• There are two different camps writers fall into when it comes to how much writing goes into the first draft. There are those who choose a skeleton draft...

    The First Draft: Skeleton Draft or Bulging Draft

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    Just like there are two different types of plotting styles—plotting and pantsing—there are also two different camps writers fall into when it comes to how much writing goes into the first draft. There are writers who choose a skeleton draft, meaning they put the bones of their stories down during the first draft and then use subsequent drafts and rounds of revisions to continue to grow and fill out their manuscript until it’s complete. Other writers aim to put anything and everything down on paper during the first round, which is typically a bulging draft and way over word count.…

  • There are some negative habits a writer can easily develop. Take these last few weeks to refocus on these 6 habits you can remove from your writing life...

    6 Bad Habits to Give Up This Month as a Writer

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    If you participate in Lent, you’re accustomed to giving up certain things—chocolate, social media, soda—in your life during the 40-day period. As a writer, however, there are also some negative habits you should give up, too. So, with the last few weeks left of Lent, refocus on these six habits you can remove from your writing life.  1. Comparison. We all get caught in the comparison game at some point or another, and as a writer, it can be hard not to compare your current writing status with someone else’s status, especially with access to other writers’ lives on social…

  • There are plenty of reasons to re-release a book with a new book cover. Wondering if it’s your book's time? Here are 5 reasons why you may want to update ...

    5 Times to Update Your Book Cover

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    From time to time, you may notice one of your favorite authors rereleases a book with a new book cover. Often when an author’s book is adapted into a movie the book cover will change to match the movie poster. But there are plenty of reasons to rerelease a book with a new cover. If you’ve published a book and are wondering if it’s time to give it a design refresh, here are 5 reasons why you may want to update your published book’s cover. 1. If your cover looks outdated. If your book’s cover is starting to show its…

  • Self-Check: If you’re devoting a lot of time to writing but aren't seeing the progress you want, keep tabs on yourself. Is self-editing slowing you down? ...

    2021 Writing Self Check-in

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    Self-Check  How are your 2021 writing goals going so far? If you feel like you’re devoting a lot of time to writing, but you aren’t seeing your word count climb, then you may want to start keeping tabs on yourself. Is self-editing, as you go, slowing you down? Starting each writing session by editing what you wrote during your previous writing period can eat up a significant amount of time you could have been writing, and you’ll never make large strides in your word count that way. Find a paper planner you can use solely for this self-check. Add in…