Ella Joy Olsen Libraries are magical places. At least they always have been for me. As a child I wanted lots of stuff – an unending supply of Bubblicious, a puppy, checkerboard Vans, eyes that didn’t need glasses – and I managed to collect only a few, except when we went to the library. I was […]

Amy E. Reichert Hi, my name is Amy and I’m a writer—a writer on a deadline. You can identify me by the slightly greasy hair piled on top of my head, coffee stains on my well-worn t-shirt, and yoga pants streaked with Cheetos dust. I keep irregular hours and have earned the circles under my […]

Susan Spann Copyright law can be confusing for authors, especially when it comes to issues like when (and whether) to register copyright in a manuscript, and what to do if you use a pseudonym. While authors need to understand the basics of copyright, myths and disinformation abound (especially on the Internet). Today, let’s take a look […]

Last week I talked about my problem with Empty Story Nest Syndrome. Let’s not confuse ‘no WIP’ with ‘no story ideas’ though. That brings me to today’s topic -- story squirrels. You know, the “ouuuu, shiny” idea that tries to muscle out the others. See, in addition to suffering from ESNS, I’ve developed a rather […]

Chuck Sambuchino GIVEAWAY: In two weeks time, Chuck will pick three random commenters from this post to win his book, 2016 Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market. Simply comment to win. Good luck! I love talking to debut authors. They’ve just been through the difficult process of getting a first book published, and are oftentimes full of knowledge concerning […]