Ghostwriting Trends: A Report from the Gathering of the Ghosts in New York City
Ghostwriters, whose literary contributions have often been made in secret, are creating more community and visibility for their work.
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5 Ways to Make a Writing Retreat “Pay Off”
If you’d love to go on a writing retreat but worry about whether the investment will “pay off,” here are five ways to reap rewards.
Beyond BICHOK: How, When and Why Getting Your Butt Out of the Chair Can Make You a Better Writer
While you can’t publish a book without sitting down to write, there are many times when we can gain insight by looking away from our work.
Confronting Sophomore Syndrome as a Published Author
On the release of her sophomore novel, one year after her debut, a writer reflects on what she’s learned about the business of authorship.
Avoid Random Acts of Content
One way to cultivate a loyal audience is by sharing compelling content, but it’s important to understand the needs of your target audience.
To Get on Podcasts, Create a Media Kit
This excerpt from the new book How to Get on Podcasts by Michelle Glogovac focuses on the importance of creating a basic media kit.
How to Write Realistically About Drug Use in Your Novel
A new book, The Grim Reader, helps authors understand how to write convincingly about drugs and their use.
The Über Skill for Writers
By paying attention to how you are impacted by story, you can learn to trace those effects back to the techniques that elicited them.
December 2023 Bestseller Lists
Three distinctive monthly bestseller lists: top 50 hidden gems, top 50 self-published ebooks, and top 50 self-published print books.
4 Things Every YA Writer Should Know About Teens
A good novel has everything teen brains are primed to crave—excitement, emotion, and escape.
Your Substack Isn’t For Everyone
To ensure you’re giving value to your audience, make sure you know who your newsletter is for and what they get from it.
Researching the Right Literary Agents for You
When seeking an agent, it helps to research what they’ve actually repped and sold versus what they claim they’re looking for.
New Publishers and Agents in 2023
A roundup of new publishers, imprints, and agents announced in 2023, as covered in The Hot Sheet.
Add a Luke Skywalker Moment: Give Your Main Character a Bitter Choice
For a memorable story, give your main character a strong motive, a flaw, and a series of escalating decisions leading to an impossible choice.
Why Do Publishers Close Imprints?
Insufficient sales are the primary reason that imprints close, in addition to greater efficiency and even corporate politics.
November 2023 Bestseller Lists
Three distinctive monthly bestseller lists: top 50 hidden gems, top 50 self-published ebooks, and top 50 self-published print books.
Agents and Editors Aren’t Always Right About Market Potential
It doesn’t bode well for the publishing industry’s future when acquisition decisions are based solely on an author’s past sales history.
Journals and Dreams: The Unsung Heroes of Literature
Like a pot of broth simmering on the stove, the contents of our journals nourish us and provide the basis for countless delicious creations.
What Sleeping With Jane Eyre Taught Me About Pacing
Going too fast is one of the biggest mistakes storytellers make. When you arrive at a moment readers have been waiting for, slow things down.
Announcing the Hot Sheet Bestseller List
In partnership with Bookstat, we’re thrilled to offer three bestseller lists that showcase what’s selling outside of the Big Five publishers.
Writing a Really Short Book Description Is Harder Than It Looks
A well-crafted book blurb gives us just enough to care, to empathize with the protagonist’s plight, and leaves us wanting just a bit more.
One Well-Chosen Detail: Write Juicy Descriptions Without Overwhelming Your Reader
It takes practice to write immersive descriptions that draw readers in, without going overboard and risking boredom or loss of attention.
Embrace Your True Subject: A Writer’s Case Study in Running from (and Returning to) Herself
An author considers how we often try to turn ourselves into other kinds of writers instead of following our internal compass.
How High Stakes Keep Readers (and Viewers) Invested
Shonda Rhimes’s Netflix series is a master class in amping up stakes and keeping viewers invested in the characters’ outcomes.
3 Common Fears of Hiring a Freelance Editor
Today’s post is excerpted from How to Enjoy Being Edited: A Practical Guide for Nonfiction Authors by editor Hannah de Keijzer.
