A writer’s journey (part eleven) – one more (editing) time with feeling

When I last updated, it was a little over a year ago, and I had gotten some editor's feedback. So, here's a quick update on all the editing that has happened. First and foremost, I had to split my book into two. Probably the saddest thing about it. I had never wanted to sell a … Continue reading A writer’s journey (part eleven) – one more (editing) time with feeling

How to write great pitches for pitch contests

Writers use Twitter contests to pitch to agents, publishing houses, and editors. While some of the bigger ones like PitMad is gone, smaller ones still happen all the time. Now, pitch contests are like getting a lottery ticket. Getting attention—when surrounded by hundreds of other pitches—is difficult to say the least. But there are proven … Continue reading How to write great pitches for pitch contests

Posting online

I speak my mind,and a barren screen replies. I raise my voice,but an abandoned field flows by. Perhaps the goalisn't to raise my voice to the void but to find meaningin the emptiness. To find a home. Copyright © Robin LeeAnn

Fantasy and sci-fi tips from an award-winning editor

I attended a Reedsy Live where Jonathan Oliver gave some wonderful tips for fantasy and sci-fi writers that I'd like to share. Some of these tips are for all genres though. What's a word count for fantasy and sci-fi? For adult fantasy, he mentioned the range to be about 130,000 to 250,000 words. Sci-fi landed … Continue reading Fantasy and sci-fi tips from an award-winning editor

Common writing mistakes #7

#7 — Not Developing Characters I'm sure we’ve all come across a character in a book who we didn’t feel anything toward much. We weren’t worried about the character’s well-being. Which doesn't help us want to continue reading. It can take many drafts to get into a character’s head and develop them on the page. … Continue reading Common writing mistakes #7

Creative ways to promote your self-published book

At AWP, I ran into a lot of traditional publishing vs self-publishing. Self-publishing has some different perks and routes, especially when it comes to marketing. A few discussed their creative ways to market their book. When I say creative, I mean creative. They gave out some ideas that I had never even thought of before. … Continue reading Creative ways to promote your self-published book

How to use social media when querying

At the base line, social media is a good way to connect with agents. Agents talk about their manuscript wish list (#MSWL) from time to time. They list what they're looking for in the next book they represent. Look out for them. You might see one that matches your book. However, warning: do not directly … Continue reading How to use social media when querying

A writer’s journey (part eight) – blogging, more research, and twitter

It has been a while since I’ve written one of these. I’ve been meaning to, but my busy schedule took control for a little bit. I have three topics in the title, because I’ve seen the most growth in these areas. Let’s go one by one. Blogging As I mentioned here before, my blog has … Continue reading A writer’s journey (part eight) – blogging, more research, and twitter

The Sunshine Blogger Award

I would like to thank Nen and Jen from Nen & Jen for nominating me for the Sunshine Blogger Award! It was such a pleasant surprise to wake up to. If you haven't checked out Nen & Jen, you should. They write awesome book reviews from fantasy to YA to romance books. They also have … Continue reading The Sunshine Blogger Award