Go Ahead, Watch TV and Movies

Guest Blogger: Martha Brockenbrough When I was growing up, my mom would let us know when—in her view—we’d had too much fun. My brothers and sisters and I jokingly called it TMF or “exceeding the fun quotient.” Mom used to feel the TV for telltale signs of warmth when she …

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4 Points to a Successful Writing Collaboration

Guest Bloggers: Angie Brenner and Joy E. Stocke A good companion shortens the longest road. — Turkish proverb “Why Turkey?” is the first question we’re often asked when we talk about our travels and collaborative memoir ANATOLIAN DAYS & NIGHTS. What seems obvious to us after visiting the four corners of …

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Just because you can…

Guest Blogger: Marie Lamba Fiction writers can create a story out of anything, and every character they put down on paper can have their own conflict, their own storyline. This is both a blessing and a curse. When writing my new paranormal novel DRAWN, I knew I was creating what, …

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Start Here

Guest Blogger: Daniel Palmer When it comes to writing novels, beginnings can be difficult. A blank page at first appears liberating, but it can soon become utterly paralyzing. As writers, we’ve been taught to grab the reader’s attention in the first few pages—the first sentence if possible—and then hold it …

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On the Fear of Writing

Guest Blogger: Caragh M. O’Brien Please understand: I am not an insecure or fearful person. I’m strong and tough, and I laugh at myself regularly. Spiders and mice can’t throw me, and I’m only marginally afraid of the dark or donning a bikini. But today, I’m afraid of writing, and in …

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A Career

Guest Blogger: Reed Farrel Coleman By the time this blog post appears, my thirteenth (GUN CHURCH, Audible.com) and fourteenth (HURT MACHINE, Tyrus Books) novels will be on the shelves—actual and virtual. Although I don’t get quite as excited by the release of my latest novel or novels, I do still …

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On Trends

Guest Blogger: Marie Lu Now, before I say anything, I have to say this: LEGEND benefitted enormously from the power of trends. When I first began writing the book, I had absolutely no idea that LEGEND would eventually fit perfectly into the tidal wave of science fiction and dystopia that …

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Introducing Laurie Faria Stolarz, Bestselling Author of the Touch Series

Guest Blogger: Laurie Faria Stolarz I’m so excited to announce the release of DEADLY LITTLE VOICES, the fourth book in the Touch series (Disney/Hyperion Books for Children). Inspiration for the Touch series: Following the success of my BLUE IS FOR NIGHTMARES series, in which my main character is plagued and …

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5 Things More Important Than Talent

Guest Blogger: Jane Friedman In the July/August 2011 issue of WRITER’S DIGEST magazine, I have a featured article, “Revising Your Path to Publication.” If you’re aiming for traditional publication, and you’re wondering how close you might be to reaching your goal, I highly recommend picking up the issue and reading …

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Stages of a Writing Career

Guest Blogger: Scott Nicholson As a writer, I consider myself early in Act II of my career. In Act I, I had my apprenticeship and my 700 rejection slips, and eventually a six-book mass-market paperback career. I hit a frustrating lull for a few years, in which I couldn’t get …

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