Tag: featured
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Beta Readers Are Critical To An Author’s Success
Rachel Callaghan is the author of Under Water, Devils Knob (with its sequel) and the dark comedy Grab the Groom. She hosts the Dark and Outrageous Humor Author Interviews series, coming in February. People often ask about the need for beta readers and how to get them. Yes, most writers need them. Yes, your friends and family can […]
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On Writing Portrait of a Feminist by Marianna Marlowe
The inspiration for my book began one spring eight years ago. It was the year I turned fifty; the same year my oldest son turned eighteen, graduated from high school, and left for a college five states and two airplane rides away; and the year the troubles started between me and a beloved sibling. I […]
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Inspired to Following the Footsteps of a Fossil Hunter in Africa
By Penny Haw Where do ideas come from? What motivates an artist to paint landscapes, not portraits? What compels a writer to pen prose, not poetry? What inspires an author to create romance, not crime? Why are some people compelling, and others not? There are countless ways of responding to these questions. However, I can […]
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Pondering My Aviation Memoir After Three Fatal Plane Crashes
By Shirley M. Phillips One of the hardest tasks for me in finishing my memoir How Not to Fly an Airplane was choosing a title and cover. Although I suspect this is a challenge for many authors, for me it was compounded by the fact that my debut memoir is about my forty years of flying airplanes and teaching others how to fly. Although I […]
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Mining My Own Experiences to Create a Cult
By Alexandria Faulkenbury As an author about to publish my debut novel, I’m often asked about the inspiration for the story. And at this point in the roller coaster that is publishing a book, I have a standard answer: I’ve always been interested in cults, so I wanted to write about one. But that’s only […]
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Overcoming Imposter Syndrome to Manifest Abundance as an Author
By Betsey Kulakowski Imposter syndrome is something many authors — even those of us with almost a dozen books on the shelf — suffer from. No number of accolades, awards or best-seller badges can drive out the demons when you lack the feeling of being worthy. The key to building lasting confidence in your writing […]
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From Classroom Stories to International Success: My Writing Journey
By Renee Ryan Who knew that making entertaining classroom content would launch a career in writing fiction? As a high school teacher juggling Economics, American Government, and Latin, I faced a daily challenge: keeping teenagers awake through subjects that weren’t exactly on their “most thrilling” list. My secret weapon? Stories. Instead of droning on about […]
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Jill Amy Sager: On Writing
According to my cousin Deena, I’ve lived my life unencumbered by traditional expectations. When she mentioned this about thirty years ago, I didn’t relate to her observation, although looking back, this lack of self-awareness is hard to believe. I know that being born with a physical disability has had something to do with my ability […]
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Finding My Way Through the Dark: On Substack
By Beth Kephart The Substack experts have advice for those seeking to carve out a place on this online platform that offers authors a chance to build both a newsletter and an audience. How to convert non-paying subscribers to paying ones via the strategic use of paywalls. How to write less and earn more. How […]
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Authors Interviewing Characters: Patsy C. Robertson
A CONCOCTION OF LIES Yvonne Hollister is a wealthy, older woman who has led a privileged life in the US and Belize. But she’s suffering from chronic depression after the unexpected deaths of her immediate family members. She’s failed in-patient and outpatient therapies and is now a functional addict hooked on both prescription drugs and […]
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