Say hello, to our Tuesday Guest author, Caroline Clemmons- When did you begin writing? I’ve made up stories as long as I can remember. The early ones always involved a princess and a castle, illustrated by me. What can I say, I was very young. Later, I studied journalism, which is a different way of…
Category: Writing How Tos
Hi Susan-Chapter Length?
Time for another dip into the e-mail stack of Hi Susan questions. This time it’s from Sharon who asked? I’m a new writer and I’m confused about how long to make each chapter in my story, any tips? I get asked this question a lot so the reason I decided to feature it here….
Could Your Story Be a Trilogy or Even a Series?
Think you can’t write a trilogy or even a series…think again? I’ve had students who tell me they’re giving up on their manuscripts because they just can’t figure out how to get all their ideas into one story. I have have the same response time and time again…who says you have to. One thing…
What If You Hate A Character?
Can not liking one of your characters be stalling your story? I’d never really thought about that question until one of my students e-mailed me and said she felt it was the reason that her writing output was down. There’s no easy or right, yes or no, response. While I do think you…
Guest Blog Tuesday-Hooray for Points of View
Something a little different for this week’s guest blog. Dee S. Knight shares tips on an important writing element…Point of View- When I first started writing, I had no idea there was such a thing as a point of view (POV). I never thought about it—probably because the books I read had authors knowledgeable enough…
What’s in My Future?
Yesterday, I woke up, thinking I’d forgotten to write a Thursday post. Then I relaxed, realizing it was Wednesday. However, I did wonder what I was going to write about this week. I had a few ideas but finally decided to share with you details about things I’m working on and things that are…
Best Markets for Beginning Fiction Writers
Another Tuesday without a guest blogger and it’s yours truly again. Last week I gave freelance writers some tips on the best markets for beginners and this week, I thought I’d do the same for fiction writers. Here are what I think are your best markets when you’ve never been published before- Anthologies I…
Best Freelance Markets for Beginners
What are the best markets for beginning Freelance writers? Here are some I think offer you the best chance to get published and get paid when you’re an absolute beginner…or in need of some extra cash. Local Newspapers I know there aren’t as many as around as back in the days when I…
Virtual Writing Retreat
No guest blogger today so I thought I’d use this opportunity to tell you about the virtual writing retreat that starts June 2nd and runs through August 31st and taught by yours truly. It’s divided into three sections, you can take one, two or all three. I’m hoping as lots of actual writing…
Friday Ramblings From An Author-The Vampires Are Back!
I spend my days not only writing and working with aspiring writers, but following industry trends. My golden rule is don’t write to trends but it’s the wise writer who’s in the know about what’s hot and what’s not. Remember the vampire era…Twilight and everyone jumping on the bandwagon of writing a story with a…