Do you enter contests for your writing? Over the last couple decades, I’ve entered many contests, both for full-length novels and short stories. I belong to RWA (Romance Writers of America), which includes multiple chapter contests in their monthly magazine, both for unpublished and published authors. I think most genres have something similar, or you…
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Naming Your Characters
I’m sure every writer has stories about this. For some, naming characters aren’t important, for others, it’s vital. I’m in the latter category. I write fantasy and fantasy romance and have wended my way (so far) through four series, two are finished, two are continuing. In the “Heart” series (the “Heart” books because they all…
Never Give Up
Write on the days when the words flow as easily as water. Write on the days when it feels like every word has to be dredged up from your toenails. Write on the days when you feel like the painted ship upon a painted sea, when words are sludge and hope is gone and you know for certain that nobody in their right mind will ever read this tripe you’re smearing on the page.
Never Ignore Serendipity
I just took a vacation. It was great, but what I took away from it (besides a sunburn and a hangover), was that I need to make sure I never let myself ignore serendipitous moments in time. While our husbands went fishing, my friend and I decided we’d take a nice little snorkeling trip. Just…
The “Next Day” Critique Group Apology Letter Template – Blank For Your Convenience
So it’s happened. You brought pages to your critique group, it didn’t go well, and you exploded, making an ass of yourself. You know what RMFW’s own Mario Acevedo says? He says the only appropriate response to a critique is “thank you.” And in our group, he says thank you a lot. Because Mario insists…