#5onFri: Five Ways to Find a Writer’s Group Online

Camaraderie. Feedback. The opportunity to vent. These are just a handful of the numerous benefits of joining a writers’ group. Writing is mostly a solitary endeavor, and it’s easy to feel isolated as you toil away day after day behind a computer screen. Whether you write novels, short stories, screenplays, or something else, it’s refreshing… Read more »

#5onFri: Five Reasons to Book a Writing Cruise

I have been to writing conferences, to conventions, to workshops, and retreats, but nothing compared to the transformative experience of the Writing Excuses Retreat Baltic cruiseI embarked on this past summer. Accordingly, I’m not going to focus on the clear and present benefits of such an event, the opportunities to network with industry professionals, to… Read more »

Three Types of Social Media Posts You Should Be Using

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 »

Be Well, Write Well: Interview with Carol Van Den Hende

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 »

#5onFri: Five Eye Care Tips for Writers

Thanks to those two magnificent orbs nestled under your brow, you’re able to read this sentence. Our eyes are astonishingly complex wonders that allow us to imbibe and navigate the myriad shapes and colors of our world. For the committed reader and writer, it’s easy to take the marvelous pair for granted over the days… Read more »

#5onFri: Five Reasons Writers Need Community

When I started writing—which, for me, was a very DIY venture—I subscribed to the popular notion that the craft required solitude. In fact, I think many writers cling to an image of the profession in its classic form: quill in hand, crackling fireplace in a quiet study. And it’s no wonder why. Countless notables have… Read more »

How to Create Killer Graphics to Promote Your Writing

As I write this article, I am mid-launch for my third book. There are a lot of tactics that go into generating excitement around a new release, but let’s be honest—some are more fun than others. One of my favorite ways to celebrate a new release is with teaser graphics. A good teaser graphic creates… Read more »

Be Well, Write Well: An Interview with Julie Maloney

Hello, readers! Today, and for the next few columns, I’m taking a departure from my usual format. Like many of you, I want to learn more about how other writers work, live, and balance it all. I’m interviewing writers at all stages of life and career about their writing process, habits, routine, and wellness tips…. Read more »

Three Ways to Survive Waiting in Publishing

It’s all about the waiting. If you’re currently on sub with agents or editors or whoever, you know it. The anxiety is real. It involves a lot of WHAT IF thinking. What if I get signed? What if I don’t? What if everyone hates my book? What if they don’t? What if I get the… Read more »

#5onFri: Five Ways to Perfect Your Pitch

Every year, I watch budding new writers nervously pitch their books to literary agents and acquiring editors at our annual writer’s conference, Pitch, Publish, & Promote. They pace the halls, practicing their query with shaking hands. Pitching to an agent is THE big first step in releasing your writing into the world, and it can… Read more »