3 Rules on Writing About Your Family
Every person has a unique life path and therefore an interesting tale to share, and yet so many of us struggle with whether or not we have the right to tell our stories. We are silenced by the fear upsetting others, especially our family, in writing our truth. This guest post...
Crazed Fan
You’re sitting at the breakfast table one morning, looking at the top news stories while drinking your coffee. The top story this morning is a crazy fan who was arrested for breaking into a local bookstore and stealing all of YOUR books! He’s quoted as saying “I just want to be...
7 Things I’ve Learned So Far, by Stephanie Feldman
BY STEPHANIE FELDMAN 1. If you’re doing it right, the writing never gets easier. I sat down to write my second novel with a naïve optimism. I’ve done this before, I thought, and along the way I’ve learned so much about how fiction works and how I write.
Lay vs. Lie (vs. Laid)
Here's the difference between lay vs. lie, along with "lay lie" examples and a simple chart that breaks it all down and will make it easier for you to know when to use each.
6 Tips on Writing for Children
I hadn’t read a children’s novel in an embarrassingly long time when I landed my first deal to write exactly that. Naturally, I went into it with all kinds of notions as to what writing for children entailed. Things like: don’t be too scary, use simpler language, write about whatever it...
Night at the Museum
You hide in the museum bathrooms until the building is closed and everyone is gone. What is the first thing you do? Do you touch everything you possibly can or go exploring in the back rooms? Don’t forget to watch out for security guards!
Thrilling Agents & Editors with Your First Pages of Your MG/YA Novel – Webinar with Jodell Sadler and Leslie Shumate
Make a great first impression. You only have a few pages to thrill an editor or agent, which is why you need all the instruction you can get on firsts: pitch, line, hook, paragraph, pages and chapter. What does an editor and agent prefer when it comes to these firsts? Your attention...
Get Past the Slush Pile: Live Critiques – Webinar with Jeff Kleinman & Molly Jaffa
In this live 90-minute webinar, literary agents Jeff Kleinman and Molly Jaffa will be critiquing query letters and first pages live (including yours). It all happens at 2 p.m., EST, Thursday, July 9, 2015, and lasts 90 minutes. Find out more and register here.
How to Blog Meaningfully and Grow Your Audience – Webinar with Jane Friedman
In this live 90-minute webinar — titled “How to Blog Meaningfully and Grow Your Audience” — publishing industry guru Jane Friedman covers the best practices of worthwhile blogging and how it can make a difference to the growth of your author career.
Doomed Love
“I wasn’t planning on this. Falling in love with you was the last thing I wanted. Because I know our time would have to come to end. Yet, here I am, begging you not to turn the page.” Who is the speaker and who is the speaker talking to? Finish the...
The Mysterious Call
Your phone rings in the middle of the night. An indiscernible voice speaks: “There is a car waiting for you outside your house. Get inside. You don’t want to ignore this.” Your spouse rolls over, eyes squinting, and says, “Everything okay?” What happens next?
From Random Page to Story
Grab the book, magazine, or newspaper nearest you and open up to a random page. Start your story with the first line at the top of the page and end your story with the last line at the bottom of the page.
The Anatomy of a Query Letter – Webinar with Kate McKean
In this live 90-minute webinar — titled “The Anatomy of a Query Letter: What to Put Where, When, and Why” — instructor and literary agent Kate McKean will show you how to catch a reader's eye with a clean, precise, and interesting query letter.
Rude Awakening
“Get up. That’s right you, with the face. GET UP.” After the boot roughly hits your side you groggily wake up. You remember the bomb, yes the bomb you had to deactivate. That would be your top priority but your captor has a knife and your hands are bound. What do...
Writer’s Digest Article Index 2014
All feature articles and columns published in Writer’s Digest during 2014 are indexed by topic. Abbreviations for regular columns: Inkwell—IW; Meet the Agent—MTA; Breaking In—BI; Questions & Quandaries—QQ; Your Story—YS; Standout Markets—SM; Conference Scene—CS; Reject A Hit—RAH Writer’s Digest Article Index 2014 Conferences “Conference Scene (Create Something Magical Writers & Readers...
The Story Building Collection + 40% OFF Sale Today Only
Today we’re having a One-Day-Only 40% OFF Sale on nearly everything in our shop using the code TAKE40MORE. That's on top of other discounts. I highly recommend using it on our Story Building Collection. Here's why.
Create an Author Website in 24 Hours or Less – Webinar with Jane Friedman
In this two-hour intensive live webinar — titled “Create an Author Website in 24 Hours or Less” — publishing expert Jane Friedman focuses on the simplest, most robust, and FREE tools to get a site up and running in a day or less—often in one evening!
Writing the Classic Picture Book – Webinar with Jodell Sadler and Allison Moore
In this live 90-minute webinar instructor (and literary agent) Jodell Sadler and instructor (and editor) Allison Moore, Assistant Editor at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, share their tips on preparing your manuscript for publication. BONUS: Get your picture book manuscript critiqued!
Creation Simulator
As you close your eyes you feel as if you’re being lifted. Yes, higher and higher until you decide to open your eyes. You see a vast world before, one new to your eyes. A voice booms out: “This is yours now, craft it well.” How do you shape this world?...
4 Tips on Balancing Your Writing Life vs. Your Personal Life
Choosing writing as a career provides one of the most important keys to achieving work-life balance: flexibility. For the most part, writers decide when to write, what to write, where to write, and how much to write. Though we may work the same amount of hours as those in traditional office/commute/matchy...
The Center of Things
Ah the freedom of flight, the weightlessness of free-fall. Doesn’t it feel wonderful? Well it would if you weren’t launching at maximum velocity towards a gaping hole that leads to the center of the earth. Why are you going there? What’s going on?
7 Reasons Writing a Book Makes You a Badass
I've always been a big nerd. But for one shining moment, one GLORIOUS MOMENT, when I finished writing my book, OH BOY, YOU'RE HAVING A GIRL: A Dad's Survival Guide to Raising Daughters, I felt like a complete and utter badass. Here's why.
WD Editors Are Writers Too: Meet Baihley Grandison, Assistant Editor of Writer’s Digest
All the editors on Writer’s Digest staff aren’t just 9-5 editors, we are also writers and storytellers—which is why we are so passionate about writing and publishing. “WD Editors Are Writers Too” is a column on this blog to give you a sneak peek at the folks who lead the WD...
Be Careful Out There
"Be careful out there," your mom said as you grabbed your duffel bag and headed on a camping trip with friends. "You know that tonight is the anniversary, don't you?" You nodded, then shut the door behind you before getting in the car and taking off.