“A writer’s life is a life of revisions.” – Jonathan Franzen Right now it’s a Saturday morning and the entire house is still sleeping. It’s grey and gloomy outside and we’re expecting a good bit of rain. I prefer days like this when it comes to working on writing and projects because I find the ‘gloom’ helps me concentrate. And, …
How Many Characters Should Your Novel Have?
How many characters should your novel have? When I read a book, I want to get to know the players in an intimate way, but a story with too many characters makes it impossible to connect. I don’t know where to place my focus, I can’t get to know the protagonist, antagonist, or supporting characters in the kind of depth …
When to Hire A Beta Reader
I’ve been at this beta reading racket for just over a year now, and one of the issues I continue to see is clients who rush through the editing process and get their book in my hands too early. Today I thought we’d take a look at the importance of knowing when to hire a beta reader. First things first, …
Nailing the Ideal Word Count for Your Genre
Let’s face it, hitting the magic word count for your novel is something that can be easy to lose track of when you’re in the throes of the process. I know this, because I’m guilty myself. I churned out my first draft, shelved it, then recently tackled revisions and I didn’t think about word count for one second, until I …
Writing Characters Your Readers Will Love
Fiction writers everywhere, I cannot stress this enough – one of the most important elements of your work are your characters. They are the lifeblood of your story. They are the reason readers will want to keep turning pages. They are why I’ll sometimes cry when I reach the end of a book. Sure a great plot helps, as does …
Why Do I Need A Beta Reader?
At some point in your writing life, you’ve probably asked yourself “Why do I need a beta reader?” We writers are a little bit precious when it comes to our work. We fuss and tweak and obsess over our writing, revising and adjusting the same chapters and paragraphs again and again until the words become a blur on the page.