Some authors choose to write discussion questions that will appear at the back of a book or be available on the writer’s website. Having written a slew of such questions and having been trained in writing curriculum, I have a …
Marketing & Publicity
What it Means When an Agent Says Your Project Isn’t Ready
Among the common responses an agent may give a writer, is “Your project isn’t quite ready yet. Keep working to make it the best it can be.” The writer inevitably is left feeling frustrated, and maybe a little lost. What …
What it Means When an Agent Says Your Project Isn’t ReadyRead More
The Trap of Being Wonderful
Hear me out. You are just the kind of writer the world needs right now, bound to break all bestseller records. Before this blog post is finished, you’ll see that there’s no one better, more skilled, or more successful than …
Post Book Release Blues
I was recently scrolling through social media, and came upon a statement that stopped me in my tracks. “No one talks about the post-book release emotional slump that authors experience. Why is no one talking about this?” It made me …
Should Writers Query Literary Agents During the Holidays?
One of the questions I see most in online spaces among writers is some iteration of, “Is it worth my time to query literary agents during the holidays—are they even reading queries?” I can’t speak for all literary agents, but …
Should Writers Query Literary Agents During the Holidays?Read More
An Agent on the Fence: What’s the Tipping Point?
I’m the new kid on the block when it comes to agenting. I’ve been surprised by a few things about this career, one of them being just how often agents feel undecided about a project when reading queries and proposals. …
Working Through Overwhelm
‘Tis the season of the writers conference, both in-person and virtual. Perhaps you’ve just attended one, and you feel as if a mountain of useful information has been placed in your lap. You’re thrilled to have it, it’s what you …
Work Your Writer Website
What’s with all the talk about websites for writers? How important are they, especially if the writer isn’t published yet? How do you best work your writer website?
One of the first things an editor or agent will do when …
PR=Publishing Relations
Writers soon learn that to be a successful author one needs to be one’s own PR staff, communicating regularly and engagingly with potential readers. But some authors never figure out that they have an equally important audience to communicate with–also …
Looking Back to Help Others Move Forward
I still remember the day a California Bay Area newspaper featured an article titled “Accidental Author Shares God’s Word.” I smile remembering that it was in the front section of the paper as if this was news. It was true, …