READ A FREE HEARTLAND TALES SHORT STORY: CLICK HERE The Wayfinder was my first published novel, 2000 Greenwillow/Harpercollins. I remember where I was when I heard the news that someone wanted to publish this manuscript. I was with my oldest daughter, Sara, at a local mall. I had to use a pay phone to call the ...
Fiction Notes
Believe in Your Story
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Word Choices for Picture Books: Two by Two by Wordsmith Lisa Stauffer
Word Choices: Getting Granular With Read-Aloud Books Guest post by Lisa Lowe Stauffer Twice I’ve had the opportunity to participate in Darcy Pattison’s Novel Metamorphosis retreat. Although I gained a lot of great tips and information, and have revised several novels via the NOVEL METAMORPHOSIS workbook, one thing in particular that Darcy talked about blew me away. At ...
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Series Tips: Characters, Timeline & Plot
Are you interested in writing a series of novels, picture books or stories? Here are some series tips. My first general tip is to use Scrivener. It's the software designed for authors and writers. It allows you to arrange (and rearrange) chunks of story, much like an outline. There's a visual aspect when you use the ...
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Long Cooling Off Period – Stuff Your MSS in a Drawer!
My stories have been enjoying a long cooling off period. I've been SO busy the last two months getting ready to teach at Highlights Foundation next week. There will be a class on writing picture books with the amazing Leslie Helakoski (see her new book here - really, if you're looking for a gift, this ...
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3 Ways to Show Don’t Tell
Classic advice to beginning fiction writers: Show, Don't Tell. I taught several sessions to teachers last week and they all nodded. Great advice. But how do you DO that in practical terms? How do you teach students to Show, Don't Tell? Show, Don't Tell: Why? In the old days of storytelling, it was fine to just say ...