Dear Character, I hope this finds you . . .
by Molly MacRae First published on May 2, 2021 in Writers Who Kill, reprinted with permission Interruptions happen. To anyone, in any job. There you are, at home or at…
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11 free things you can do to buzz your book
by Sandra Beckwith Posted on May 12, 2021. Reprinted with permission. After paying for editing, proofreading, and a snazzy cover design, self-published authors don’t always have a lot of money…
Why Do I Write Diverse Stories?
by Delia Pitts Recently a reader asked me if I write #ownvoices crime fiction to instruct, to share my experiences as a woman of color in America, or to improve…
Let’s Talk Diversity
by Jay Hartman If there’s one good thing that’s come out of the last year or so, it’s a heightened awareness for the recognition of diversity in all aspects of…
Killing Dreams One Rejection at a Time
by Michael Bracken At the time I wrote “Rejected!” in 2018, I had received 2,552 rejections. I have no idea how many more I’ve added since then, and I don’t…
What Is Kindle Vella?
By Dave Chesson, Kindlepreneur As many of you might have heard, Amazon just announced the Kindle Vella system. A quick recap of this: New system that sells novellas called episodes…
The Pride Award— Legacy Project of Sherry Harris, Past President of Sisters in Crime
This is a reprint of an article from the Wicked Authors blog by Sherry Harris. The contest closed for this year, but will reopen again next year. There aren’t many…
CPR for Dead or Lifeless Fiction: A Writer’s Guide to Deep and Multi-faceted Development and Progression of Characters, Plots, and Relationships
by Karen S. Wiesner Characters: Do your characters have no obvious signs of life, nothing that gives them unique personality, perspective, and passion? Does it seem like their conflicts are…
The Benefits of Being a Writer
by Marilyn Levinson Writing mysteries is wonderful for my health. Well, sure, I do a lot of sitting around, but I counter the bad effects of that by getting up…
The Key Book Publishing Paths: 2021–2022
by Jane Friedman, reprinted with permission. Since 2013, I have regularly updated this informational chart about the key book-publishing paths. It is available as a PDF download, ideal for photocopying…