Margie Lawson Hmm…  Cold hard stare. Have you read that descriptor before? Maybe more than once? More than a dozen times? What about variations on these lines: She narrowed her eyes to slits. His eyes popped open as wide as saucers. She scowled. He arched a sardonic eyebrow. What happens when readers read phrases or […]

Kathryn Craft   A developmental edit can feel a lot like sending your child to school for the first time. You’ve had several years to exert your influence on his upbringing and must now allow others into his journey. You may be ready to push the little bugger through the school door! Or you may […]

Laurie Schnebly Campbell You’ve heard of the Myers-Briggs test, right? Maybe even taken it for school or work? Maybe even had one or two or 28 of your characters take it? No worries if you haven’t done any of that -- it’s a pretty simple concept, which goes all the way back to Aristotle. (Actually […]

Colleen M. Story If you’re a hard-working writer, are you a workaholic? And if you are, is that necessarily a bad thing? With all writers have to manage today, including consistent marketing, maintaining an online presence and oh, yeah, writing and editing, it’s important to step back every once in awhile and say, “Am I […]

Orly Konig I’ve been working on a story that I adore. The characters are fun to hang out with, the setting makes me happy, the topics fascinate me. And I was rocking the first chapters. You know that feeling, right? Then the brain chipmunks got out of their cage and took off with my brilliant […]