365 Days of the Query: Give Them a Taste, Not a Mouthful
This past weekend, I attended a NARWA (Northern Arizona Romance Writers of America) mini-conference. During a session on query letters, I read mine aloud and found out my query was still too long, even after I'd taken pains to shorten it.Take…
ABOVE WORLD, by Jenn Reese
This week I'm happy to feature ABOVE WORLD, by Jenn Reese. This MG novel (first in a projected series) has a great premise!Synopsis, from Goodreads:Thirteen-year-old Aluna has lived her entire life under the ocean with the Coral Kampii in…
Just When You Think You’re Invisible…
Congratulations to @whatisjuanoscar, winner of MY FRESHMAN YEAR AND OTHER UNNATURAL DISASTERS!If the writing contests I've entered lately are any indictation, the competition out there is very fierce. To the point where I'll let myself get intimidated…
Interview with Beth Barany, author of HENRIETTA THE DRAGON SLAYER
This week's book feature, HENRIETTA THE DRAGON SLAYER, is by Beth Barany, published author, writing coach, and professional speaker. AUTHOR BIO (courtesy of Beth):Beth Barany has been making up fantasy & adventure tales all her life. She…
365 Days of the Query: Why a Crowd of Many Isn’t Always a Bad Thing
In my last post, I talked about the disadvantages of being one in a crowd of many writers.But strength in numbers has its advantages, too. Take the following advertisement (meant to encourage people to take the bus):Just like all these worker…
365 Days of the Query: One in a Crowd of Many
REMINDER: Free giveaway of MY FRESHMAN YEAR AND OTHER UNNATURAL DISASTERS to a random commenter or tweeter who shares an embarrassing moment. Either leave a comment in the blog or tweet to @WriterLibrarian with the hashtag #FrYrDisasters.The…
Freshman Year and Other Unnatural Disasters GIVEAWAY, and Other Must-Reads
Back in January, I featured this interview with Meredith Zeitlin, author of FRESHMAN YEAR AND OTHER UNNATURAL DISASTERS. To celebrate the book's premiere this week, I'm hosting a giveaway of Meredith's book! To enter: Become a follower and…
SHADOW BOUND and other fabulous books by Erin Kellison
This week I'm happy to feature Erin Kellison, who brilliantly blends dark fantasy and fairy tale elements into her stories. Her book, SHADOW BOUND, debuted in 2010 and is part of the SHADOW series:From Goodreads: Death Some people will do anything…
Blocks to Success: The Five Hindrances
In an attempt to reduce my stress levels, I'm taking an insight meditation class. Though some of the exercises have been a bit over-the-top (contemplating raisins and such), I've gleaned a lot of good information regarding how to be more accepting…
365 Days of the Query: Cutting out Passive Language (Without Cutting out Content)
So we've all heard it before. Active language always trumps passive language, especially in prose. I can almost hear the collective sigh of "duh" coming from everyone.But it didn't occur to me until I saw today's post on the Angelic Muse blog…