General writing

Three Things That I Give My Critique Partner When I Share a Story

I’m a member of some fantastic critique groups. I’m actually in three groups that meet regularly, two over zoom and one in person. I love these groups, and I feel like my critique partners give me some fantastic advice. You can read about their advice on creating characters here, on tightening the focus of my… Read more »

Three Things to Help You Write A Better Story that AREN’T Writing

  In this month’s post, I’m going to share three things to help you write a better story thatAREN’T writing. There’s a lot of writing advice out there about how to write better that are focused on actual writing. Things like dialogue, voice, and clarity. And those are incredibly important parts of writing. But sometimes… Read more »

Learning Something New and the Women’s World Cup

I love watching soccer, all kinds of soccer at all levels. Our whole family does! We go to local games for our rec teams, cup teams, our local USL team the Riverhounds, even MLS teams like Columbus Crew. And we took a family trip to see EPL teams Liverpool, Leeds, Man U and Everton. And… Read more »

Should I hire a professional editor for my book?

You’ve written the final draft of your book, and you’re so proud. You want to submit it to that dream agent RIGHT NOW! You’ve revised it, used the “find” tool to go through the whole manuscript and delete unnecessary words, you’ve worked on showing, not telling, and you’ve even come up with a great pitch…. Read more »

Some Advice for Writers from Birders

I’m both a birder and a writer. When I bird, I’m often out there enjoying whatever birds come my way. But sometimes, I’m looking for a specific bird. I have a goal. It can be frustrating when I can’t find it, and even more frustrating when others can. When I’m writing, I’m often creating a… Read more »

The Best Critique Comments I’ve Gotten This Month

I’m so lucky I have amazing critique partners. They are generous with their time and expertise and so honest about what parts of the story need work. They are also really, really interested in helping me make my work better. And they never forget to leave a kind comment! I participate in webinars and group… Read more »

My Life as a Writer, or a Writer’s World of Work

  This little sketch of the Earth with tiny satellites orbiting it is a model of my life as a writer. Well, it’s the model my husband suggested to me. We were at breakfast and I was telling him about the projects I had sent to my agent, the one I was working on now,… Read more »

Is Canva Pro worth it for writers?

There are so many things to think about when writing books. Character, plot, setting, voice, POV, tense, adverbs, cliffhangers, villains, heroes, and more!!! But once you get the story written, the manuscript sold, and the book published (easy peasy) then comes the hard work of getting the word out about your book and connecting with… Read more »