blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
Marketing or madness? They don’t have to be synonymous.
Did I ever tell you about the high-pressure fudge salesman who accosted my daughter and me with marketing gone mad? One would not think high-pressure and fudge would …
When An Agent Doesn’t Reply
blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
When an agent doesn’t reply to your query, proposal, burning question, or manuscript submission, is it because she/he doesn’t care?
Admittedly, sometimes writers–whether aspiring or veteran–choose the default answer, “Yes! That must be it! I’m not important …
It’s a Flexible Life
blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
Contrary to popular belief, the writer’s theme song is not “It’s a Wonderful Life.” Not that it isn’t wonderful. So much of what we do–musing, creating, building story worlds, research, interviews, developing characters, or finding ways to …
Before You Hit SEND
You’ve worked on your book proposal/manuscript for twelve weeks/months/years. An editor or agent you met at a writers conference last week/last year/eleven years ago invited you to send it when it was ready.
Is it? How can a writer know …
Top Ten Ways to Declutter Your Writer Brain
blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
Are these THE Top Ten ways to declutter your writer brain? More accurately, they are a few of the ways. But that would have made the title too long and not great for search engine optimization. (SEO–We …
All the Good Worry Accomplishes
blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
Image courtesy of Pixabay
Let’s face it. Authors are not immune to worry. It’s natural. Except for the completely confident or the delusional, writers worry that their words won’t matter, that no publisher will want them, that …
Promised Yourself Last Summer
We’re on the cusp of another summer. In parts of our country, that means the grills are being uncovered after a long winter’s hiatus. In other parts, the grills are being pulled back under the pergola for a little …
When the Story Ends Too Soon
blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
“My story’s finished, but it’s way too short for its category. What do I do now?”
Some writers have never experienced that particular brand of panic. They might well know the tremors that come from needing to …
The Writing Food Truck Race
blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
You’re in a writing food truck race. Were you aware of that already? If you are, how’s it going? Sales good? Lines of customers waiting for your burgers? Media attention? Images of your food truck and burgers …
The Value of Watching Bad Movies
blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
Hunkered down before it was mandated–due to a virus without a fancy, recognizable name–I’ve been watching a lot of free movies online. Some of them were poorly written, directed, or acted, but I kept watching. On purpose. …