Episode 251: Finding Your Why — Interview with Patrice Gopo

Hey there word nerds! Today I have the pleasure of speaking with Patrice Gopo on the show! The daughter of Jamaican immigrants who was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, Patrice is a personal essayist and often writes about topics of race, immigration, and belonging. Her essays have appeared in numerous publications including Catapult and… Read more »

Why Consider a Romance Series?

Think about the time you spend researching before the first word of your novel finds its place in chapter one. Sometimes, after adding up the hours I spent researching, I had actually spent more time pre-writing than the total writing hours of my completed manuscript. If you set your romance novel in an unfamiliar time… Read more »

Your Production Calendar

As an independent author, you’re also a publisher. You set the vision for all the writing that will be published and create plans to ensure its success. Independent publishing can be a breathless enterprise: There’s so much to learn, and business evolves constantly. Countless shiny opportunities and ideas wait to distract you from your focus…. Read more »

#5onFri: Five Tips for a Successful Author Collaboration

Collaborating with one or more co-authors offers unique challenges and pleasures. On the face of it, it looks like doubly—or triply—hard work: you have two or more egos to manage and motivate, potential disagreements about creative direction and weight-pulling, and a more laborious process to get ideas agreed and edits approved. And yet… When it… Read more »

Deep Dive into Short Forms: Flash Fiction

My next few articles will act as a deep dive into specific short form works. We’ll examine a piece from each short form and dive deep into its inner workings to find the path to success in our own short form pieces. Flash is one of my not-so-secret literary short forms loves. I love it… Read more »

The Doorway of No Return #2 — Signpost Scene #9

Storytelling language can go by many names, especially when it comes to major plot points: point of no return, external and internal conflicts, stakes, etc. One of the most well-known terms defines a moment essential for every story. It comes at the very end of your middle act and pushes your Lead into a new… Read more »

#5onFri: Five Networking Tips for Freelance Writers

Work and income don’t come easy to writers as it is, even more so when the fate of your career is in your own hands. While freelance writing has many perks (making your own hours, choosing your own assignments, working in your PJs), it also has many obstacles. One of these is networking. How do… Read more »