If you want to piss off a writer, charge a submission fee. It seems like nothing bothers writers more than being told they have to pay for something. How dare a magazine charge us just to read our work! It’s an outrage! They should make their money by selling subscriptions and ad space! More ads, … Continue reading 5 Reasons Why Submission Fees Really Aren’t the Scourge of the Publishing World
The leading cause of death in unpublished fiction is the end of the story. Oftentimes, these deaths are inexplicably violent, coming out of nowhere like the speeding drunk truck driver who just ran a red light and T-boned a defenseless sedan, sending the driver flying through the windshield and onto the pavement where he … Continue reading Why writers should never end a story with death
I have taken multitasking to a new level. About a week ago, I accomplished a feat previously unknown to humankind. I simultaneously ran, juggled, and watched videos on YouTube. If that's not an example of a human making the most of his/her time, then I don't know what is. Just how did I accomplish this … Continue reading On Multitasking, Writing, and Joggling
So you just had a new book published. Congratulations, by the way. Huge accomplishment. How did you celebrate? A week later, you look at the sales numbers. Disappointed? You were hoping to be on the next NYT Best Sellers list, but instead you only sold 20 copies, 8 of which were purchased by your mom. … Continue reading 5 Reasons Your Book Isn’t Selling
Even if you hate Amazon, chances are that's where many of your book sales happen. We can vilify Amazon all we want, but it does provide great opportunities for authors who otherwise might go completely unnoticed. But this isn't a discussion of the evil tyranny of Amazon. Nor is it meant as a blind rave … Continue reading Customers Also Bought What? Learning from Your Amazon Book Page
Getting paid for your writing feels great. Paying taxes on those earnings does not. There are plenty of ways to make money as a writer. Whether you received an advance, earned royalties, won a writing contest, or got paid for individual stories, poems, or articles, you are supposed to give Uncle Sam a cut of … Continue reading Tax Time for Writers: How To Report Your Writing Income
We’ve all heard that we need to avoid adverbs at all costs in our writing. We’ve even heard that the “road to hell is paved with adverbs.” Nearly every list of writing tips from the experts—whether these experts be writing professors, famous authors, or just self-proclaimed writing gurus—contains something about brutally killing all adverbs. During … Continue reading Should You Avoid Adverbs In Your Writing?
The literary landscape is rapidly changing, and it is almost impossible to foretell what a new year will bring. However, I've looked into my literary crystal ball, and these are 15 predictions that could have a huge impact on the literary community in 2015: 1. David Foster Wallace will team up with Jack White to … Continue reading 15 Literary Predictions for 2015
A few weeks ago, I welcomed a new baby girl into my life. My writer bio now contains the line "lives in Minneapolis with his wife and daughters." It almost seems surreal. I could go on and on about how beautiful she is and how lucky I am as a father, but we all know … Continue reading How to find time to write when you are busy
A few weeks ago, I stumbled across a story that led me to develop the one-sentence test. For the sake of anonymity, I don't want to get into too many details about the story, but the "plot" was generic enough to share. The story was about a fart that led to a breakup. That was … Continue reading The One-Sentence Test: Do You Have Enough Story?
