History demonstrates time and again that it takes roughly 10,000 hours (or a million words, depending on who we listen to) to reach the status of true artist and masters of our craft.
Category: Writing Tips
Sep 10 2013
5 Misconceptions About Your Story’s “Normal World”
Yes, today I have a guest post. KM and I go way back. We did prison time together. By the way glue-guns CAN get you in legal trouble and our lawyers have advised we not say anything more. But, she knows her stuff about story structure and that’s an area many of us struggle with…along with a compulsion to use a glue-gun, glitter and pipe-cleaners to “spruce up” the IRS satellite offices. Okay, shutting up now.
Sep 06 2013
Tips to Make Us Stronger Authors—Both Fiction & Non-Fiction—Part 2
Whether we are writing non-fiction or fiction, this is imperative. There are people out there who have nothing better to do than tear others down. Yes, I’m excited to now be blogging for The Huffington Post. It was a wonderful promotion as NF expert. Yet, a new level, new devil. I can’t moderate comments, and it didn’t take long to get the comment bashing me for using the word “Awesome.”
Sep 05 2013
Tips to Make Us Stronger Authors—Both Fiction & Non-Fiction
For those confused, Wordpress has been possessed this week and for some reason published some notes I’d saved in a DRAFT. Sorry for the confusion.
Becoming a non-fiction author has a number of steps. After having written both fiction and non-fiction, I don’t think one is easier than the other. There are unique challenges to both. Yet, I will say that even novelists can benefit from the same tactics employed by good NF authors.
Aug 26 2013
The Seven Deadly Sins of Prologues
To prologue or not to prologue? That is the question. The problem with the prologue is it has kind of gotten a bad rap over the years, especially with agents. They generally hate them. Why? In my opinion, it is because far too many writers don’t use prologues properly and that, in itself, has created its own problem.











