Publishing and writing a book is one of the best experiences you can add to your resume. It transcends all industries and career paths because putting a book out into the world is an arduous task. But adding “author” to your resume can’t be the only reason you publish a book—fiction or nonfiction. We have three soul-searching questions every writer should ask before beginning a book project: 1. Why am I writing a book? This is an important question to ask because we can ultimately write a book for the wrong reason. Some of those bad reasons to write a…
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Seasoned writers will tell you it’s okay to break grammar rules as long as you know the right way to break them. Lazy writers often quote that same phrase to avoid learning correct grammar in the first place. I’m a firm believer that you must know the rules before you bend them. So, here’s a trusty list of my favorite grammar rules. Keep them at your writing workspace, so you can easily refer back to the list any time you get stuck: 1. Use “All right” not “Alright.” Alright isn’t actually a word even though it turns up in a…
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Starting to write without any previous writing courses or education under your belt doesn’t have to be a setback. In fact, you’d be surprised to learn just how many successful writers were self-taught. Both Jane Austen and Mark Twain, among many others, largely taught themselves the craft of writing. The difference now is, self-education is much easier to attain than it was for Austen or Twain. This is thanks to the internet and the hundreds of writing books at our fingertips. Here are 5 tried and true resources to use: 1. Bookmark Merriam-Webster Dictionary on your computer By having quick and…
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A trope is any word used in a figurative sense or a reoccurring theme or device in a work of literature. There’s a book writing strategy that involves picking a trending book genre, studying the tropes of the books currently selling, and then writing a book that fits the tropes discovered. While many writers might be reluctant to embrace this concept, you’ll find when you change your perspective on it, it will be empowering rather than limiting. The Market As an artist, some writers might read “write to market” and feel as though they’re being told to copy instead of…