Don’t kill your darlings; shelve them (#IWSG Blog Hop)

One of the hardest lessons I had to learn as a new writer was how to be okay with killing my darlings. What I determined was that while some of my darlings warranted murder-by-delete-key, others deserved a less permanent fate. I developed a two-step process to be able to refer back to all the darlings I’ve killed along the way. Click the title above to continue reading.

On balancing and weighting writing advice (#IWSG Blog Hop)

You’re stuck on a question about how to use a writing device, and off to the Internet/library/bookstore you go. Perhaps you stop after article number one, thinking certainly this must be the definitive answer, because this publishing professional has game to spare. She may well, but still your search should continue. Why? Click the title above to continue reading.

Why your ego needs an author community (#IWSG Blog Hop)

Family and friends are great, but they don’t understand author milestones, nor do they understand what it takes to achieve them. And when we fall, they don’t have the first clue about how to help us up. This is why, authors, we need to stock our author communities. Because when it comes to being an author, family and friends a cheerleading section do not make. Click on the title above to continue reading.

Is your next story research light or intensive? #AuthorToolboxBlogHop

The considerations involved in writing either a research light or research intensive story include: whether your research can be accomplished mainly through primary or secondary sources; how accessible the sources are; and how much time will be spent researching. Click the title above to continue reading.

Developing your reading list: a strategy for authors (#AuthorToolboxBlogHop)

With so many book options and only so many reading hours in the day, how do we as authors narrow to the most practical reading list? The logical side of my brain needed a way to sort the options, and the result is my list of eight categories of books (and articles) we should be thinking about when determining our reading list. Click the title above to continue reading.