Creative Planning for Authors and Poets
Creative planning is the act of mapping out where you are, where you want to go, and how you are going to process today’s challenges.
How to Read (and Retain) Research Material in Less than Half of Your Usual Time
Too many books and not enough time? One author learns that speed-reading print and audiobook versions simultaneously can enhance retention.
How to Turn an Essay into a Book Deal
In marketing, “proof of concept” means testing an idea for sales potential before going all-in. Here’s how to apply that to your book.
Earn Six Figures as a Writer With This One Weird Trick
Literary citizenship—freely sharing your knowledge with those in need—can reap substantial rewards for authors and editors.
What to Expect When You’re Expecting a Parade
All hail the newly published author—or not. When your book’s released but there’s no parade or marching band, here are some other takeaways.
First-Page Critique: How to Elegantly Reveal Character Motivations
Evocative scene-setting can be wonderful, but be careful of letting it get in the way of your story’s action and momentum.
How to Use Brain Waves to Enhance Your Writing Practice
Make the most of your writing practice by understanding which brain waves are active during the day and best support specific writing tasks.
Why I Prefer to Read Fiction without Lessons or Messages
As with abstract painting, fiction can find worth in technique rather than specific meaning—emphasizing not the What, but the How.
What It Means to Make Your Story Relatable
When author and readers have little in common, what makes writing relatable? A teacher examines Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird to find out.
Amazon’s Orange Banner: The Anticlimax of Achievement
The euphoria of hitting the top spot on Amazon can quickly give way to the realization that it hasn’t fundamentally changed much at all.
How Connected Settings Give Your Fiction Emotional Depth
To create unforgettable scenes, purposefully choose settings that trigger character emotions, intensify conflicts, or evoke specific moods.
How Can I Set Aside the Cacophony of Writing Advice and Just Write?
Writing advice is everywhere—newsletters, podcasts, workshops—and it can leave you feeling anxious and unproductive. Here’s what to do.
How to Create Character Mannerisms from Backstory Wounds
To be vivid on the page, each character you write should display life-long emotional responses to wounds that occurred in their past.
The Flashback: A Greatly Misunderstood Storytelling Device
Flashback can be a potent tool for presenting essential backstory, as long as you apply it without interrupting the story’s forward momentum.
Get Started With Dictation: Choosing the Best Techniques and Tools for You
One author shares what she’s learned about using voice dictation to write in any setting: on a walk, washing the dishes, even lying in bed.
The Other Pitch Packages Authors Should Prepare
When soliciting blurbs or appearances on podcasts, its important to convey—in just a few lines—what you and your writing are about.
Is It Worthwhile to Write My Memoir, Especially If a Publishing Deal Is Unlikely?
An experienced author of advanced age considers the value of tackling a memoir with resonant themes but a challenging road to publication.
Media Training for Authors: 6 Ways to Become a Go-To Expert
Advice on getting your foot in the door as an on-air expert, from someone who spent two decades booking authors for TV appearances.
3 Ways to Use Theme to Deepen Your Story
Identifying and bolstering your story’s theme can develop a layered narrative that resonates with readers on conscious and subconscious levels.
How Can You Tell If You’re Starting Your Story in the Right Place?
To make readers care, you generally need to get three things on your novel’s opening pages before the inciting incident arrives.
Finding the Funny: 8 Tips on Writing Humor
This author didn’t think of herself as a humor writer until her readers told her otherwise, so she dug into what makes her work funny.
I Received Conflicting Advice on My Query Letter. What Now?
When a query letter receives conflicting feedback from professionals, how does an unpublished writer decide what to believe?
The Hallmarks of a Bad Argument
Many people argue using bad-faith tactics. Much more difficult is to engage the best ideas we disagree with, and explain our opposition clearly.
Does Your Multiple Storyline Novel Work? Questions to Ask Yourself
Whether you’re a plotter, a pantser, or something in between, a little planning can help prepare you for the challenges of writing multiples.