In November, I attended the New England Crime Bake, an annual conference held in the Boston area for crime writers and lovers of crime writing. This year’s guest of honor was New York Times best-selling author Lisa Gardner. She taught a Master Class on character development filled with amazing insights and advice. Below are a… Read more »
Social media is, of course, a cornerstone of an author’s online platform. But once you’ve got your accounts set up, what do you do with them? “I don’t have anything to say,” is a common refrain among authors first starting to use social media. And indeed, there is a lot of pressure to post frequently… Read more »
What’s the hardest part of the writing process? Writers are divided on whether it’s starting or finishing. It’s a challenge to face a blank page or screen and get those first words down. Once you’ve found momentum on a writing project, you might run into writer’s block while wading through a tricky, unstructured middle. Finally,… Read more »
Hey there word nerds! Today I am so excited to have author Ayobami Adebayo on the show! Ayobami’s stories have appeared in a number of magazines and anthologies. She holds BA and MA degrees in literature in English as well as an MA in creative writing, and has received numerous fellowships and residencies. Her debut… Read more »
Romance author Alexis Daria’s first book, TAKE THE LEAD, named one of Washington Post’s Five Best Romances of 2017, released with St. Martin’s Press Swerve in October. She was under a tight deadline for her second book in that same contract, DANCE WITH ME, and she’s here to tell us about how she used an… Read more »
Welcome back to our “Be Well, Write Well” interview series! This month, I interviewed Carol Van Den Hende, whom I met at the Writer’s Digest Conference in 2014. At the 2017 conference, she gave a brilliant talk on marketing for writers that had all of us participants eagerly calling out the names of global brand… Read more »
One of the key elements to be mindful of when crafting a scene is tension. Think of the scene like a stew. Your characters, plotlines, and conflict make up the “meat and potatoes”, but tension is that little extra spice that brings your scene to life. It’s the line that runs directly from your story… Read more »
Hey there word nerds! Today I have the pleasure of chatting with author Danya Kukafka on the show! Danya’s stunning debut novel, Girl in Snow, received rave reviews right out of the gate from masters of the thriller genre like Paula Hawkins and Lee Child. This achievement is made even more remarkable when you consider that… Read more »
November is a difficult month for me. My struggle has nothing to do with visiting relatives, cleaning sprees or the holidays, though. It’s the whole novel writing thing. NaNoWriMo. (If somehow you’ve missed what NaNoWriMo is, listen to this podcast, Episode 169: Boost Your Creative Mojo with Grant Faulkner.) Beginning each October, the NaNo fever… Read more »
“Who am I?” “Where do I fit in?” “Will other people accept me?” If these questions sound familiar, it might be because they’re part of being a teenager. Even adults can remember how challenging this period in our lives was, between school, friendships, dating, family, the pressures of responsibility, and an increasing craving for respect… Read more »
