Guest Post

Both writing coaches and therapists dig deep, listen attentively, and meet regularly. But hiring one versus the other depends on your goals.

Masterful writers keep their readers in a constant state of tension. How to get tension on every page? By focusing on microtension.

What makes readers open a book and keep turning the pages? In part, curiosity and tension.

The author and podcaster discusses what she learned from going the wrong kind of viral, the power of vulnerable truth in writing, and more.

Writers focused on plot are often strong when it comes to world-building and “big ideas,” but there are inherent challenges as well.

Developing voice is important, but finding a topic that excites you—and others—could be a better first step for a new writer.

There are many kinds of memoir, with one thing in common: their authors must ultimately possess the ability to artfully render the moment.

This choice has nothing to do with the act of writing, but everything to do with how you talk to yourself about your vocation.

Copyright law is written to protect stories, not characters, but over time the law on character protection has evolved.

During peer review, expert scholars evaluate your proposal. Their suggestions can improve your book if you synthesize them thoughtfully.

Publishing a book can be an exciting prospect which often ends in anticlimax. One indie author examines the emotional roller-coaster.

Donna Ward is an Australian writer whose first book, She I Dare Not Name, has just been published in the US.

Hype aside, an NFT is not equivalent to registering a digital work with the Copyright Office—and it's no barrier to unlawful reproduction.

Self-publishing offers so many paths and options that it can seem intimidating. One debut novelist shares her journey, with valuable tips.

Fiction writers who start with character, as opposed to plot or theme, have certain advantages—and certain challenges.

Facebook’s most valuable asset is data. As an advertiser, you can tap into this data and pinpoint the exact readers you want to reach.

Learning these basic skills will help you relax, enjoy the conversation, and hopefully turn a podcast’s audience into yours as well.

TikTok has evolved into an entertainment and educational hub, with a remarkably engaged community of book buyers.

Ideas are a dime a dozen. What matters is expressing an idea in ways that are unique to the artist and specific to the time and culture.

To create the alchemical magic of emotion in your fiction, you need to approach the challenge from more than one angle.

It’s impossible to fire on all cylinders all the time, so dedicate some of your writing time to stoke the flames of creativity.

The most useful work is that which tests our limits and forces us to write something we didn’t realize we were capable of producing.

Your community might be all too willing to help promote your book. The hard part is overcoming the fear of asking.

If you write knowing how the story will end, you’ll deprive readers of the tension that comes from putting obstacles in your characters’ way.

Freelance writing—even for little or no pay—offers a low-stakes way to gain publication credit, hone your skills, and raise your visibility.

Paying attention to your own visceral reactions and thoughts can help you create richly developed characters who leap off the page.

Showing the moments of normalcy brings the reader more fully into your life, and heightens the drama when traumatic events occur.

When you’ve finished your story, it’s time to step into a stewardship role to place it in the best position to connect with readers.

True forgiveness can take years to achieve. That’s why memoirs take longer to write than novels. But it’s worth the effort.

The poet and author discusses writing through trauma, his novel’s path to publication, adjusting details to suit a higher truth, and more.

Identifying comparable titles helps agents and publishers understand where your book fits in the market and who your most likely readers are.

Building direct-to-reader relationships may help publishers shift the balance of power in a game where Amazon holds most of the cards.

In writing memoir, internal voices—with competing interests—can emerge to inform the narrative. A rounded story is careful to balance them all.

One author struggles to prioritize between major writing projects when time and energy are limited.

What keeps many writers from a book deal isn’t a polished manuscript or proposal. It’s a sense of the publishing landscape as it really is.

When placed intentionally, crafted well, and set up via emotional context and backstory, scene might be the writer’s most powerful tool.

Without insight into how your characters will react in even the most mundane of circumstances, you aren’t ready to plan or pants your plot.

When the pandemic thwarted a debut author’s launch plans, she had no choice but to jump into the deep end of social media.

Hybrid publishing is like hiring a contractor: You pay them to oversee the design and construction and, when it’s done, you own the result.

Even a small email list is better than no list at all, because it likely represents your most devoted, true fans.

Mentorship programs are a popular way to gain knowledge and exposure, but as their popularity has risen the competition has gotten tougher.

Guest blogging allows you to leverage someone else’s existing audience as a way to reach new readers and grow your own audience.

Given that many of us sidestep endings in real life, it should not be surprising that writers have trouble concluding book projects.

Factual details can be great fuel for your writing, but it’s crucial to recognize when adherence to them is getting in the way of the story.

Misguided feedback, which can damage your manuscript, often arises from a common mistake: asking the right question of the wrong person.

Despite our best efforts, artistic jealousy affects us all at times. But how we perceive another’s success is never the whole picture.

Mom writers are wired to succeed at writing (and querying) because they can multitask like no other.

Deep third pulls readers into a character’s world view, but pronoun ambiguities and apparent point-of-view shifts push readers away. These 6 tips keep prose sharp.

Finding the right editor or critique partner is important, but so is being mentally prepared for the feedback you’ll receive.

When do you decide that it’s time to pursue Plan B? Taking stock of these considerations will bring you that much closer to knowing.