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Somewhere, amidst all the interesting happenings of the year, were some great blog posts containing wisdomous words about writing.

As always, I had a hard time narrowing the list to just twelve, but I finally managed it. Here's my personal selection of the best writing-related blog posts from 2018:

DECEMBER
Manipulating Story Time for Maximal Effect (Kathryn Craft)



NOVEMBER
7 Story Structures Any Writer Can Use (Jerry Jenkins)


OCTOBER
Rookie Mistakes Indie Writers Make (James Scott Bell)


SEPTEMBER
Five Ways the so-called “Conventional Wisdom� within the Writing Conversation Can Take You Down (Larry Brooks)


AUGUST
Three Simple Questions That Will Unlock Your Story (Lisa Cron)


JULY
Let No Good Tension Go Unstretched (James Scott Bell)


JUNE
Setting Goals to Finish Writing Your Book (Brian Tracy)


MAY
The First Five Lines (Donald Maass)


APRIL
Skip Those Writing Speed Bumps (Elizabeth Spann Craig)


MARCH
Your Online Presence: 10 Mistakes for Authors to Avoid (Anne R. Allen)


FEBRUARY
Unsnagging Your Plot (James Scott Bell)


JANUARY
It Doesn't Matter Where You Start. Just START! (Shonell Bacon)




How about you?

What were your favorite blog posts from 2019?

If you found these useful, you may also like:

My personal selection of
My personal selection of
My personal selection of

Here’s my latest selection of interesting (and sometimes amusing) posts about writing:

What Really Drives Your Characters? (Jim Dempsey)


12 Character Archetypes You Can Use to Create Heroes Your Reader Will Love (Jerry Jenkins)


The best strategy for sending query letters (Nathan Bransford)


Improve Your Novel Writing: 11 Tips For Newbies (Meg LaTorre)


How to Choose the Right Antagonist for Any Type of Story (K.M. Weiland)


Is It Necessary to Write EVERY day? (James Scott Bell)


Business Musings: Die Hard (Licensing) (Kristine Kathryn Rusch)


The Dating, er, Agent-Search Game (Lisa Lowe Stauffer)


7 Realities of Traditional Publishing (Susan Dennard)

by way of

Manipulating Story Time for Maximal Effect (Kathryn Craft)




If you found these useful, you may also like , and .

If you have a particular favorite among these, please let the author know (and me too, if you have time).  Also, if you've a link to a great post that isn't here, feel free to share.

Here’s my latest selection of interesting (and sometimes amusing) posts about writing:

7 Story Structures Any Writer Can Use (Jerry Jenkins)


Should You Re-Query an Agency? (Rachelle Gardner)


3 Ways to Keep Writing When Times Are Tough (Chandler Bolt)


A Simple Trick to Increase Your Productivity (James Scott Bell)


How to Hook Your Reader in Every Scene (Janice Hardy)


Writing that First Chapter: 10 Do’s and Don’ts for Starting Your Novel (Anne R. Allen)


How to know what to cut from a novel (Nathan Bransford)


How to Evaluate Your WIP and Figure Out Your Next Steps (Mary Kole)


Surprising Your Readers in Every Scene (September C. Fawkes)


What Makes Readers Give an Unknown Author a Chance? (Barbara Linn Probst)




If you found these useful, you may also like , and .

If you have a particular favorite among these, please let the author know (and me too, if you have time).  Also, if you've a link to a great post that isn't here, feel free to share.

Here’s my latest selection of interesting (and sometimes amusing) posts about writing:


The Hack’s Guide to Breaking Up With Your Book (Bill Ferris)


The Up and Down Sides of Critique Groups (Lori Freeland)


In the Beginning: Which Type of Opening Works Best in a Novel? (Janice Hardy)


Three Simple Questions That Will Unlock Your Story (Lisa Cron)

by way of

Business Musings: Expect Failure (Kristine Kathryn Rusch)


Finding the Funny : Five Proven Ways to Add Humour to Your Story (Elle Carter Neal)


Writing the Query Letter: Dos & Don’ts (Heather Webb)


Rookie Mistakes Indie Writers Make (James Scott Bell)


Writerly Procrastination: Why It Happens & How To Break Free of It (Tamar Sloan)


Truth and Lies Within the Collective Writing Conversation (Larry Brooks)



If you found these useful, you may also like , and .

If you have a particular favorite among these, please let the author know (and me too, if you have time).  Also, if you've a link to a great post that isn't here, feel free to share.

I'm looking forward to crossing state lines next week, when I'll be taking part in the by giving two presentations for the .

Sat, December 7th, 2019 NJ SCBWI event (tba)

Sat, October 26th, 2019 (1pm)

Northampton Community College Room 112,
25 S 3rd St Easton, PA 18042

Sat, October 26th, 2019 (11am)

Northampton Community College Room 112,
25 S 3rd St Easton, PA 18042

March 21st - 23rd, 2019

300 Gateway Drive,
Bethlehem,
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How about you?

What have you got lined up in the coming weeks and months?

