• a little boy and little girl reading a children's book in a tent at night surrounded by white fairy lights

    How to Write for Kids When You Aren’t One

    - By 

    To write for kids, while often thought of as easy, is more complex than writing a book for adults. The reason for that is due in large part to the specificity of each reading level. A picture book with less than five hundred words will occupy a toddler, but a first grader will better interact with a book that is considered an “easy reader,” and shows signs of a plot and loveable characters. By the time children are in second or third grade, they’ll have graduated to early chapter books, which will need stronger plot points and easy to read…

  • woman holding green hardcover book; what you need to know about the epilogue

    What You Need to Know about the Epilogue

    - By 

    There you are, finishing up the last chapter of your story. However, the work doesn’t feel quite done yet. Somehow, there’s still more to be said beyond the falling actions of your story. Enter the epilogue. All great stories require a great conclusion that leaves readers stirring on the implications of the narrative and feeling fulfilled with their time spent reading. No one likes to be left hanging! What Is an Epilogue? An epilogue is “a concluding section that rounds out the design of a literary work.”1 In layman’s terms, it’s a section separate from the final chapter of a fiction book that helps…

  • mountain laurel in the sunset; finishing your novel

    The End: Finishing Your Novel

    - By 

    By the time writers find themselves writing the ending to their story, they are 80,000 words—if not more—into their story. After months or years of getting their story on paper, writers may feel burned out, ready to be done, and wanting to be onto their next project. The downside of that, however, is that a novel’s ending needs a lot of attention to avoid leaving readers dissatisfied or thinking the writer took an easier route to tie the plot points together. That’s why finishing your novel on a strong note is important. The ending needs to be just as strong—or…

  • An acrylic painting of a green field and a blue sky; 7 tips for discovering your creativity

    7 Tips To Stay Creative

    - By 

    Every-day life routines can start feeling mundane after a while. And if you’re like many of us, quarantining at home due to the current global pandemic COVID-19, life at home will definitely start feeling tedious pretty soon (if it’s not already). It’s important to shake things up a bit to stay sharp and full of fresh ideas. We’re constantly writing new stories and trying to find the next big hit, but after a while, it can become challenging to do something new. In order to raise your level of expertise, authority, and innovation as a writer, you have to become…