Wendy received a calling: write a certain story that needed investigating, one of great importance in her family. After facing rejection, she had to move forward motivated by her passion for writing and for this story in particular. She was rewarded with a job well done, very well done in fact. Bloom Where Planted won Gold in the LGBTQ+ category and Silver in the General Catch All category in the 2019 Royal Palm Literary Awards. Wendy discusses shifting from writing … Read More »

Rita Boehm is a woman of many talents—gardening, photography, and of course, writing. These three interests delightfully merged one afternoon when story inspiration flew right up to her. Her book, Bluebirds in the Garden, came from this wonderful event. It won Gold for Children’s Picture Book in the 2019 Royal Palm Literary Awards. Rita talks inspiration, editing, and second chances for success in this week’s RPLA showcase. Rita’s Writing Journey I discovered the magic of the written word as a … Read More »

Picture books are a magical way to turn children into book lovers at an early age. While they may appear to be easy to write, there are actually many facets to making a quality picture book. They contain all the elements of adult literature—character development, plot, theme—but delivered in a compact form. If you are interested in writing children’s picture books, here are a few basics to help you get started. Word Count Getting the proper word count is important … Read More »

As an engineer, Stephen is accustomed to focusing on all the smaller parts that come together to make a cohesive whole. In 2011, he applied this skill to a newfound love, writing. Stephen started with a few scenes that grew into a novella, then came more writing, feedback, more knowledge, more, more, more until…he sold 7,000 books in one month. One of his books, A Hero, took home the Gold Award for Science Fiction in the 2019 Royal Palm Literary … Read More »

Conflict is the backbone of storytelling. Without it, a story is a lukewarm word puddle. And you don’t just need some of it, you need a lot to have a compelling tale. So what is conflict and how do we pile it into our narratives? Conflict is the struggle between opposing forces. It can be internal or external, and it’s important to have both in your stories. The key to increasing tension as your story progresses is to layer conflict. … Read More »

I’d seen so many writers quit when trying to revise their novels, but the question was: what could I do about it? I wanted to make a resource any writer could use with any fiction genre to guide them through the revision process. After creating The Complete Revision Workbook for Writers: Tools for a Polished Novel, I wondered if I did just that. Reviews trickled in. Word of mouth spread. Speaking events were booked. But I still wasn’t sure if … Read More »