Category: How To and Tips
Three Non-Writing Tips to Get You Writing
When I started writing, I wished I had someone in my life who could tell me exactly what to do and where to begin. Lately, I’ve been talking a lot on radio, podcasts, and television about how to get started as a writer. Even if you are an established writer and feeling stuck, or only […]
A Novel Approach to Dealing with Grief
A Novel Approach to Dealing with Grief I was forty when a heart attack claimed my husband’s life and changed mine forever. In the immediate aftermath of suffocating grief, I couldn’t fathom anything good coming out of such a traumatic experience. But I was wrong. When my husband died, I found my writer’s voice. As […]
SETTING RESEARCH: WHEN YOU DIDN’T WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW
SETTING RESEARCH: WHEN YOU DIDN’T WRITE WHAT YOU KNOW A woman floats peacefully in a swimming pool at night, a spangled view of the city behind her. The image wouldn’t leave my head, and over time turned into a central scene in my debut romance novel, PAINTING CELIA. Naturally, my character needed a house with […]
A Persistent What-If: The Complicated and Inelegant Process of A Book Idea
A Persistent What-If: The Complicated and Inelegant Process of A Book Idea Gin Phillips Stop me if you’ve heard this one: A writer walks into a room. Before long a hand goes up. “So how do you get the ideas for your books?” someone asks. With a smile, the writer gives them a concise, elegant […]
Seasons in Fiction
I’m British and married to a gardener: two reasons why I’m always talking about the seasons and associated weather patterns. They’re my life’s backdrop. They’re a backdrop in fiction, too: a gift to writers aiming to evoke a mood, echo a theme, foreshadow tragic events or mirror character traits. Let me share examples. Get ready […]
My Writing Journey by Belle Henderson
Writing was never on my agenda. In fact, I didn’t even entertain the idea until I was on maternity leave and had not long turned thirty-five. There was a niggling in my ear, a strong presence urging me to try it and that voice wasn’t my conscious or some form of higher self. That presence, […]
Interweaving Fact and Fiction in Historical Novels by Jill Caugherty
Interweaving Fact and Fiction in Historical Novels by Jill Caugherty Historical fiction gives readers the opportunity to travel with the protagonist on an adventure into the past with the added bonus of learning fascinating, relevant information about that time period. Credible, carefully-chosen details make me feel that I’m right there with the protagonist, accompanying her […]
You’ve Recorded a Podcast Interview: What You Do Afterward Makes All the Difference
You’ve heard it before: podcasts are the next best book tour for authors. Usually free or low-cost for authors (not so for the podcaster, but that’s a different story!), it takes a bit of time to get your query ready, prepare for the interview, and participate in the conversation with the podcaster. And boom! There […]
Writing The Golden Ticket: A Life in College Admissions Essays
It seems singularly appropriate that The Golden Ticket started with my desire for an actual golden ticket, though not to a chocolate factory. No, I wanted a ticket to Italy. Let me explain. When I was 26, my husband and I had our first child—a winsome, blond, dimpled, chortling baby who rolled over, sat up, […]
Inspiration Behind TELL ME LIES by Teresa Driscoll
Inspiration behind Tell Me Lies, the sixth psychological thriller by two million copy bestselling author Teresa Driscoll Ideas for books always take time in my world. Sadly, I’m not one of those authors who can give my editor a list of five ideas and say – pick one. Between us, my process is a bit […]
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