Writing Tips Category

The balance between reading and writing…

Can be tricky. I’ve read the writing advice: it’s important to read books in the genre you write in (and outside of it). Of course you grow through actually writing and engaging in peer review, but you can also grow by diving into the work of other writers. The imagination of others can spark new […]

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It’s not writer’s block…

I’m in a writing slump. For the past two months, I have been editing more than creating new stories. I have a few manuscripts with beta readers so I have to—gasp—wait and put those projects aside. Due to the busy full-time mom and volunteer part of my life, I haven’t had the head space or […]

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I finally did it…

I wrote a short story. One of my goals this year was to try to write shorter fiction so that I could post a story to my website as a sample of my writing and a way to engage. Or so that I could submit to writing contests or SFF magazines. Writing short fiction is […]

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When to take that project…

And shove it in a virtual drawer. I finished the big edits for SEEDS OF POWER but have to do another sweep for some minor changes and a continuity check. I have to read slowly, think about a few more possible changes, and then prep the document for one last beta round with some volunteer […]

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Writing something…

Is better than nothing. Yes, I’m still working through my edits of SEEDS OF POWER. Yes, it’s still exciting. But there were a few days during these past two weeks where I wrote different things because a new person or scene was in my head. I stopped thinking about restructuring SOP and wrote something new. […]

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Wordcount matters…

But shouldn’t control you. Knowing standard wordcount ranges for your genre is important to be marketable. Google it. Most writing coach websites and blogs have information on industry standards by genre. If you’re writing for you, for your happiness, then write as little or as much as you want! But if you want to put […]

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Cut that unnecessary subplot…

And all the characters that went with it. The latest way that I cut dead weight out of my story was to separate my core plot from world-building details. I had scenes, whole chapters, and subplots that I didn’t like anymore and knew weren’t necessary, but I didn’t want to delete them because they revealed […]

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If you think there is a problem in your draft…

There most likely is. Yes, maybe the voice in your mind is just doubt so you only need to give yourself a pep talk. But most likely the voice is one you should listen to. My first, second, and even subsequent drafts can have big problems. If I get that feeling—ugh this just isn’t working—I […]

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I control my story…

My story doesn’t control me. Sometimes I forget this. I’m an improvisor/pantser so that first draft is often over genre wordcount guidelines by thousands and has subplots that end up going nowhere. I almost always have to rewrite the beginning once I’ve refined the ending. But I control the story. It doesn’t control me. So […]

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Appreciate your first readers…

Every. single. time. My husband hasn’t read a published book in a year. He’s too busy reading my drafts—and, you know, working, biking, doing things he loves. I try not to ask him more than once a week: “What chapter are you on?” I try. I do. But I devour books in a matter of […]

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