Writing and Editing Tips

Writing an effective query letter is something that many writers struggle with. It can be a super nerve-wracking task even though most queries are only one page long. But if you've ever written a query letter yourself, you know it's not always the easiest or most straightforward thing!

I...

In today's post, I'm going to walk you through the ten action genre conventions. So, these are the character roles, settings, and events that need to be present in an action story in order for it to work and to satisfy fans of the genre. 

I’m also going to show you how these...

Do you want to write the kind of story that readers can't put down? 

In this post, I'm sharing five reasons why readers might stop reading a novel, and then how to avoid making some of these mistakes in your own draft. Let's dig in!

5 Reasons Readers Might Stop Reading

Reason...

Last week, I got an email from a writer that said, "I really want to make a career out of writing fiction, but to do so, I know I can't spend two years working on the same novel. Do you have any advice for how I can finish a novel faster while still maintaining its quality?"

And I love this...

How do you know if the idea you have is strong enough to support a full-length novel?

Is there a way to know the difference between a good idea and one that's better left in your idea folder? 

If so, can you do this before spending all that time writing the first draft?

The...

It's almost time to ring in the new year, so to celebrate, I thought it would be fun to continue with last week’s theme of lessons learned over the last year. 

So, as we inch our way closer to counting down until the ball drops, I wanted to count down some of the best clips from the...

Do you ever wonder what the writing process is like for other writers? Or if they run into some of the same challenges or traps as you do?

Well, in this post, I'm giving you a glimpse behind the scenes and sharing some of the key takeaways I learned from coaching writers this year. And although...

In today’s post, we’re going to continue going through the 15 “beats” of Blake Snyder’s Save the Cat! Story structure template. Specifically, we’re going to focus on the beats that make up the second half of act two, or the second half of the middle section of...

In today’s post, we’re going to continue going through the 15 “beats” of Blake Snyder’s Save the Cat! Story structure template. Specifically, we’re going to focus on the beats that make up the second half of act two, or the second half of the middle section of...