Currently reading: Eternal Rider by Larissa Ione. (Yes, yes, yes, it’s a paranormal romance.) I also just finished Unearthly, by Cynthia Hand, one of the recommended books from the contest. A couple people have hinted that I haven’t written a writing post in a while. I’m no expert, and I only know what works for …
Okay, really, I should have titled this post, “How I wrote a query letter.” Because I’m not an expert on writing queries. You can find fantastic advice at Query Shark or Evil Editor, or even on some writer sites like Absolute Write. Many, many agents have done posts on writing the perfect query letter (like …
Skip to the good stuff (aka, How to write a query letter) Read More »
Let me tell you a sad story. So two years ago, I went to RWA. I ended up having lunch with a girl I’d never met, a friend of an acquaintance. She was very nice, and she was coming to lunch fresh off a pitch session with an editor. She claimed the pitch had gone …
A tragic tale of shattered dreams (Oh, and how to plot a novel.) Read More »
A friend emailed me the other day and asked where I find time to write. It’s not the first time I’ve been asked this question. I have a full time job — a real full time job, made up of a forty hour work week, combined with an hour long commute each way. I have …
I love a good action scene. I write urban fantasy, and I love nothing more than to throw some punches, swing some swords, and draw back a bowstring. Good action scenes can propel a story forward. It’s a good opportunity to reveal a new side to a character. (People react very differently under pressure, and …
All right, no one came out pointing fingers and calling me a no-talent hack, so we’ll keep this going. Enough rules. Let’s just talk. Passive voice In my experience (and let’s be honest, it’s not all that vast), passive voice is one of the most misunderstood aspects of writing. Raise your hand if you’ve gotten …
Haha, that title’s kind of a joke right there. I’m not one for the writing posts. I’m not a teacher, I don’t have an MFA, and there are a billion-and-one posts all over the web about how to strengthen your writing. But there’s not a lot out there about revising, especially for beginner writers. There’s …
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