First things first. What is a media kit—sometimes called a press kit—and why do you need one? The short answer is, it’s a digital folder of documents about your book that can be easily shared with bookstores, podcasters, bloggers, and if you’re lucky, journalists and news outlets. It contains everything they need to know about you as the author and your wonderful novel. It’s like a resume for the author and the book and it also contains high-resolution images of your headshot

The 3-Step Formula for Building a Killer Book Teaser Writing a 110,000-word book is hard. Summarizing it in 150 words for the back of your book is harder. The quick answer is there are three necessary book teaser must-haves: the hook and the character introductions, the stakes, and the promise. Think of an enticing teaser as a sales pitch instead of a summary. It needs to leave a question or questions unanswered so readers will want to buy the book, your book, to find out wha

In Threads of Red, my two main characters, Ellie and Ezekiel are pulled together by the red thread of destiny; the core theme that roots the novel. However, before they can meet—and before Ellie's psychic friend, Kym, blurts out Ezekiel's name—Kym insists on a tarot reading. Although Ellie is aware of her attraction to him, she does not yet understand the depth of their bond. Ezekiel’s name finally bursts from Kym’s lips, yet, Kym has not made the connection that Ezekiel is a

A developmental editor’s job is to evaluate the manuscript’s big-picture components to make sure the story’s elements make sense, are well connected, and will be engaging to readers. Developmental editors don’t fix punctuation, grammar, spelling errors, or typos. They focus on the foundation of the book’s structure which includes pacing, possible rearranging of chapters, and story arc. They specifically target plot and any plot holes, character development which encompasses m

Sixteen years ago I was sitting in my usual spot on the living room couch when an idea for a romance story burst into my mind. Back then it was about a forbidden love. The main characters were established, but the storyline was chaotic—it lacked major somethin’, somethin’. I didn’t care, I wrote anyway. I ate, drank, and slept the images, backstories, dialogue, and unique essences of Ellie Capri Tanner and Ezekiel Larson. I wrote on scraps of paper, sticky notes, and dry eras

There are many wannabe authors out there with interesting ideas for a story, but they have no idea how to begin. Some will mull their...

Purple prose is fancy-pants, over-the-top, flowery writing. Kind of like the sentence you just read. This type of writing defeats the...

Everyone makes resolutions ahead of the coming year. You’ve got your standard weight loss and exercise resolutions that usually fail a...

Congrats! Your manuscript is complete, and you’ve mustered the guts to query agents and publishers. Woohoo! Cue the fireworks and...

Check in for a morale booster, my darlings. No one is positive 100% of the time. That includes writers, aspiring authors, and established...

With a sea of online platforms on the Internet to support, help, and promote authors and writers, it’s a wild and crazy challenge to...

People from all walks of life who are crazy about books can celebrate their love of tomes, have fun, and make new friends by joining a...

The impostor phenomenon was introduced in an article by Pauline R. Clance and Suzanne A. Imes in 1978. If you’d like to read it, the article is titled, The Impostor Phenomenon in High Achieving Women: Dynamics and Therapeutic Intervention. So, what the heck is impostor syndrome? It has nothing to do with wearing a physical mask or costume and posing as someone else. It’s about wearing an invisible psychological mask. This is a condition that leaves a person feeling anxious an

It's always enlightening to visit past posts. Sometimes it's difficult to predict which posts will resonate with readers while others are...

Well doesn’t this sound like fun — creating and casting a magic spell to help draft a book and get it published? Wands at the ready my...

This sounds like a no-brainer. Of course, you’re in love with your story. You wrote it for heaven's sake. Your time, energy, hard-earned...

There are oodles of practical writing tips out there in how-to books, the ether, and cyberspace. Generous established authors are only...

AI or artificial intelligence is all the rage right now in various industries and is making its mark in the realm of literature as well....

Starting something new like writing a book can be scary, but so is staying in the same place. Don’t be scared of the big, bad, book...

The aim of constructive feedback is to reach a positive outcome by presenting someone with comments, guidance, information, or...