The Only Rule Every Writer Must Know
The only rule every writer must know is: Writing “rules” are actually suggestions which means: Nothing applies to everyone No one piece of writing or publishing advice applies to every writer, nor should it. But the internet abounds with articles like Rules for Writing Fiction: Part 1 and Part 2, from The Guardian. Note: There are more than 10 rules in those articles (122 + 123 = 245) which means a) someone can’t count; or b) some of the writers didn’t...
Read MoreDanger of the “bad boy” fantasy in YA
Update: For another perspective on this, using one YA book as an example, see Bookshop’s post Bad Romance (or YA and rape culture). I’ve been noticing something disturbing with quite a few of the beautiful paranormal romances currently shimmering on bookstore shelves, and I’m not talking about the paranormal aspects. In too many of them, the controlling and violent behavior of the “bad boy” becomes fodder for a romantic fantasy where the sweet, innocent girl...
Read MoreDoes Hard Work Trump Talent?
I’ve always been told I’m a talented musician. It’s something that comes naturally to me, and something I enjoy doing. What I don’t enjoy? Practicing. And so I never do it. I was the top violinist in my high school orchestra for a couple years, but I never practiced. Honestly. I got by purely on talent. Then I went off to college and took the basic orchestra class for fun. Hoo boy, did I learn fast. Not to play better. No, I knew music wasn’t in my professional...
Read MoreMake your prose fragrant, not florid
In the past—and even still today—literature professors and book critics and whatnot feed writers a line about how florid, purple phrasing makes for “high” literature. In most cases, I see it as an impediment to the story. When it takes so long to even understand what the author is trying to say, you don’t have time to see the bigger picture or the story as a whole. Obviously, there are writers whose prose is breathtakingly beautiful but still simple in that they...
Read MoreTake my advice…
Over at Nihilistic Kid, Nick Mamatas offers Ten Bits of Advice Writers Should Stop Giving Aspiring Writers. To his post I say: YES. (If it isn’t clear, I’m implying that it’d be good to read that article before starting into this one. Or at least reading it in conjunction with this.) I touched on this a bit in my post Caveat Writer, though that focused more on knowing if you can trust a publishing professional with whom you’d like to work. Much of that applies here as...
Read MoreAuthors, Bloggers and the Goodreads War
If you’re involved in the YA book community and haven’t noticed any of the recent dustups over reviews, well, you’re probably lucky. So let me fill you in a bit. Since January 1, there have been 8 separate incidents in 2 weeks between (mainly new) young adult authors and book bloggers who post reviews on Goodreads. Timeline of the meltdowns: Update 1-17-12: It seems the drama continues with a rebuttal from YA author Maggie Stiefvater in her post The Only Thing I Am Going to...
Read MoreFinding words
It’s been a long time since I’d sat down and completed a word puzzle, which is sad since I find them so soothing. Some people call them word searches, while others say word find. I imagine it’s really a bit of both. Some words come easily, leaping out of the page when your eyes glance over the jumble of letters. They strike your sight, as if mocking how long it took you to find it. I was here the WHOLE time. Why couldn’t you see me? That feeling, the moment of...
Read MoreCaveat writer
I always encourage writers to verify the credibility of people they’re working with, whether it be agents or publishers, designers or printers. It can be tricky, I know, but there are some excellent resources to help authors feel a bit more confident about their decisions as they seek to publish their books. I decided to create this list after I got a tweet from a company that makes book trailers for authors, then promotes those trailers. Sounds like a good thing. But it turns out that...
Read MoreHow many queries to get an agent?
Apocryphal stories abound of how many rejections it took this famous author to get an agent or another author to get a book deal. I actually laugh when people think Stephenie Meyer got so many rejections prior to her book deal. Hooboy! that’s a good one. Because the question crops up a lot, I decided to put together a little sampling of how many rejections famous authors received before securing a book deal and (maybe) everlasting fame. Note: I limited selection to contemporary...
Read MoreBut it needs a comma
When to use a comma before the word “but” Grammatical explanation A comma should proceed a conjunction separating two independent clauses. What it means When you put a “but” between two phrases that could reasonably be made into two sentences, there should be a comma. He went to the store, but she stayed home. equals 1. He went to the store. 2. She stayed home. How to remember it Use a comma only if the “but” has a noun (person, place, or thing)...
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