helping writers find their voice, and books find their flavor
A.K.A. What the heck to ask a literary agent during The Call??? Welcome to Part Two of my series on Getting a Literary Agent. Part One of this series broke down the basics of literary agents—their place in the industry, who needs one, and how …
Getting a literary agent is one of the most difficult initial steps of the traditional publishing process, but it’s a necessary one. I signed with an agent in April 2024 after almost four years and multiple manuscripts. As a writer who has always known I …
One of the best things I ever did for myself as a querying writer was get strategic about how I was writing my query letter—and it paid off with a query letter that REALLY worked. Read my query, which gained a whopping 47% request rate and yielded a total of four offers of representation!
Even great writers get stuck when it comes to writing a sex scene in their book. Writing spicy scenes is a skill, and we’ve all seen plenty of examples of spice that fizzles instead of sizzles. But what makes a spicy scene truly sexy and …
Check out the link at the end of this post for a free downloadable spreadsheet where you can complete this exercise with your own characters. The great thing about this exercise is that it works for any characters whose relationship is central to your story. …
Here’s a hot take: Your fight scenes are not nearly as much about the action as you think they are. Fight scenes aren’t actually action sequences. They’re character sequences, and yes, I will die on this hill. Think about your favorite fight scenes in any …
Phil and I sat down yesterday and talked (with a lot of hand gestures on my part) about the craft of storytelling, the balance of wanting to make your project perfect and wanting to move on to the next big thing, killing your babies, loving your antagonist, and some of the challenges of being a creative in today’s world.
Your first draft is the worst your work is ever going to look. It’s only going to get better from here, but first you have to finish it.
What is a writing coach, and why do I need one? How can I find the perfect writing coach for me? Click to learn more.