By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy

Clichés aren’t necessarily bad—they’re just not original.

One of my favorite writing T-shirts says “I avoid clichés like the plague.” But clichés are so ingrained in our day-to-day lives that it’s hard to eliminate them completely from our writing.… Read the post

By Lori Freeland

I went to an art party once. The kind of party where I showed up with friends, a bottle of wine, and zero artistic talent. When I first stood in front of that blank canvas, brush in hand, I froze.… Read the post

Whether you are aiming for 50,000 words written this month (NaNoWriMo) or you’re in the middle of your years-long writing project, middles are hard. You know when you’ve reached the middle of a writing project because your inspiration evaporates, leaving you with a desire to do anything, everything except write.… Read the post

By Kris Maze

In a previous Writers in the Storm blog post, we covered several common filler words to avoid.  This post extends the list of word-culprits, along with searchable lists, to help you self-edit your writing.  Take some time searching for these in your WIP and tighten your writing today.… Read the post

By Kris Maze

When sending out work to an editor or publisher, you will most often need a specific set of documents they will request. Query letter, check! First fifty pages, check! Synopsis, wait what? I don’t know why, but many of us balk at the thought of creating this tidy little summary of our book baby.… Read the post