“Oh my god, I’m going to burn this manuscript and get a job grooming Guinea Pigs.” Okay, so maybe you didn’t want to become a Guinea Pig groomer. But I’m guessing all of us, at some point or another, have threatened to make s’mores on a bonfire from the worthless piles of paper we thought would be […]

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Revisions are a part of writing, and as much as we wish they'd go smoothly, they don't always work out like we planned. Some manuscripts fight us and nothing we do makes them any better. When we run into such a troublesome beast, it helps to step back and figure out […]

Revisions are done (for now) on my debut, scheduled for release summer 2017. I’m in a holding pattern until my editor sends me the next round to review. Proposals for next projects are with my agent. I’m in a holding pattern until I hear back. For the first time in six years, I’m not actively […]

(And 10 things you can do about it) Kelly Simmons Time and again, through my writer’s mentoring nonprofit work and pitching ideas to writer’s conferences, I hear the same thing:  writers of all levels not only struggle with plot, structure, and craft – but with productivity issues. Why?  Because what works for one writer, simply […]

I’m always amused when friends or family read my work and try to piece together who a certain character is modeled after. My standard answer is, “no one and everyone.” Whether it’s characters or locations, situations or details, there’s always a hint of my life in every book I write. Characters. I'm going to put […]