Book Coaching & Editing Services for Writers of Fiction & Creative Nonfiction
You’ve heard this: You have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince. The same mindset holds true for writing. You have to submit to a lot of literary journals before you find the perfect fit for your story or essay. You have to query a lot of agents before you find … Read More
A friend recently forwarded me an issue of author Leigh Stein’s newsletter, Attention Economy: Writing + Publishing in the Digital Age. The issue was a thoughtful discussion of the need for writers to get into content creation, titled “audience is a business problem you need to solve.” Stein writes, “I believe that writers who want … Read More
Photograph of Juliet McDaniel by Dianna Gonzalez. I recently shared the news my fiction manuscript was selected as the Book Winner in Launch Pad’s 6th Annual Prose Writing Competition. But, as if that wasn’t so much more than enough, I was also picked as one of three Mentorship Prize Winners. What does that mean? It … Read More
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers have more than one tune on the soundtrack to my life and probably yours, too. Their songs have motivated me to be stronger and tougher, not to take any guff, and to go after the things I want in life. Here are some of the things Tom Petty taught me … Read More
Last week I wrote about Celebration Rituals. Writing wins are unquestionably something to celebrate. But guess what? Rejections are something to celebrate, too. Rejections are progress. I know it doesn’t feel like it in the moment, but they are. They mean you’re out there trying. You can’t get a rejection unless you submit something or … Read More
Do you have a special way to celebrate your writing victories? I tend to gloss over mine and keep going. I often intend to celebrate the big wins, but I usually don’t get around to it. And the smaller wins I don’t celebrate at all, except by doing a little happy dance at my computer … Read More
Your book is finished. You wrote that horrible first draft, rewrote and revised your manuscript several times, and put it through its paces: beta readers, developmental edits, line edits, copyedits. You’ve taken that first-draft lump of coal and turned it into a diamond. You’re ready to find an agent. Where do you start? Here are … Read More
I wrote recently about my struggle with setting goals for the new year. Well, I didn’t really struggle with setting the goals—I set about a billion of them. What I struggled with was getting excited about my goals because I had done my usual thing where I get carried away and overwhelm myself. I took … Read More
This year, if I’m honest, I had trouble drumming up much enthusiasm for goal setting—writing or otherwise. I’m generally a goal-setting fanatic, so this was unusual for me. I was excited about setting goals last year. I did a whole, five-part series on goal setting in December 2021. You can find it here. Then I … Read More
I’m celebrating a big win today. Big. Huge. I have to go shopping now. But before I do, I want to tell you about my win, not to brag, although I’m proud of the accomplishment, but because it’s a perfect example of something I want you to know and to believe with all your heart: … Read More