Dreams chase us as writers.
We have vision to write words that will help others and the big dream that those words will actually be published one day. But when days turn to weeks, months and years, the insecurity and …
publishing
Day Hikers
Cynthia Ruchti
In his book Letters from the Mountain (Rabbit Room Press), author Ben Palpant writes to his writer-daughter about this ascent up the mountain called writing. Page after page of this intimate encouragement of a well-traveled author-dad for his …
NEW RESOURCE ALERT: Sensitivity Between the Lines
Listen to the complete audio interview by clicking here.
Eight years ago, publishing veteran Edwina Perkins planned a sensitivity reader workshop for a writer’s conference. Nearly 400 writers attended the conference that year. No one attended her workshop.
…“The
While You Wait
Blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
What’s waiting got to do with writing? Sure, the two words share many of the same letters, but writing is an action verb and waiting isn’t. Right?
Writing and waiting have a lot in common. Few beginning …
Six Phrases to Avoid in Your Query
Finishing a query is big deal! You’ve spent hours in front of your computer wrestling the words that capture your passion, imagination and life experience into a query letter.
To give your dream the best chance of getting an agent …
Sacrificial Writing
Today is the start of Holy Week. I think it’s an important time to talk about sacrificial gifts. Here is a blog I wrote five years ago. I can’t think of a more fitting one for this week. 
Many years …
Great Expectations for Writers
blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
A simple two-word phrase–great expectations–has maintained a steadfast and recognizable connection to one literary work first published 160 years ago. What else could come to mind when we hear those two words together but Charles’ Dickens’s highly …
Hoops Jumping for Writers: Another Perspective
Blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
This was initially posted a couple of years ago, but it’s as evergreen a topic as a Christmas tree. We hear the resistance to “hoops” almost every day in the publishing world. Maybe this will strike you–as …
Publishing’s Tripping Hazards
blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
Last year, my husband broke three ribs. A reasonably coordinated man, he tripped on an uneven piece of pavement and fell hard. Broken ribs take an extraordinarily long time to heal. Small fall; big consequences.
It can …
Are you a flexible or focused writer? Or both?
Blogger: Rachel Kent
At Books & Such, we love all types of writers. But today, I’d like to tell you about two specific types. Each one has its pros and cons.
The first is The Flexible Writer.
The Flexible …