Links of Interest to Writers

Words of wisdom about writing.

• Copyblogger:  The Lede:  How to Use Persuasive Words by Jerod Morris @JerodMorris @Copyblogger

• Mary Carroll Moore/How to Plan, Write, & Develop a Book:  Winter Doldrums? Ten Fun Exercises to Get Going on Your Writing Again @writeabook

• Everyone's Story:  Jim Denney:  Replacing Fear With Courage In Writing @WriterJimDenney @ElaineStock

• Writer's First Aid:  A Walking Idea Factory by Kristi Holl @KristiHoll

• Creative Writing with the Crimson League:  5 Strange Truths Authors Know About Productivity by Victoria Grefer @vgrefer

• M. J. Wright:  Essential Writing Tools:  Why Paper's an Essential Editing Tool  @MJWrightNZ

Links of Interest to Writers

Spent a great four days at a Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators retreat at Silver Falls State Park near Silverton, Oregon. What fun to be in the company of other writers and talk writing, walk writing, and sleep writing! Inspiring and motivating. A similar feeling happens when I read blog posts with great writing advice like these:

• Lauren Sapala:  The One Thing You're Doing to Block Your Writing Success

• Mystery Writing is Murder:  The Ability to Single-Task by Elizabeth S. Craig

• Writers Helping Writers:  Mystery Writing Basics:  Characters & Plot by Staci Troilo

• An Intense Life:  The Elusive Search for Balance by Christine Fonseca

• Slate:  A Textual Analysis of The Hunger Games:  Suzanne Collins' favorite adjectives, adverbs, & ways of starting a sentence. By Ben Blatt

• The New York Times Sunday Review:  Art Makes You Smart by Brian Kisida, Jay P. Greene, & Daniel H. Bowen

Links of Interest to Writers

Here's to good reading and writing!

• Daily Writing Tips:  How Many Words in Your Vocabulary? by Maeve Maddox

• Shallee McArthur:  The Power of the First Draft

• Mark & Angel Hack Life:  10 Harsh Realities that Help You Grow

• Publisher's Weekly:  Best Books of 2013

• NPR Books:  How Cynthia Rylant Discovered The Poetry of Storytelling

• A. Victoria Mixon, Editor:  3 Vital Steps to Creating Your Protagonist for NaNoWriMo

Links of Interest to Writers

Read, read, read, write, write, write, revise, revise, revise - the cycle of life!

• File this under creative ways with books! Mental Floss:  13 Sculptures Made Out of Books

• PiBoldMo Day 12:  Elizabeth Rose Stanton Procrastidoodles

• Lauren Sapala:  Taking Emotions Risks in Your Writing

• Publisher's Weekly:  Best Children's Books of 2013

• PUB(Lishing) Crawl:  A Peek at an Editor's To-Do List by Jordan Hamessley London

• The League of Extraordinary Writers:  Building a Story From Atmosphere by Bethany Hagen

Links of Interest to Writers

Some great writing blog posts that caught my eye!

• The Write Practice:  The Power of Sacred Time:  The Writers Edition by Birgitte Rasine

• Writers in the Storm:  11 Frequently Asked Questions About Book Royalties & Money by Chuck Sambuchino

• The BookBaby Blog:  Pixar's 22 Rules of Storytelling by Chris Robley

• All Write - Fiction Advice:  Suspending Disbelief for Readers - Part 2  (Find the link to Part 1 in the October 8th links below.)

• Anne R. Allen's Blog:  Why Writers Need to be on Google Plus...Plus a FREE Tutorial On How to Use it Effectively by John Base (Allen)

• Ninie Hammon:  Three Ways to Use Thoughts to Create Unforgettable Characters

• Positive Writer:  Why You Need to Risk Writing Something Dangerous by Bryan Hutchinson

Links of Interest to Writing

If you're a writer, why aren't you writing? These blog posts might get you motivated!

• M J Wright:  How to Write a 50,000 Word Novel in a Month

• Mystery Writing is Murder:  Protagonists Should Climb in the Front Seat by Elizabeth S. Craig

• Books & Such Literary Agency:  11 Things Happy Authors Don't Do by Rachelle Gardner

• The Bold Life:  How to Be Brave:  20 More Bold Acts That Count by Tess Marshall

• Todd Mitchell, Author:  Book Trailers:  Ten Tips to Help You Avoid the Suck, Pt 1

• The Book Deal:  How to Grab, Delight or Shock Your Readers Right from the Start by Alan Rinzler

• Writers in the Storm:  How to Support an Author's New Book by Chuck Sambuchino 

Links of Interest to Writers

Writing today? Read one of these to get you motivated!

