Brian Klems’ The Writer’s Dig

Every story, like every sequence of memorable events in life, has its own chronology; that is, significant happenings with a beginning, middle, and end. As we have said, they may not however be told in that order, which only makes matters more interesting. Embedded in the task of designing a plot sequence is the fundamental question—how will I handle time? Cinema has considerable temporal elasticity. The time element of a story can be greatly manipulated within the film’s actual duration. So where to begin? Read more

If you’ve never tried a writing boot camp, you’re missing out: three days of instruction, deadlines and discipline all wrapped into one weekend that will force you to forward your writing career. And the best part? You can do it in your underwear. Here’s how. Read more

Getting published isn’t easy—it’s hard. The key is to put your energy in the right places in order to give yourself the best shot at landing a book deal. But where to begin? Let us help. Read more

Avoid these tempting traps, and save yourself from the kind of painful revision that can lead your manuscript to eternal damnation. Read more

As much as you’d probably like to burn your rejection letters or mold them into little voodoo dolls of the editors who sent them, don’t. There’s a lot to be learned from the responses (yes, even those that arrive with nothing more than a standard checkbox of reasons the piece wasn’t accepted). Read more

It’s easy to write about what you know, but writing about things you don’t know much about is way more challenging. It’s also more exciting. Here’s why. Read more

Here’s an overview of e-publishing principles and skills, as well as specific services you should be aware of given their current prominence in the market. Read more

Writing a book proposal can be one of the biggest challenges you face as a writer. It’s your one opportunity to impress an agent or an editor—the gatekeepers to publication. That’s why we’ve developed this 3-day boot camp designed to give you a high level of information on how to create (or rework) your nonfiction book proposal to make it more appealing to those who hold the publishing keys. You also will get personalized feedback on your efforts. Here’s how it works. Read more

We love to see characters transformed. Mainly because we are being transformed. Here’s how to craft a memorable character who evolves. Read more

Explore these bucket list items to boost your creativity and take the next step towards your own unique writing life and career. Read more

Learning how to write a must-read query letter is important. By sticking to these 10 specific dos and don’ts of writing a query letter, you’ll give yourself the best opportunity to find success and land an agent. Read more

When trying to get your manuscript published, it’s often beneficial to have an agent on your side. Agents not only have connections within the publishing industry but they also read hundreds of proposals a year, giving them better perspective of what will sell and what won’t. Here are five literary agents currently looking to sign new writers (and where you can find more). Read more

The goal for most of us writers is to get our work published. We dream of the day we walk through our local bookstore and see our name on the cover of a book. While getting published isn’t the only way to validate oneself as a writer, it certainly is one of the most gratifying. It’s also one of the most challenging. Here are your top options. Read more

Here’s a list of everything you should ask about when negotiating a publishing contract. Read more