novel

In Which Herman Melville Seeks Critique in an Internet Forum
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In Which Herman Melville Seeks Critique in an Internet Forum

There’s an online writing activity I like about as much as having someone else floss my teeth—posting the first line of a story in internet forums to receive critique from whoever’s willing to help. This practice is common on Reddit; I’ve also seen these threads in Facebook groups that are otherwise valuable places for writers…

Writing Spooky Stories
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Writing Spooky Stories

People love spooky stories, from cozy-creepy to hard-core horror. As a reader, it’s exciting to see how people react when put in danger, to indulge our curiosity without real world consequences, to experience fear from a safe place. As with humor, horror works by subverting the familiar. In comedy that might come from an insertion…

The Mother-Daughter Book Club #4—The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Piranesi, and Notes on an Execution
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The Mother-Daughter Book Club #4—The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Piranesi, and Notes on an Execution

My daughters and I enjoy reading together and this post is one in a series about the books we’ve read and what we thought about them. Here are links to the other Mother-Daughter Book Club posts— The Mother-Daughter Book Club #1: The Fifth Child; After Dark; This is How You Lose the Time WarThe Mother-Daughter…

How to Promote Your Book to Book Clubs, Libraries, and Bookstores: An Interview with Author Kimberly Nixon

How to Promote Your Book to Book Clubs, Libraries, and Bookstores: An Interview with Author Kimberly Nixon

Whether you’re a traditionally published or self-published author, you’re going to have to promote your book on your own time and your own dime, for the most part. There are exceptions, but plan on being your own marketer. For the past year or so I’ve been watching Kimberly Nixon do a heck of a job…