J.M Robison,

This post is specific to the dangers and courtesies of asking for feedback on a manuscript that is not complete. (I address the dangers...

I worked as a Deputy Sheriff for 7 years over three different counties. If you would like to write a character who is a prison guard or...

I see an upsetting attitude toward writing, and that attitude is "Don't write the 2nd book in the series until the publisher accepts the...

WRITER: Is there any way that you can read a little faster or read more than one chapter at a time? Reading so little at one time and so...

HOW TO: Take all your characters and force them into a theoretical dance club. Make them stand so they form a circle in the middle of...

There are only 2 forces in this world: what we make happen by our own two hands (we drive the car) and the random acts we react to (we...

Us writers love to introduce beautiful characters. It’s poetic and tugs at our heartstrings when a dashing cowboy struts into the scene,...

Have a looooooooooong chapter and want to cut it but don’t know where? Cut the chapter right when you blast the reader with surprise,...

The age-old debate…to wear pants, or not to wear pants? Oh, that’s not the debate…? Maybe it’s…to outline or not to outline (but that...

I didn’t think this was an issue, but after reading so many books, both by published authors and author-hopefuls, I realize it’s not only...

What is a story rule? It is that rule which you create in your character and/or plot that is never to be broken. Example: RULE - a man...

I’m editing an old favorite story of mine – THE LOST GODS (16 years in the making. It’s gone through about 3 massive overhauls already.)...

I am a Christian, as I stated before in my sister blog post: Christianity and Literary Sex Scenes. I was raised to believe in doing what...

I shared a blog post to my Facebook writer’s group. In this blog I said, “And in all things, writing must be realistic.” A fellow writer...

As a Christian there is a negative connotation when it comes to sex. It is often portrayed as being, “Inappropriate to talk about,” or...

I’m Christian. I’ll even go so far as to say I’m a Latter Day Saint (Morman) so I abstain from smoking, alcohol, premarital sex, and...

I’m an avid reader of fantasy books. I’m also an avid writer of fantasy books. And, what the heck, I’m also an avid enthusiast about maps...

This review a beta reader gave me changed my writing life forever: “I am not a major fan of the words "had' and "that" and eliminate them...

I was beta reading for someone, and I asked them, “Is this your first draft? If not, what draft number are you on?” And his reply, “I...

Why should you kill characters? When should you kill characters? How many characters should you kill? WHY: For me, I kill characters when...