I’ve been thinking about creating a Facebook fan page for a while. Since most of my intended readers (upper elementary school to early middle school students) don’t follow blogs or use Twitter, Facebook is one of the best ways to reach them. But it’s odd to ask someone to “like” you or your books, which [...]
I saw this book trailer for Super Sad True Love Story the other day, and I just had to share it with you guys. What I most like about the trailer is that it conveys the tone of the book without really telling us what the story is about. I heard an interview with Shteyngart [...]
I’ve been thinking about the saying “write what you know” and how it applies to my own writing. I realized that while I use certain small things from real life in my work–a funny saying or a character trait–in general, my stories are pretty separate from my life. This is probably because I mostly write [...]
Not too long ago, someone (I can’t remember who!) linked to Joe Konrath’s post on marketing. At the end of his post, Konrath listed several inspiring quotes on writing. Many of them rang true for me, including: “Hard work trumps talent. Persistence trumps inspiration. Humility trumps ego.” But there was one quote that didn’t sit quite [...]
Once upon a time, I had only one writing goal: to actually finish a novel. To be honest, I wasn’t sure I could do it. If you’ve never written “The End” before, it can feel like a daunting task. And if you’ve done it once, you might start to doubt that you’ll be able to [...]
I’m back! I hope you enjoyed all the wonderful guest posts the past couple weeks. There will be more to come, but you’ll be seeing a lot more of me from now on. It’s been a crazy few weeks. Not only have I been busy with the end of the semester, but I’ve also been [...]
We interrupt our regular blogging schedule for a special announcement. Since it’s up on Amazon, I guess I can share it with the world. My book has a cover!! Ready? Here it is! I’m so glad to finally be able to spill the beans! And wow–having a cover makes things feel a whole lot more [...]
Today’s guest post comes from writer and blogger extraordinaire, Lydia Sharp: “Hello. My name is Lydia. And I write fiction for teens.” I’m very open about it now, but there was a time when I thought saying those words meant I had either sold myself out, or that my writing skills had taken a step [...]
Today’s guest post on using luck and superstitions in your writing comes from lovely YA author, Dawn Metcalf: It’s Friday the 13th. Bad luck It’s also bad luck if you break a mirror, spill salt, or step on a crack (at least to your mother’s back). On the other hand, it’s good luck to find [...]
Today’s insightful guest post comes from Kip Wilson Rechea: We all know the kind of novels prized for beautiful language as much as–or sometimes even more than–story. The kind of book that leaves striking images planted in your mind. The kind of images that make you fall in love with the novel. Frequently classified as “literary” or “lyrical,” beautifully-worded novels [...]
