Posts Tagged ‘Laura Drake’
Author as Brand in 2021
I was alerted to the following video, and if you have the time, watch it. Totally agree with Alexa Donne: The good, the bad, the ugly. I’m going to address them backwards (because, as with my books, I’ll never leave you in a bad place). Oh, and by the way, this will be mostly slanted…
Read MoreQueries – They’re Not Just for Agents
I’m teaching my Submissions That Sell! class at Lawson Writers Academy the whole month of March (click the link to check it out). When you think of queries and submissions, you think agent, right? But nowadays a query is good for a lot more than that. You can use it to submit to small presses…
Read MoreOptions to Stay Organized
I am a naturally organized person. Before I married the Chaos of the Universe, I used to be able to find anything I owned in the dark! My bookshelves are by author, then title order, and my counters are clutter-free. I don’t get credit for the skill – I came in with it. But I…
Read More‘Meaty’ Stories, and How to Write One
I watched The Dig on Netflix last night, after several writer friends told me it was good. It was, and it got me thinking about stories that you think are about one thing, but are really about something else. Spoiler alert – I will tell the ending! If you haven’t seen it, here’s the trailer:…
Read MoreA Tool to Protect You and Your Writing in Hard Times
Okay, let’s have an honest discussion here. We’ve been at this pandemic thing for over a year now. We’ve been sick, terrified, and TP deprived. We’ve been nowhere since we can remember, and if it weren’t for Netflix, we’d have totally lost our shit long ago. And that’s not even counting the chaos in our…
Read MoreTrust Your Voice
In 2004, Christopher Booker published The Seven Basic Plots. There have been others who’ve put forth other numbers, but let’s just agree; whether it’s six, seven, or twenty, it means that your plot isn’t going to be unique. So what’s the use of slaving away, if someone has already written your story? Ah, but they…
Read MoreThe Edit That May Kill You – and Why to Soldier On
I’m writing a women’s fiction. Again. I’m glad I haven’t kept track of how many times I’ve rewritten this one and I’m not looking it up. because I’m not a masochist. I wrote it the first time. I loved it. My agent loved it. Editors? They loved the story and the secondary character, but not…
Read MoreWhy NOT you?
Okay, no whining in this one. Yes, I know this writing thing is hard. We spend years and sometimes decades pouring ourselves into stories. You sweat, edit, cut and sweat some more. And in the end, there’s no guarantee that an agent or editor is going to want it. Indie? Readers may not like it…
Read MoreWriting Routines for the New Year
I’m not a fan of New Year’s Resolutions. Maybe because, though I’ve made a ton of them, I have never kept one. I mean, saying I’m going to do something doesn’t get it done, right? I’m more a fan of changing my routine to accommodate a lifestyle change. I’m not sure I’m a good example…
Read MoreWriting Inspiration from Dinosaur Poop
Get ready . . . your inbox and social media streams are about to be inundated with New Year’s Writing Inspiration posts very soon. I decided to do my own weird rendition first. I mean, after all, it’s been a year. Here’s what happened so far: After my publisher decided they don’t want more books…
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