• Tina Gayle:  Do Authors Need a Website? 

• Yorick Reintjens:  117 Most Beautiful Words in the English Language

• Write it Sideways:  When Fear is a Good Thing for Your Writing by Christi Craig 

• Mythic Scribes:  The Benefits of Outlining:  A Layered Approach by Steven M. Long

• The Write Practice:  Why You Should Use Symbolism in Your Writing by James Hall

• Writability:  Pacing Tip:  Contrast in Plot by Ava Jae

• Lauren Sapala:  Think You Know Social Media for Writers? Here's What You're Missing

Links of Interest to Writers

Here's a dose of intelligence!

• Writing Forward:  Writing Tips for Creating a Complex Villain by Melissa Donovan

• Writer's Digest/Brian Klems:  How to Build Subplots From Multiple Points of View 

• SpiritAuthors:  Going Public - What All Authors Fear When Getting Read to Publish by Lynn Searfinn

• Publishers Weekley:  New Trends in YA: The Agent's Perspective by Sue Corbett

• LA Times:  Lois Duncan on Reaching a New Generation of Teen Readers by Elisabeth Donnelly

• The Writer:  Character Profile (Interview Your Character) by Patrick Scalis

• Susan Kaye Quinn:  Create a Five-Year Plan

Links of Interest to Writers

Learn something new today!

• AuthorCulture:  Deep POV Basics by Paula Mowery

• QueryTracker:  Reaching One Reader at a Time by Sarah Pinneo

• The BookBaby Blog:  How Literary Agents' Responsibilities & Compensation are Changing by Chris Robley

• Courage 2 Create:  Don't Be Afraid to be Ambitious by Ollin Morales

• Fiction Notes:  Lousy First Draft:  It's Hard to Trust the Process by Darcy Pattison

• How to Plan, Write, & Develop a Book:  If You Want to Quit Your Day Job & Be a Full-Time Writer. . .Is it Possible? by Mary Carroll Moore

• Writers in Charge:  40 Ways to Boost Your Brain (Even if You're The Dumbest Writer in the World)

Links of Interest to Writers

Take some time to read articles on craft and learn something you might not have known about writing and writers!

• Writer Unboxed:  On Discipline, Dedication, & Devotion by Robin LaFevers

• The American Writers Museum

• Huff Post Healthy Living:  Overcoming Fear in 8 Steps by Dr. Carmen Harra

• Huff Post The Third Metric:  9 Ways to Gain More Time by Bernadette Noll (I especially liked the suggestion of crossing something off your list that you haven't done but really doesn't need doing.)

• Publisher's Weekly: 11 Most Evil Characters in Books by Koren Zailckas

• Jennifer Crusie's Blog Argh Ink:  Goals & Stakes

• Laurie Halse Anderson: The Magic Word That Destroy's Writer's Block

• Angela Booth's Creativity Factory:  5 Easy Ways to Become More Creative Fast

Links of Interest to Writers

Read, Learn, Write.

• LucReid:  Using Gold Coins in Writing

• The Write Now Coach:  Stop Whining and Write by Rochelle Melander

• Writers in the Storm:  Advice for Writers from Literary Agents by Chuck Sambuchino

• Writing in Wonderland:  Starter Kit for Writers

• Critically Yours:  Poking Holes

• Adventures in YA Publishing:  Melissa de la Cruz on Being Fearless

• Huff Post Books:  The Secret to Writing Faster by Karen Dionne

• The Write Practice:  The Only Two Tips You'll Ever Need To Find your Writing Voice by Katie Axelson

Links of Interest to Writers

Here are some blog posts I found interesting on the Web today:

• Writer's Fun Zone:  How to Create Characters: 10 Ways to Create Deeper & Unforgettable Characters by Margaret Aslanis-Nystrom

• Writability:  How to Make the Most of Your Chapter Endings by Ava Jae

• Viva Scriva:  Facing Our Fears by Sabina I. Rascol

• Time to Write:  The Danger of Waiting for Your Muse Before You Start to Write by Jurgen Wolff

• Author, Jody Hedlund:  Blogging Changes (Observations about changes in blogging over the past 9 months.)

• AuthorCulture:  Word Choice by Lisa Lickel

• Babbles from Scott Eagan:  The Art of the Simultaneous Submission

• Courage to Create:  Stop Hesitating: Take a Step Forward (Even if you think you're not prepared) by Ollin Morales