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Here are more conversations taking place around the net. I’ll be mostly offline until January 5. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Laurence Osborne, writing in the Forbes magazine, gives his opinion on why book publishers are currently failing: A powerful editor at one of the big houses said to me last week, “Very little [...]
Even if it is the week before Christmas, there’s lots of interesting discussions going on! Novel Revision Retreat. I’ll be teaching the Novel Revision Retreat in Illinois on February 27 – March 1 for the IL-SCBWI. Only nine spots remain! Register soon! See comments here from previous participants. Or see comments from Kirby Larson here. [...]
This week, I’ve been revising my story and am coming near the end. How should I end it? Novel Endings I know the ending that I have planned, but I want to be sure it’s the strongest ending. I know that the ending should bring together the antagonist/villain in a scene of great emotional power. [...]
The holidays and the end of the year are bringing out the generous nature of agents! The 2nd Sort-of-Annual Stupendously Ultimate First Paragraph Challenge Deadline: 7pm. EST, Thursday, December 11, 2008. Who: Literary agent Nathan Bransford, Curtis Brown, San Francisco office What: Post the first paragraph of your WIP and compete for the prize of [...]
Creative writing tips, courtesy of the season: Peppermints! When you add sensory details to a story, the most common is visual details. The two most neglected are olfactory (smell) and gustatory (taste). Flavors of the season are peppermint, cinnamon and cloves. Gifts! Give your character something to hold in his/her hands. It’s one of the [...]
I’ve been reading a great new psychology book that should help in developing characters, especially the settings which reveal so much about a character. Snoop Snoop: What Your Stuff Says About You by Sam Gosling, Ph.D. is a fascinating book by a psychologist who studies a person’s environment and what that environment says about you. [...]
My problem is that the subplot was conceived as a mirror or parallel plot, but now, it’s too similar. And that makes this first draft boring. . .
HAPPY HOLIDAYS For the last few years, I’ve posted writing tips from Winter Holiday personalities. For example, Frosty the Snowman has 6 Top Writing Tips. This year, as our Christmas gift to you, we’ve collected these into one downloadable pdf. Winter Writing with Kids FREE download. 34 Writing Skills addressed. Celebrate the Season while Teaching [...]
I am woefully behind in sharing some great posts with you! Here’s a ton of links to articles of interest. Dori Butler just interviewed me for KidLit Central about my experience of judging the SCBWI Works-In-Progress Grantl Meanwhile, check out this podcast: Carla McClafferty is featured on Book Bites for Kids, talking about her new [...]
Reading fiction online is easier than ever. BookviewCafe.com Chapter 3 of my story, The Wayfinder, is available today on www.BookviewCafe.com Book View Cafe is a consortium, of over twenty professional authors with extensive publishing credits in the print world, who want to connect readers to story. Every day, new content available nowhere else will be [...]
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