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Seamless Self-Editing––Part IV
Posted on March 9, 2016 Leave a Comment
Getting published traditionally is difficult. Publishers look for ways to disqualify submissions. Small publishers are more likely to accept a manuscript from a previously unpublished author, yet they are the ones who require “publish-ready” submissions. Possibly because their small staff doesn’t have time to edit a novel––or they only accept from the best of the […]
Seamless Self-Editing—Part I
Posted on February 17, 2016 Leave a Comment
You hear it more and more these days. Your manuscript must be “publish-ready” in order for it to be considered. Click to Tweet What does “publish-ready” mean? #amwriting #publish-ready #self-editing For the next few blog posts, we’ll look at this and how you can improve your raw writing into something closer to “publish-ready.” I’ll be […]
Writing Resource—Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript—Part III
Posted on January 6, 2016 Leave a Comment
This week, I’m continuing my series on tips for novel synopsis formatting. Here’s the only place you can “tell” rather than “show.” Click to Tweet #amwriting #synopsis
Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript – Part II
Posted on December 30, 2015 Leave a Comment
This week, I’ll begin a series of posts based on this resource. Even though it’s six years old, it’s still a great place to start. Since I’m a fiction writer, I’ll deal with Chapter 5: Novels. I recently re-posted from February, the first article from this resource that discussed cover letters. Today, let’s talk synopsis. […]
Christian Writer’s Market Guide—Part III
Posted on December 9, 2015 Leave a Comment
This week, I’ll give you hints on formatting, from this resource. Jerry Jenkins wrote this section on Writer’s Helps. This one’s called “Keys to Professional Formatting.” What’s the big deal about formatting? One word: professionalism Click to Tweet #amwriting #formatting
Surprises for Meghan’s Choice
Posted on October 28, 2015 Leave a Comment
Until last week, often I would feel that my novel, “Meghan’s Choice” would never be published. I wanted to give up. Sometimes I still feel that way. After all, with nine rejections (that felt like 90) in one year, it was difficult at times to not feel discouraged. But between March 2014 and May 2015, […]
Show and Tell — Part II
Posted on September 9, 2015 Leave a Comment
Self-Editing for Fiction Writers By Renni Browne & Dave King Second Edition I started this series last week because of a discussion amongst a few fellow fiction writers, none of us, I might add, are published. I think one of us had some sort of writing training years ago in a traditional college setting. My […]
Writing Emotional Pain—Part II
Posted on September 8, 2015 Leave a Comment
I’m reposting this, (with some editing) because it’s been nearly a year. I really did try to not “bleed” on you, but I did, didn’t I? Well, here’s the update. Yes, “Meghan’s Choice” has been rejected nine times within about a year and a half (four publishers, three contests, and two agents). I’ve healed from […]
Show vs. Tell — Part I
Posted on September 2, 2015 Leave a Comment
Self-Editing for Fiction Writers By Renni Browne & Dave King Second Edition I was recently in a small group of writers and we were discussing show and tell. Or should I say show vs. tell. The old way of writing was tell, describe, narrate. The new way of writing is scenes, show, illustrate with words. […]
Plot Patterns—Part IV Power & Allegory
Posted on August 26, 2015 3 Comments
The last few weeks we’ve been looking at plot patterns as outlined in James Scott Bell’s Plot & Structure. This week, we’ll wrap up plot systems with Power and Allegory. #plotting #plotpatterns Click to Tweet To access previous posts, click here.
Donna L.H. Smith 