Apr 26, 2023 | On Writing
Recently I had the honor and privilege of moderating one of the Zoom rooms at an event at The Back Room. One of the stellar authors making a guest appearance that night was Jordan Harper, who won the Edgar for Best First Novel for She Rides Shotgun and has now written...
Mar 15, 2023 | On Writing
Selling stories is not much different than selling anything else. As a writer turned acquisitions editor and now literary agent, I learned that the hard way. It’s not enough to write a great story; to sell that story, you have to be able to milk its selling points and...
Jan 25, 2023 | On Writing
When it comes to plotting, the conventional wisdom is to play the “What If?” game. As in: What if this were to happen, or this, or this? But that only works when you can come up with those What If? scenarios. When your “What If?” well has run dry, try one of these...
Sep 28, 2022 | On Writing
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...
