Winter has thawed, leaving behind new growth. For many, it also marks the advent of new life, metaphorically and otherwise. Though the pandemic isn’t over, it no longer seems to be the endless prison that many thought it was mere months ago. Even so, storms remain on the horizon, most notably the vaccine-resistant variants of COVID-19 brewing across the planet.

My personal prospects mirror those of the world at large. With spring comes tennis season. We tennis players have taken a shine to it, what with it being one of few pandemic-approved outdoor activities. However, I have already experienced some…

Thank you for this straightforward guide on performing market research. Such succinct instructional materials are ideal for inexperienced writers. As I've found in my short tenure as a writer, (1) reading is no substitute for doing and (2) one can only absorb and implement a limited amount of information at a time.

As for the recommendations themselves...#2 is fairly intuitive, but brings up the question of contagion; some writers avoid reading comps for fear of it. Would contagion actually be a good thing in this case? I would guess that you are less fearful of narrative contagion than others.

#1…

February is the worst month of the year. December’s hope and January’s enthusiasm have faded, offering only bitter cold and disappointment to many-particularly the ill-motivated and ill-prepared. For the rest of us, it’s time to reflect on our recent behavior as it pertains to our interim and long-term goals. Regardless of how close you are to your desired state of being and doing, there is value in the retrospective-as long as it is paired with a change in direction (where appropriate).

Value Alignment

The first and most important question to answer: do I want to keep doing this?

Now that some of…

If this guide was being sold as a stand-alone piece, I would buy it. As an inexperienced fiction writer, I enjoy revisiting evergreen topics such as this one because I get something new from each author's unique explanation of the concept. Here, you took something that I recently began to understand--the interdependence of plot and character--and added new dimensions to it.

In this case, the value quadrant is the new element. Previously, I leaned upon the Enneagram to construct a varied cast of characters with conscious desires and subconscious needs. Without fully appreciating theme or primary values as described here…

Ever find a new blog — by way of a pithy tweet or a recommendation — and find yourself annoyed by the prevalence of basic information? Except for instances where the execution was poor, I can’t say that I have. I enjoy revisiting such old topics as “plotting vs. pantsing” each time I see them on a new blog. (Not to mention re-reading my old bookmarks for motivation.) If I do it, there’s a chance you or a potential reader of your blog might do it, too.

To this and other effects, it is important to rehash evergreen topics on…

I took up writing as a personal challenge, so the "test" angle really resonates with me, as does the altruism angle--the writing is worth more to me if it can entertain or help others.

The eBook--especially in a shorter form--seems like a natural thing to write because we do plenty of purpose-driven research as writers. Just adding organization and polish could make the research into a marketable product. There's also the opportunity to provide a resource that you think is missing from the market.

I'm currently putting together two eBooks and teasers for each, so this article is quite timely in reinforcing my desire to do so!

As a writer, you know what it’s like to stare at a blank page. For some, the blank page is the canvas of opportunity. For many, it’s the most uncomfortable thing, sans rejection, that one can experience as a writer. It’s an awkward silence that one can only experience alone. Most people fix it by doing something other than writing — usually daydreaming about commercial success. Most people call that procrastinating.

As someone who often proofreads his own text messages, I still have a lot to learn when it comes to writing without inhibition.

I’m guilty of it, too. I’ve…

Fanfiction is something that published writers famously love to hate. The unprecedented ascent of Fifty Shades of Grey from super-niche Twilight fanfic to mainstream pop culture reference has only brought more attention to the divide (not to mention the BDSM community). Yet, fanfic writers and readers persist, undeterred by the scorn. Fanfiction obviously pushes some buttons that other media fail to exploit — and on a rather large scale.

I discovered fanfiction as a teenager in the throes of untreated depression and unrequited “love.” The stories were fairly angst-ridden, but they all ended well, making them a perfect escape. They…