So you’re putting in the work and growing your author platform. High fives. But whether you’ve decided it’s time to become a master of all things Pinterest or simply resolved to tweet once every single day, the demands of maintaining a platform can easily become overwhelming. Don’t worry, it’s not you, it’s the Internet. But… Read more »
We’re nearing the last week in May and Book Expo America (BEA) is right around the corner. This time of year gets me giddy like a kid on Christmas Eve. In a few short days, I’ll be at the biggest publishing trade show in the United States. I’m so excited I just might squeal. There’s… Read more »
BEA is one of the year’s biggest book conferences, bringing together writers, editors, publicists, bloggers, agents and basically anyone else working in or around the publishing industry, for three jam-packed days. Whether you’ve been every year or haven’t ever gone before, here are a few things to keep in mind to make your BEA experience a… Read more »
Picture this: You finally sit down to write your first novel. You’ve been brainstorming it for years, since childhood really, and thinking about it has taken over your life. It gnaws at you , creeps down your fingertips and through your pores until you have no choice but to sit down and write it. You’re… Read more »
DNA is a miraculous thing. It’s the microscopic genetic material that contains the blueprint for a life. A well-constructed sentence can do the same thing for your story. It can clearly communicate your story to your audience (and to you too). It can be the building block of all your marketing efforts as well. As… Read more »
You’ve been social networking on Facebook and LinkedIn for years, and you can hunt down lost high school friends with the best of them. So when it comes time to build a professional network for your writing career, it’s understandable if you’re not clear on the difference. What’s wrong with what you’re already doing? The… Read more »
Writing groups take many shapes and sizes. Frequency of meetings, general purpose, size, and requirements all vary from one group to another. Many writing groups exist for more than manuscript exchanges, special events, and critiques. I found myself leading the charge in organizing a writing group in which the members were interested in readings and… Read more »
I’ve submitted to writing contests every so often for the past few years, and honestly, I’ve always found it to be a pretty intimidating process. You know what I’m talking about: I search through dozens (hundreds?) of listings until I find one that fits, Google the judges and read the previous winner’s work, then shell… Read more »
I can credit my local writing group with a lot of things: Teaching me craft, encouraging me to write, critiquing my work, and convincing me to pitch my book. And now, I don’t think it’s too much to credit them with also getting me an agent. Yes, I wrote the book. Yes, I edited it… Read more »
“Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.” – Kurt Vonnegut Conflict, rising tensions, epic rivalries; we writers love to finger paint with all of it. But what if you could use the same raw materials of story to map out your marketing efforts? How fun would that be?… Read more »
