WRITING RESOURCES
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NAVIGATION
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Ideas
9 WAYS TO OVERCOME TOO MANY IDEAS SYNDROME
By Leigh Anne Jasheway — Writer’s Digest
Don’t let your creativity get in the way of your productivity. Here are nine tips for overcoming Too Many Ideas Syndrome. Learn how to answer the question, “How can I stick to just one idea?”
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Imagination
5 WAYS TO DEVELOP YOUR IMAGINATION FOR FANTASY FICTION
By A.J. Smith — Writer’s Digest
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Impressing Literary Agents
WITH YOUR 30-SECOND PITCH
By Austin Vosler — Writer’s Digest
Never miss a chance to pitch your book. Learn how to craft the perfect 30-second elevator pitch!
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Improving Plot/Climax in Your Writing
By Jeff Gerke — Writer’s Digest
Learn four ways to improve plot and climax in your writing by looking at the four components of a novel’s climax, including the run-up, the moment of truth, and more.
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Inciting Incident
By Hannah Yang — ProWritingAid
The inciting incident is one of the most important plot points in any story. A great inciting incident should pave the way for everything else to follow.
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Indie Authors Should Use Goodreads
By Writers Edit
In case you haven’t heard of it, Goodreads is a “social network for readers.” It has a searchable database of millions of books.
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Inhabit the Character You Write About
By Dustin Grinnell — Writer’sDigest
One key to engaging your reader is to give them a character they love to read about.
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Insider’s Guide to Becoming
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER — FREE
By Bob Eagar
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Inside the Mind of a Villain
8 JOURNEYS AND MOTIVES BEHIND EVILDOERS, ANTIHEROES, & ANTAGONISTS
By Dustin Grinnell — Writer’s Digest
Using fictional and human examples, Dustin Grinnell takes a deep dive into how and why evil develops in story and in real life and how you can apply these concepts when writing villains.
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Interlochen Writing Program
DISCOVER INTERLOCHEN ONLINE
Hone your skills and discover new talents in an immersive online experience.
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International Thriller Writers (ITW)
More than 4,500 members in 49 countries, representing over 3.2 billion books in print.
Not yet an ITW member? Join today!
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Introducing Your Characters
8 WRONG WAYS TO INTRODUCE CHARACTERS
By David Young — thescriptlab
Of all the things that you think might hurt a first impression, a bad introduction is definitely one of them.
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Introducing Your Main Character
By Les Edgerton — Writer’s Digest
One of the biggest bugaboos in manuscript submissions is when the author doesn’t properly introduce the protagonist within the first chapter.
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Is There Rhythm in Your Writing?
By Michael Gallant — BookBaby
Rhythm in writing can be hard to define, but the cadence of your story can help pull readers in and make the experience immersive. Try these ideas to help you find your groove.
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Judging a Book By It’s Cover
INSTANTLY RECOGNIZABLE DESIGNS THAT HIT HARD AND QUICK
By Ellie Violet Bramley — The Guardian
Social media is now a vital platform to promote new titles. And that means jacket designs that hit you ‘hard and quick’
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Jumpstart Author Ads
FREE VIDEO TRAINING
By Matthew J. Holmes
Build and launch your first profitable Facebook Ads, Amazon Ads and BookBub Ads to help you sell more books and grow your readership.
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Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP)
Self-Publish eBooks and Paperbacks for FREE!
Get to market fast. Publishing takes less than 5 minutes and your book appears on Kindle stores worldwide within 24-48 hours.
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KDP University Webinars
Watch recorded webinars and read the most frequently asked questions from the Q&A sessions.
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Kill Your Darlings
By Sue Coletta
Good writing involves rewriting. An essential part of rewriting is combing through the first draft and carving out material that isn’t essential. When we edit out nonessentials, we are killing our darlings.
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The Kill Zone (TKZ)
The Kill Zone is home to 11 top suspense writers and publishing professionals. The daily discussions cover the publishing biz, marketing how-to’s, and the craft of writing. Each day, they open the doorway into the world of the working writer.
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Kindle Vella
A NEW WAY TO TELL A STORY
With Kindle Vella, you can self-publish serialized stories, one short episode at a time. Episodes can range from 600–5,000 words. In the next few months, readers will be able to access all Kindle Vella stories in the Kindle iOS app and on Amazon.com.
Your first story is waiting to be told. Share it today, in a few easy steps!
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— L —
Anne Lamott on Writing a Book
FIVE QUESTIONS FOR THE AUTHOR OF DUSK, NIGHT, DAWN
By Literary Hub
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Last Fifty Pages
THE ART AND CRAFT OF UNFORGETTABLE ENDINGS
By James Scott Bell
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“The first page of a book sells that book. The last page sells your next book.”
– Mickey Spillane
Layering Your Scene
THE FIVE KEY ELEMENTS
By Lori Freeland — Writers In The Storm
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Learn WordPress
WordPress.org
Whether you’re a first-time blogger or seasoned developer, there’s always more to learn. From community members all over the world, these vast resources will help you learn more about WordPress and share it with others.
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Length of a Book
HOW LONG SHOULD A BOOK BE?
By Chuck Sambuchino — Writer’s Digest
Everything you need to know about word count and book length for books and novels and memoirs and children’s novels and picture books. This is especially useful for debut and early career authors.
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Let Me Tell You What I Mean
By Joan Didion
From one of our most iconic and influential writers: a timeless collection of mostly early pieces that reveal what would become Joan Didion’s subjects, including the press, politics, California robber barons, women, and her own self-doubt.
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Library Fireplaces We’d Love to Come Home To
By Shana Murphy — BookBub
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Life, Death, and Noir on the Jersey Shore
HEAVEN’S A LIE IS THE LATEST NOVEL FROM WALLACE STROBY
By Cullen Gallagher — CrimeReads
In Heaven’s a lie, a woman’s split-second decision throws her life into a desperate and electrifying tailspin.
When a young widow witnesses a fatal car accident outside a Jersey Shore motel, she’s suddenly thrust into a nightmare of gang violence, guns, and money that she can’t outrun.
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The Limey
HOW STEVEN SODERBERGH SUBVERTED THE CLASSIC REVENGE FILM
By Nick Kolakowski — CrimeReads
An inspired narrative choice and an unusual structure were just the start of what separates this 1999 neo-noir from others in the genre.
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LitHub Radio
A SERIES OF INTERESTING PODCAST
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Live at the Red Ink Series
ON MAKING CHOICES IN A WRITING CAREER
Danielle Evans, Eula Biss, Sejal Shah, and Christa Parravani
By Literary Hub
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Los Angeles Review of Books — LARB
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Lose Yourself in Fiction
WHAT HAPPENS IN YOUR BRAIN WHEN YOU “LOSE YOURSELF” IN FICTION
By Robert Chavez — Neuroscience News
The more people became immersed in a story, the more they “became” the fictional character while reading.
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Love
43 WAYS TO WRITE ABOUT LOVE
By Amanda Patterson — Writers Write
Love is complicated. The emotion covers feelings for family, friends, lovers, animals, and gods. When we write about love, we need to shade the emotion according to the characters and their loved ones.
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HOT LINKS
NAVIGATION
FIRST DRAFT
A-D M-Q
E-H R-S
I-L T-Z
