I have a tendency to over-correct in my editing process. This is especially true when I receive feedback from critique partners, and it’s difficult to get centered enough within myself to know what’s actually working and what isn’t. Even when I’m not receiving critique, I tend to be self-critical and perfectionistic (not sure if that’s… Read more »
I’m working on a short story in which the main characters travel a great distance in a short amount of time. They also experience a variety of different landscapes. My aim is to quickly acclimate the reader to each new place through the narrator’s perspective using sensory details. So my question is this: besides “show,… Read more »
I’m an indie fantasy romance author, and am currently in the revision process of my debut novel SPANK: Odyssey. I keep reading online about readers not being invested in a story because the stakes are not high enough. I feel these people are saying your conflict isn’t interesting unless someone is at risk of dying… Read more »
I’m nearing the end of a novel–or, I’ve been nearing the end of a novel for some time–and each time I hit the 90k mark, I have an uncontrollable urge to throw the whole thing out and start over. (Uncontrollable as in, I already have. Several times.) Basically, I look back through the draft under… Read more »
Dear Editor, I am revising my first novel, which is also the first novel in a speculative historical fiction trilogy. It has been a great joy, and I’m working on book two, so I feel pretty confident that I want to move this thing forward and that it’s worth the effort of revising. I’m having… Read more »
If anyone asks who started this, I blame Cheryl Strayed. I read her book Tiny Beautiful Things recently, and loved the straightforward approach she has to giving advice for the “Dear Sugar” column on The Rumpus. Cheryl opened space for people to ask their burning questions, the ones they were too ashamed to share even… Read more »
