Have you heard the one about the editor who walks into a room full of writers? Editor says, “Does anybody need an editor?” Nobody answers. Haha. But That Would Never Happen, Would It? That actually happened to me when I was an editor in a newsroom and our computer network went down. Folks could write and print, but not share. So, I walked around the room asking that question. And getting that response. But here’s the truth, and don’t stop … Read More »

Now that we’re well into the new year, we can actually (cross fingers, throw salt over shoulder, spit three times) start planning to attend writers’ conferences in person. Attending conferences is one of the most useful things a writer can do to improve their craft, make contact with other writers, and promote their work for publication. And they’re fun! Holy Mackerel, There Are a Lot of People Here! These days, there’s a lot of pent-up demand for just about everything. … Read More »

If I may paraphrase Hemingway: To Had and Had Not. Or, if you prefer Shakespeare: To Have Had or Not to Have Had. Indeed, that is the question. The answer is not. “Had” clogs up the prose, acts as a crutch, and puts the action farther into the past than it needs to be. Past (Im)perfect Most novels and short stories are written in the past tense. Fine. Whatever happened happened. The writer is already doing their best to make … Read More »

They say every author should have an “elevator pitch” ready. The theory is that you run into your dream agent or publisher, or your all-time favorite author, on an elevator. You have just as much time as it takes to get to the lobby to pitch your book. What do you say? How do you summarize in a few sentences the passion you’ve poured into your book over many years? Although the elevator scenario is not very likely, it’s a … Read More »

If you want to be traditionally published, there are two pathways—the query and the pitch. Queries are free and you can send a lot of them. Pitches are more difficult and usually cost money. More about pitches in my next blog. The Easy Part Queries are formulaic. You can find lots of templates online, but they all include the same basic elements—your genre and wordcount, something about your plot and characters, a bit about yourself, your book’s place in the … Read More »

Let us all bow down to the caring souls who slog through our unedited early drafts. And then let us ignore them. Maybe. I used to think that if only one or two people didn’t like something in my writing, I could ignore them. My rule-of-thumb was “three” for a manuscript change. The problem is, there’s no way to know what that critical mass (pun intended) actually is, so it’s important to pay attention to every critic, every beta-reader, every … Read More »