When I started writing my first book in 2015, I didn’t know a single person who wrote. I also didn’t tell anyone I was writing a book because I didn’t consider myself a writer. I’d never taken a single writing class (except what was needed for school) and I was clueless on the whole process of writing and publishing books. So I made the ultimate rookie mistake. I whipped out…
A debut year for any writer is exciting and joyful. And it can also be stressful, frightening, frustrating, and lonely. In my little corner of the world, it’s been hard for me to find other writers to connect with, although I’m lucky to have a small circle. Even if you live in a big city, though, with lots of different writers’ groups available, the odds of…
“The query letter is…the single most important page an unpublished writer will ever write” — Nicholas Spark This week’s subject of discussion is supposed to be about querying tips, as in what tips can you give an aspiring writer when querying potential publishers and agents? Unfortunately my querying stories and experiences are good only in the theoretical — as in it’s a good topic to discuss in the abstract….
I’ve always heard of this legend, the solitary writer, head down at her desk, never looking for the light or sharing her words. And I have to say, that was never me. From the start, to me, writing was a collaborative craft. I remember sharing stories with my kid sister across our bunk beds — about frogs and princesses, our favorite Bollywood stars, and eventually even New Kids On the…
I’ve spoken quite a bit about how much I love my writing community. They’ve been so much more to me than colleagues. They’re true friends, my champions—they’re warriors—and I am theirs. I’ve found much of my community the same way the other Debs mentioned: conferences, writing groups, going to writing events, lending a hand whenever I possibly can. Rather than repeating the Debs’ pearls of wisdom, I thought I would…
1. Look locally. Are there published authors in your community? Go to their book signings, even if you don’t know them personally or they write in a different genre than you do. Authors have nightmares about doing readings where no one shows up (just see this Onion article). They will always be happy to see interested faces in the audience. And, if the reading ends up being small, as many…
This is going to be brief. Why? Because I’m about to dash into the terrible Chicago weather to go hang out with other members of my tribe, the Mystery Writers of America Midwest Chapter. Oh, yeah. We’re big ol’ mystery nerds, and we like it that way. But how did I find this tribe, you may wonder, and how can you find your own? Five steps: Pay your dues (literally)….
