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May/June2013 Issue
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There Are No Rules
There Are No Rules Blog by the Editors of Writer’s Digest
Get on the cutting edge of today’s publishing trends and how authors can succeed in a world of fast-paced technological change, guided by the editors of Writer’s Digest. You’ll get an inside look at the work, play, and passion of the publishing business and find practical tools for success.
Building an Enthusiastic Fan Base as a Self-Published Author
Today’s Q&A is with novelist and 20-year Silicon Valley wage slave John Sundman. I first met John when his novel, Acts of the Apostles, won 1st place in the genre fiction category … Read more
Best Tweets for Writers (week ending 9/3/10)
I watch Twitter, so you don’t have to. Visit each Sunday for the week’s best Tweets. If I missed a great Tweet, leave it in the Comments. Want to know about the … Read more
The Evolving Role of Literary Agents
Today I’m a guest interviewee over at Jungle Red Writers, on the evolving role of agents. The incredible Hallie Ephron interviews me. Here’s a snippet: Hallie: Is the agent’s traditional role as … Read more
The Digital Age Has Only Helped Storytellers
Today’s Q&A is with author Eric Rickstad, a novelist and screenwriter living in Vermont. His unnerving novels, stories, and scripts strip back the bucolic veneer of rural America and root around in … Read more
Self-Published Authors Should Band Together
Today’s Q&A is with longtime author and publisher Eric Hammel, who started his own publishing company in the 1980s alongside his traditional author career. Given his 30+ years of experience as an … Read more
Your Self-Help Book Should Not Be a Thinly Disguised Memoir
If you’re writing a memoir, and it’s your very first attempt at writing (or writing seriously for publication), odds are good that you won’t yet be skillful enough to pass muster with … Read more
Make the Most of Your Memory: 10 Tips for Writing About Your Life
Today’s guest post is by Stacey Dubois, a graduate student at Tufts University, as well as an aspiring children’s/YA novelist. For more on the psychology of the creative process, visit her blog.– … Read more
Best Tweets for Writers (week ending 8/27/10)
I watch Twitter, so you don’t have to. Visit each Sunday for the week’s best Tweets. If I missed a great Tweet, leave it in the Comments. Want to know about the … Read more
Don't Annoy People on Facebook
I have a wide range of friends of Facebook—including many writers who are using the site to market their work. While this isn’t wrong in and of itself, some approach the site … Read more
Writers & Publishers Need to Act More Like the Art World
Today’s Q&A is with Dan Holloway, who I first met on Twitter as agnieszkasshoes. Dan is a founder-member of Year Zero Writers, and curator of eight cuts gallery and eight cuts gallery … Read more
Q&A: My Thoughts on Book Publishing Today
Many writers ask me about changes in the publishing industry, how to make sense of the transformation, and what it really means for them. I try to tackle that, in part, in … Read more
You Can Learn As Much From Writing Friends as Writing Experts
Today’s guest post is by writer David B. Schlosser, who attended the 5th annual Killer Nashville literary conference. My thanks to him for summarizing for us the best information he heard. Follow … Read more
Best Tweets for Writers (week ending 8/20/10)
I watch Twitter, so you don’t have to. Visit each Sunday for the week’s best Tweets. If I missed a great Tweet, leave it in the Comments. Want to know about the … Read more
Perhaps the Wisest Writing Advice of All (About the Ones Who Succeed)
At the 2008 AWP, I was sitting next to writer and professor Michael Martone, who was signing Rules of Thumb for students. I don’t know how this came up, but I caught … Read more
Super-Powered Book Proposals Secret #3: Always Evaluate Online Competitors
This post is part of a series I’m writing on how to super-power your nonfiction book proposal. For the majority of nonfiction book ideas (except possibly memoir), you should prepare a book … Read more
The Power of an E-mail Network (10 Years in the Making)
My Q&A with Hyla Molander—on her success finding readers with Scribd—sparked many people to contact me about their success too in using the site. However, even before Hyla, I had met Ransom … Read more
4 Ways to Improve Narrative Drive in Your Story
Today’s guest post comes to you from historical novelist Sara Sheridan, who appeared twice this week at the Edinburgh International Book Festival and is about to join the Society of Authors Committee … Read more
WD Poetic Form Challenge: Monotetra
For this Writer’s Digest Poetic Form Challenge, I’m asking poets to write a monotetra or three. Please don’t stress out about the meter so much, because I won’t. But the rhymes and … Read more
How to Ensure 75% of Agents Will Request Your Material
While attending the Midwest Writers Workshop, I posted a summary of a talk given by Marcus Sakey and John Gilstrap. Sakey advised that query letters, if any good, would result in a … Read more
Best Tweets for Writers (week ending 8/13/10)
I watch Twitter, so you don’t have to. Visit each Sunday for the week’s best Tweets. If I missed a great Tweet, leave it in the Comments. Want to know about the … Read more
I'm Finally on the Cover of Writer's Digest
It’s a tradition at Writer’s Digest that when a staffer departs, they receive the Writer’s Digest cover celebrity treatment. I recently accepted the post of visiting professor at the University of Cincinnati, … Read more
Your Online Presence Can't Just Be a Gimmick (Or: Using Twitter Meaningfully While Unpublished)
Today’s Q&A is with Johanna Harness, the founder of the #amwriting community, which started on Twitter, but this group’s activities extend far beyond Twitter. I find Johanna to be a phenomenal example … Read more
From Self-Published Author to 3-Book Deal: The Story of Kiera Cass
Today’s Q&A is with YA novelist Kiera Cass. I received an excellent tip from 4KidLit that Kiera had scored a 3-book deal with HarperTeen after self-publishing her first YA novel, The Siren, … Read more
5 Ways to Use Book Trailers to Drive Sales
Book trailers are one form of marketing that I’ve heard very few success stories about. So I asked Darcy Pattison, author of The Book Trailer Manual, to share tips on how book … Read more
Online Marketing for Authors: Interactions Are Personal, Not Business
Today’s post offers up a Q&A with Mary L. Tabor, who published her first book after the age of 60. I became interested in her story because of her writing success later … Read more
