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Literary agents can be an author’s best friend. Like traditional publishing in-house editors, they are professionals who know the book publishing industry well, and they are solely the author’s advocate. Bringing an agent on to be your partner in finding the right publisher for your manuscript could be the best thing you do for your writing career.
Trends that were up just before the crisis are down during and coming out of it. Categories that were performing at a low or average rate before the crisis are soaring in the midst of it. The big questions for you, writer, is how do you pivot if what you were writing fit a category that was in demand but now is not as we all mend from the COVID chaos?
Don’t let the blank page intimidating you. With writing prompts, you have the benefit of beginning your writing session each day with a theme, topic, or focus. The goal is that, as you write according to the prompt, you can be led into writing what you need to write. Here is how I challenge the writers I coach to take full advantage of writing prompts…
This morning, my eyes took a B-line to Jim Woods’ article “Do You Need a Website?” I was immediately drawn to his article because while I’m a writer, I also do some agenting. And so, I get queries from aspiring authors almost daily who do not have websites. When I see submission forms come across my email with the website field left blank, for me, that is an automatic pass. I’ll tell you why.
You’ve probably found yourself bobbing between figuring out how to get groceries and everyday living essentials in the house while keeping COVID-19 out, how to help your kids follow their schools’ new virtual programs while trying to meet the demands of work that help fund the whole operation, and praying and watching the news for updates while grieving your own losses and empathizing with others’. It’s a lot. But I am stopping by to say this: your writing still matters.
On Tuesday, March 31, 2020, at 7:00 p.m. Dr. Cindy Trimm interviewed me live on her Facebook Page about “How to Write a Best-Selling Book in Record-Breaking Time.” If you did not catch it live—or maybe you want to watch it again—click the image below to watch the replay. It was fun.
Don’t let the blank page intimidate you. With writing prompts, you have the benefit of beginning your writing session each day with a theme, topic, or focus. The goal is that, as you write according to the prompt, you can be led into writing what you need to write.
Author/writer friend, now more than ever, building your online, virtual, social media platform--your direct-to-reader (direct-to-consumer) relationships--is so important.
A brand new set of writing prompts for your March writing.
Don’t let the blank page intimidating you. With writing prompts, you have the benefit of beginning your writing session each day with a theme, topic, or focus. The goal is that, as you write according to the prompt, you can be led into writing what you need to write.
Just for a moment, close your eyes and imagine yourself fully engaged in your God-given purpose. What did you see? Were you speaking or leading in some capacity? Were you writing books or engaging the culture? How might your life look differently if you became the woman that you saw when you closed your eyes?
A brand new set of writing prompts for your February writing.
Don’t let the blank page intimidating you. With writing prompts, you have the benefit of beginning your writing session each day with a theme, topic, or focus. The goal is that, as you write according to the prompt, you can be led into writing what you need to write.
Food plays a big role in how creative we are or feel, how we feel about our workload or new assignments, and how we are able to focus and stay on task. It is not often that we relate nutrition to how well we write, but when you think about it, many of the things that hinder our writing practice could be food and lifestyle-related.
Happy New Year! Here is a brand new set of writing prompts for your new year, new you writing.
Don’t let the blank page intimidating you. With writing prompts, you have the benefit of beginning your writing session each day with a theme, topic, or focus. The goal is that, as you write according to the prompt, you can be led into writing what you need to write.
Often we use Psalm 100—“Enter His gates with thanksgiving”—or Psalm 136—“O give thanks unto the Lord”—as our main verses during the Thanksgiving season. But this year, I wanted to find something fresh and not often used. I stumbled upon the perfect one as I prepared my company's greeting for the holiday…
A brand new set of writing prompts for your December writing.
The blank page can be intimidating. With writing prompts, you have the benefit of beginning your writing session each day with a theme, topic, or focus. The goal is that, as you write according to the prompt, you can be led into writing what you need to write.
Two years ago today, I stepped away from a pretty nice senior editor position at a pretty nice publisher. I stepped out of a perceived comfort zone into perceived unpredictability. I stepped out of the boat to see if I could walk on water, took a leap of faith to see if I could fly...
I can. I did. I’m still afloat, still flapping my wings. And Embolden Media Group turns two tomorrow.
A brand new set of writing prompts for your November writing.
The blank page can be intimidating. With writing prompts, you have the benefit of beginning your writing session each day with a theme, topic, or focus. The goal is that, as you write according to the prompt, you can be led into writing what you need to write.
A brand new set of writing prompts for your October writing.
The blank page can be intimidating. With writing prompts, you have the benefit of beginning your writing session each day with a theme, topic, or focus. The goal is that, as you write according to the prompt, you can be led into writing what you need to write.
When asking an editor (or agent, if you are not their client) to read your manuscript and tell you what they think, you are requesting a service called manuscript critique or review. With this request, you are pulling on their years of expertise (education, knowledge, and experience) in the industry and asking them to apply them to your manuscript. It is much like going in to see your health care provider for a checkup.
A while back, I taught this in my Pneuma Writers group coaching session, The Write Habit. Our daily writing activities are based around these three activities. The goal is to break your writing into these distinct activities for each piece of thing (blog post, devotional entry, or a section of a chapter--at least 500 words or so) you write during one writing session.
