As a writer have you ever considered how you can learn from another writer’s books? It should be a constant part of your development as a writer and especially as a professional writer. It’s easy to dial it in and think what we did last time is good enough for this book, but I’ve found each book actually gets more …
Four reasons you should read to be a better writer
If you want to be a writer there are a few things you need to do. One is obvious: you must write. Others may not be as clear. You need to be willing to stay teachable. You should be willing to push yourself. I also believe you should stay a reader. Many of the best writers I know read all …
Characters: Slides from ACFW workshop
This post includes the slides I used in the June 12, 2023, Characters: Making Them Unique workshop for ACFW. If you would like to have me speak at your event, please contact me through this form. Resources/books I referenced: Lethal Intent by Cara Putman Across the Shores by Cara Putman, Carolyn Miller, Angela Couch and Kelly Goshorn Beyond Justice by …
Writing Really Fast in an Intense Season
I’m reaching the end of a season of intense writing. It’s been so good because 14 months ago, I thought my writing days might be over. Then the floodgates opened and I’ve written four books under contract in less than a year. It’s been intense y’all! It’s also been really fun. But it’s meant I’ve had to pull out all …
I’m going to be very vulnerable with this blog post. I recently had macro edits staring me in the face, and I couldn’t get started. I had a mental barrier that I struggled to get over. Much of it came from things external to writing, but I had got to buckle down and get the edits done and done well. …
4 Steps for Restarting After a Pause
Many writers work hard on deadline. Then life happens. It could be a pandemic. It could be a busy season with your day job. It could be a season where your children need more from you. It could be so many things. The key is writing gets interrupted. Then the contracts come again. Inspiration hits. It’s time to resettle at …
3 Character Tips We can Learn from Movies
One of the classes I have taught at Krannert is Persuasion & Communications, a class for Masters of Marketing students. One lens I use as I teach these students is the Story Wars by Jonah Sachs. He uses the mythological construct of the Hero’s Journey for marketing purposes. You can watch a short video on it here. Then I transition …
4 Questions to Ask to Utilize Your Backlist
When you’ve been writing a while, you will reach a point where magic happens when publishers return your rights to you. It’s a magical opportunity. It can also be daunting. What questions should you ask before republishing your backlist? @cara_putman has 4 questions for you. Click To Tweet Here are four questions to ask yourself when you’re deciding what to …
Which Comes First: Character or Setting?
In days, I’ll be officially starting writing on two novellas I need to start, draft, and complete before the end of June. Fortunately, each is only 30,000 words, but at the moment I haven’t written that many words since last summer. But the spring semester ends for my on Friday, and it’s time to shift my focus to writing. Which …
