Word Magic
Thinking about writing fiction? Here’s a secret. Start with the idea. When we read fiction, we may be bored… Or we’re living through an unbearable life event and need to escape for a while. Perhaps we enjoy stepping into another world. Whatever a reader’s reason for reading your novel, they read for entertainment. When you’re writing fiction, you’re an entertainer … Read more
Recently a writing student told me she wanted to write a cookbook, but she couldn’t get started yet: she needed to master cooking first. After all, if she couldn’t create a recipe, she couldn’t write a cookbook… Could she? That got me thinking about the elements of great cookbooks. Yes, they contain recipes, but they also contain something else which … Read more
A reader asked why I focus on scenes when writing fiction. It’s a good question, because there are many reasons. “Because I’m lazy,” I said. Although I meant it as a joke, it’s nevertheless true. Life’s too short to bend your brain writing a lot of material you’ll toss away in revision. When you focus on scenes, you leave out … Read more
Are you a self-publishing author? If you’ve published a novel or two, you know that sales can be elusive. A recent study showed that 55% of KDP authors made less than $1 a day. On the other hand, bestselling self-publishing authors can make several thousand dollars a day. Why is that? What do bestselling authors know? Self-publishing: what do bestselling … Read more
Do you have a writing platform? Your platform (readership and recognition) begins with your brand as a writer and/ or author. Your brand is what you stand for. In a sense, it’s who you portray yourself to be: your image. “Image” has a lot of weird connotations, including outright fakery. When I mention image to a student, occasionally someone will … Read more