Here’s my latest selection of interesting (and sometimes amusing) posts about writing:

Scribe Guide to Author Photos & Portraits (Tucker Max)

by way of

Create a Compelling Book Title (Rachelle Gardner)


Re-editing Older Works (Joanna Campbell Slan)

by way of

10 Kinds of Critique Groups that Can Drive You Bonkers (Anne R. Allen)


Creating Your Character’s Inner Conflict: Want vs. Need (K.M. Weiland)


How Realistic Should Your Action Scenes Be? (James Scott Bell)


The Budrys Rule: Three Writerly Sins, One of them Cardinal (Dario Ciriello)


How to get back in the saddle (Nathan Bransford)


Five Ways the so-called “Conventional Wisdom� within the Writing Conversation Can Take You Down (Larry Brooks)


Fiction Addiction: 3 Simple Ways to Make Your Series HOOK Readers (Kristen Lamb)



If you found these useful, you may also like , and .

If you have a particular favorite among these, please let the author know (and me too, if you have time).  Also, if you've a link to a great post that isn't here, feel free to share.

Here’s my latest selection of interesting (and sometimes amusing) posts about writing:

Writing During Vacations (Elizabeth Spann Craig)


5 Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Children’s Book Mistakes (Margaret Meacham)

by way of

Why Every Novel Needs a Sprinkling of Fear (Sacha Black)


Developing an Audiobook: An Indie Author’s Perspective (Ray Flynt)


Why it works: “Treasure Island� by Robert Louis Stevenson (Nathan Bransford)


6 Tips for Finding a Great Critique Partner (Julie Glover)


The Breakout Novel & Why Publishing is Desperate for the Next BIG Thing (Kristen Lamb)


How to Waste Money When Self-Publishing a Book (Nate Hoffelder)


Three Simple Questions That Will Unlock Your Story (Lisa Cron)


4 Major Differences Between Young Adult and Middle Grade Fiction (Hailey Hudson)


If you found these useful, you may also like , and .

If you have a particular favorite among these, please let the author know (and me too, if you have time).  Also, if you've a link to a great post that isn't here, feel free to share.

Here’s my latest selection of interesting (and sometimes amusing) posts about writing:


Turn that Picture Book Page! (Patricia Toht)

by way of

Let No Good Tension Go Unstretched (James Scott Bell)


Understand Your Premise to Understand Your Novel (Janice Hardy)


How to Write an Opening Scene that Hooks Readers (Janice Hardy)


Barnes & Noble SOLD: Goliath has Fallen & What This Means for Writers (Kristen Lamb) [Jon’s Pick of the week]


How to write a good climax in a novel (NathanBransford)


Staying Positive After a Rejection (Tyrean Martinson)


5 Ways to Ensure Readers Don’t Abandon Your Book (Jane Friedman)


How Predatory Companies Are Trying to Hijack Your Publisher Search, Part 2 (Victoria Strauss)


Make Your Setting REAL With Strategic Description (Lisa Hall-Wilson)



If you found these useful, you may also like , and .

If you have a particular favorite among these, please let the author know (and me too, if you have time).  Also, if you've a link to a great post that isn't here, feel free to share.

Here’s my latest selection of interesting (and sometimes amusing) posts about writing:

What’s Your Author Persona? How to Be Yourself Online—Only Better (Anne R. Allen)


When a Writer Becomes a Target (Rachelle Gardner)


5 Ways Writers (Try to) Fake Their Way to Good Storytelling (K.M.Weiland)


Setting Goals to Finish Writing Your Book (Brian Tracy)


What You Can Learn Listening to Audio Books (Polly Iyer)


Tune out your self-doubt—Fiction Therapy (Jim Dempsey)


Saggy Middle? Use Conflict to Nip and Tuck It (Sacha Black)


The Two Basic Rules of Editing (and the Rookie Mistake) (Allegra Huston)


Are You Making Writing Harder Than it Needs to Be? (Barbara O'Neal)


Naming Your Novel: How to Choose a Fiction Title That Fits (Author unknown)

by way of

Beginning Close to the Action (Elizabeth S. Craig)


Lessons From a Revision (Julia Munroe Martin)



If you found these useful, you may also like , and .

If you have a particular favorite among these, please let the author know (and me too, if you have time).  Also, if you've a link to a great post that isn't here, feel free to share.

Here’s my latest selection of interesting (and sometimes amusing) posts about writing:

Beyond Good Writing: Two Literary Agents Discuss What Matters Most (Sangeeta Mehta)


8 Ways to Inject Humor into Your Writing (Becca Puglisi)


Examine Your Turning Points (Janice Hardy)


Leaving a Writer’s Group: 5 Reasons it May be Time (Kathryn Craft)


Writing Mistakes (Savannah Cordova)

by way of

The Morning After (Brunonia Barry)


How to Develop a Great Story Idea (Jerry Jenkins)


The First Five Lines (Donald Maass)


5 Newbie Mistakes that Will KILL a Perfectly Good Story (Kristen Lamb)


Beware Bogus Writing Contests! Look for These 8 Red Flags (Anne R. Allen)


8 Quick Tips for Show, Don’t Tell (K.M. Weiland)


How to Avoid One Dimensional Character (Mary Kole)




If you found these useful, you may also like , and .

If you have a particular favorite among these, please let the author know (and me too, if you have time).  Also, if you've a link to a great post that isn't here, feel free to share.