How to Write a Great Thriller
by Mike Bond All great works of art are thrillers If a thriller is defined as a book you keep reading to find out what happens next, then all good…
Fiction Writing
Co-Writing: Plotting Murder without Killing Each Other
by Sparkle Abbey The thing most people notice first when they meet Sparkle Abbey at conferences or book signings is that there are two of us. The question that almost…
Your Pen or Mine
by Barbara Hunter and Catina Williams When we tell other authors we are collaborating on a book series, the response is astonishment. Suddenly, no one is interested in what we…
Who’s Telling This Story? And Why?
By Shelly Lowenkopf Three bag ladies are standing in the parking lot of a Trader Joe’s market, a common-enough sight in many cities. Now, two men—Mac and Ben—push their shopping…
On Editing an Anthology
by Andrew MacRae My teenage mind was blown years ago when I discovered the anthology Dangerous Visions, edited by science-fiction great, Harlan Ellison. Not only because of the stories and…
Narrative Voice: A great one will sell your book
By Toni Lopopolo, Literary Agent What editors in publishing houses tell agents: “I’m looking for well written, vivid, voice-driven books in adult, young adultand narrative non-fiction categories.” Sara Goodman, Editor…
The Inner Workings of a Romance Novel
by Sandra Murphy Barbara Metzger has written over 40 historical Regency (and five contemporary) romance novels. “I tried to find a balance between the sexy scenes and humor,” she said…
Five Ways Scrivener Helped Me Write My Novel
by Susan Daffron Recently, I published my first novel, Chez Stinky (http://www.chezstinky.com), which is about a woman who inherits a house with a lot of quirky animals. It’s a romantic…
Fiction Set Abroad
by Sheila Connolly Conventional wisdom for writers dictates “write what you know.” So why am I writing a series set in Ireland? In a tiny village in West Cork? The…
Making the Leap from Nonfiction to Fiction (or Vice-Versa)
by Patricia Fry After forty years of writing nonfiction for publication, I started writing fiction. Unlike many young writers, I once dreamed of writing nonfiction. I fantasized about a byline…