by Laura Drake @PBRWriter I love loglines. There’s no better feeling than pulling together words that capture the spirit of your book in a perfect, compelling way. I teach a submissions class for the Lawson Writer's Academy and find that loglines are a major source of stress for my students. Have you ever noticed that loglines […]

by Orly Konig-Lopez, @OrlyKonigLopez The other day I finished a book and when my husband asked if it was good, my answer was a rather drawn out, “Yeeaaahhhh.” The story was interesting and the author had a pleasant, easy style. She’d done a nice job of showing me what the rooms looked like, what the […]

by Lynda Bouchard

What can an author learn from a pair of Spanx? A lot.

I was in a mall last week with my aunt and, as we walked through the pantyhose department, I noticed that one brand stood out. Spanx.

How Spanx got noticed and the unique marketing of this product is a brilliant lesson for all authors. Small is the new big.

by Susan Spann, @SusanSpann Whether you write detective fiction, romance, historical novels or fantasy epics, a lone protagonist never receives as great a reaction as one with a well-developed supporting cast. Foils serve to reinforce and highlight the hero’s good (and bad) characteristics, and also give the protagonist a chance to shine outside the primary narrative. […]

by Fae Rowen Skimming is defined as a crime. Well, it is. If you skim money from your job, you’re going to jail. Or worse depending on whom you work for. Skimming is also defined as removing floating matter from a liquid. Can you say pond scum? The third definition says, “To pass lightly and […]