Does the book mean anything to other people? Would readers hate ...
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black and white mic in front of a fireplace mantel and mirror

Revision Hack: Why You Should Read Your Book (Out Loud) Before You Publish

When was the last time you read aloud (other than the latest headlines to your horrified friend/coworker/significant other)? Let’s talk about what reading your work ...
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Avoid the Passive Voice Like the Plague

For the record, passive voice isn’t always awful and the epitome of all evil. But active voice is waaay more interesting to read.
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closeup of the word FOCUS written on the back of someone's fist

Memoir Miniseries: It’s Not (Just) About You

Much as we’d (sometimes?) like to be, we aren’t the center of the Universe. Sure, we’re the center of our own universes, but it’s unlikely ...
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profile view of two dark haired people reading against a bookshelf

Practice Your Powers of Observation

The end of year holidays are often filled with contradiction. Time to spend with our loved ones—stress and pressure from endless social obligations. The opportunity ...
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a red lemur lies on a tree branch

Have You Even (Re-) Read Your Book?

Look, I get it. You might have been working on this manuscript for quite some time and you can’t tell which way is up anymore. ...
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hard cover book with red cover open to blank first page

More than Marketing: Use Your Back Cover Copy as a Writing Tool

If you are feeling stuck, or unsure where to start writing, whip up a back cover for your book. How do you see it selling ...
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oil painting of girl in crowd hands on head as though lost

Is Your Point of View Clear as Mud?

If you confuse the reader, you lose the reader. A great way to confuse readers is when we start “head-hopping,” or changing the perspective from ...
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