Blog
We Do Need Another Hero: Writers on Heroes, Heroines, and Heroism
We are a people in search of a hero, always. And readers are a people in search of a heroine, always. One of the biggest problems I see in manuscripts—confirmed by editors when they pass on projects—is the protagonist. Your protagonist should be compelling and...
5 Ways to Impress an Agent
Getting an agent can be a challenge. Given the sheer volume of queries agents receive—such largesse that many agents find it impossible to accept unsolicited queries—it’s not easy to make you and your project stand out. Here are some tips to help you to capture an...
13 Ways to Maximize Your Writing Pleasure
For me, the worst part is the first draft, which is always somewhat of a slog. I love it and dread it at the same time. It’s like running a marathon when you’ve forgotten how to run. But you haven’t really, you just keep putting one foot in front of the other. Bird by bird.
When I remember this, the writing is not quite so hard. And I am reminded that writing is not all angst and adverbs. Sometimes it’s actually—dare I say it—fun. There are undeniable pleasures, however fleeting or abstruse or just plain unfathomable to Other People (non-writers) they may be. Keeping them in mind can help us enjoy the writing process more, even on those days when we struggle to make our word count.
The next time you sit down to write, notice—and applaud!—when you…
10 Things Not to Say to an Agent When You Pitch Your Project
It’s conference season again, that wonderful time of year when we agents listen to hundreds of pitches—some good, some bad, and some ugly. Here’s what not to say. (And yes, these are real lines from real-life pitches.) #1 My villain is so bad he kills the dog. It’s...
The Daring Writer’s Guide to Point of View
Point of view issues keep more otherwise sellable authors from selling their work than nearly any other problem. That’s why as an agent, author, and writing teacher, I always caution my clients, fellow writers, and students to play it safe when it comes to POV. And yet every once in a while I come across a story whose author threw caution to the wind so splendidly I am tempted to play around with point of view myself. If you find yourself so inclined, read on.
Go for Broke: 6 Ways To Make Your Story Stand Out
I recently led a workshop at the New York Pitch Conference, an event dedicated to helping writers perfect their pitches—and in the process, discover what might be keeping them from selling their work in an increasingly unforgiving marketplace. Often it’s the fact that there’s nothing unique enough about the project to persuade agents and editors and ultimately publishers to take a chance and champion the work.
In a publishing landscape that’s more difficult than ever, thanks to the pandemic and other factors affecting retail businesses right now, it’s more important than ever that you are able to differentiate your story, positioning it against all of the bestselling titles by brand-name writers. While it’s true that book sales are up, they are up for backlist, that is, books that have already been published, mostly by authors who have already found an audience. For new titles, especially those being published by debut authors and midlist authors trying to build a readership, breaking out is tougher than ever.
The Presidents on Writing
Practically every president has written a book; some have even written those books all by themselves. The general consensus is that the honor of greatest writer among the presidents falls to Abraham Lincoln—with Ulysses S. Grant a distant second—but all who’ve...
WRITE BY HEART: Creating stories that pack an emotional punch
It’s been a rough couple of years and many of us are simply exhausted. Outrage fatigue, pandemic fatigue, crisis fatigue—all manner of fatigue has besieged us. To the point where all we feel lately is numb. At least that’s how I’ve been feeling. And then I watched two...
DEAR SANTA: A Writer’s Christmas Wish List
Dear Santa, I hope this finds you well and safe and enjoying your holiday prep up there at the North Pole. I’m not sure if you’re taking requests from writers during these troubled times, but I thought I’d give it a try anyway. I won’t lie. I wasn’t quite as good a...
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