Blog posts for writers - March 31

Character Interviews from All I'm Saying...

I Don't Like You! - Creating Sympathetic Characters* from * Fiction Groupie *

Make 'em beg! at Plot to Punctuation

The supporting cast from Chandara Writes

Is it what you think it is? from Justified Lunacy

The Ally of Process from Book Dreaming - Writing is craft, a skill, requiring practice and patience.

The Writer’s Life: Two Pages Plus by Pati Nagle at Book View Cafe

After the Call, Part II from edittorrent - more things that happen after you get the call

Terms to Know: Abbreviations from Pimp My Novel

Backing Up: Know Your Options by Carolyn Kaufman at QueryTracker

Week’s Links… at Diamond–Yup, Like the Stone - more writing links

CONTESTS

''Dear Lucky Agent'' Contest: Middle Grade and Young Adult (with agent Regina Brooks) at Guide to Literary Agents

Donna Leon's Civilized Detective by Sandra Parshall at POE'S DEADLY DAUGHTERS - win some of Donna Leon novels

Blog posts for writers - March 30

Just write: sometimes, it’s wrong at Arizela's Blog

Play it All from Book Dreaming

How Many Plot-lines Does Your Story Have? from Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers

Story-Colored Glasses by Sharon Wildwind at POE'S DEADLY DAUGHTERS

Your Audience by Lindsey at Elaine English Literary

Great Definition of Revision from Kitlit.com - short and sweet

Query Specifics from BookEnds, LLC

After the Call, Part I from edittorrent

Had your literary vision checked lately? from Behler Blog - an editor's view

what makes a lead title? (Your Questions continued) from Editorial Ass

Hardball, Amazon Style from Writer Beware

CONTEST

half a million and counting! from Editorial Ass - the prize is a first 20 pages crit.

Blog posts for writers - March 29

On Confidence, or, WWDTD? from Bent on Books - READ this one!

Be a Writer from Rants & Ramblings - It's Encouragement Week here

Writing and Waiting by Steven Harper Piziks at Book View Cafe - So the queries have gone out. Now what?

Testing...Testing...is This Query On? from The Other Side of the Story - diagnosing a query problem

Query Formatting from BookEnds, LLC - when email reformats for you ...

Loglines and Your Query by Kathleen Bolton at Writer Unboxed

Insider tips for preparing and delivering a winning pitch from the Book Deal

More on Business Details from edittorrent - about letterhead, credit cards, and websites.

Creating the Breakout Blog: A Platform Guide for the Pre-Published Writer from Guide to Literary Agents

Who Wants to Get High (Concept)?* from * Fiction Groupie *

Say what? from Behler Blog - about dialog tags

Dialogue: Just the Way We Talk? by Heidi Thomas at The Blood-Red Pencil

I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore! from Plot to Punctuation - the power of anger

Medical Mondays: You are getting verrrryyy sleepy... from The word is my oyster

Perfectionism vs. Progress: When Is Good Good Enough? from There Are No Rules

are some publishers "easier" to sell manuscripts to than others? from the Intern

CONTEST

Minor Contest: Who Wears Short Shorts? from No Letters On My Keyboard

POST-CONTEST

The judge delivered his instructions to the jury from The Sorcerer's Guild - one judge's criteria for a good story

Blog posts for writers - March 28

Fantasy and Comedy of Manners by Sherwood Smith at Book View Cafe

Schizophrenics Unite! and It's As Easy As 1-2-3. Unless You're Crazy. from Editorial Anonymous

THE GREENGROCERS' APOSTROPHE'S SOLVED from Help! I Need a Publisher!

My thoughts on book publicity! at Market My Words

Does Your Story Have the “Extraordinary Factor”? from Wordplay

CONTEST

Tahereh at Grab a Pen is having a fun Rhyming Query contest! via Book Dreaming

Blog posts for writers - March 27

Where do Characters come from? at Chandara Writes

The Mysteries of Voice: Personality from Fire and Silk

The Great Copyright Debate by Sarah Zettel at Book View Cafe

Why Yes, I *Am* at a Book Signing Today from Mystery Writing is Murder

Buy for a Good Cause! from Lit Soup - A writer's friend could use some help, if you're in the mood to buy

Author Spotlight and Book Giveaway with S.C. Lang at Step 1: Write, Edit, and Revise.

Blog posts for writers - March 26

First Novel Sales: The Data from Writer Beware

It’s Who You Know by Anna Elliott at Writer Unboxed

“My dance card is filling up… from Behler Blog - about the other editor who also has a full or partial

Slush Pile Queen from BookEnds, LLC

Looking for fresh and new from agent Elaine English - her "eureka" moment

Author Toolbox: The Knife Test by Rachel Aaron at The Magic District

How to establish my own unique voice in my writing? from the Literary Lab

Screenwriting Techniques For Novels from * Fiction Groupie *

Is Your Plot Plodding? Do Something Unexpected... at AuthorCulture - I love this!

World-Building Week: Showing it Off from The Other Side of the Story

If you only knew the power of denial at Plot to Punctuation

Working Visions at Book Dreaming

Friday Five/Marketing Round Up (3/26) from Market My Words

Finding the Right Writers' Conference -- Summer Events from The Blood-Red Pencil

Backing up your writing: Is it secret? Is it safe? from The word is my oyster

Coming in April from Why A? - including contests to come

CONTEST

Publishing Pulse 3/26/10 at QueryTracker - contest is on MONDAY

Blog posts for writers - March 25

Publishing in Five Easy Minutes from Pimp My Novel

Relevant Credits vs TMI in Queries from Gabrielle Edits

Follow-Up to Submitting a Partial from BookEnds, LLC

Should I Hire a Freelance Editor? from Rants & Ramblings

Business Cards and Other Trappings from edittorrent

Now Take Your Functioning Blog And... from Elana Johnson

Get the most out of conferences from Jordan McCollum

Should You Self-Publish? Ten Questions to Ask Yourself from Nathan Bransford

Silence the Beastie Critic in You from Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers

Using the (Social) Tools You Have from TalkToYoUniverse

Balancing Dialogue and Exposition from Elaine English

World-Building Week: Painting from The Other Side of the Story

Lessons from the screenwriters by JC Hutchins at Writers Unboxed

ONLINE CLASS

Story Sensei Characterization online class starts April 5th!

Symbolism Thesaurus Entry: Wealth from The Bookshelf Muse - not a class, but an ongoing series of thesaurus entries for writers

CONGRATS!

RITA award finalist by Therese Walsh, for The Last Will of Moira Leahy
More info: Good News! at Writer Unboxed

Blog posts for writers - March 24

The Name Game at All I'm Saying...

Guest Post: Scientific Proof That Some Character Names Are Hotter Than Others by Livia Blackburne at The Intern

Dig a Little Deeper - Getting to Know Your Characters by Suzette Saxton at QueryTracker

Flawsomeness at The word is my oyster - Love this

The Written Wyrd from Behler Blog - an editor's take on creative spelling

Permission to Suck? Granted at The Writing Spectacle

World-Building Week: Building Out the Rooms from The Other Side of the Story

The Power of Setting by Barbara Samuel at Writer Unboxed

The Iceberg Principal at Book Dreaming

The Scoop from the Agent/Editor Panel from * Fiction Groupie *

Is a bestseller hiding in your academic papers? from the Book Deal

A Spoonful of Sugar from The Blood-Red Pencil - about editing

Writing with class(es) from Jordan McCollum

A REQUEST

Art for Art's Sake needed at The Sorcerer's Guild - any artists in our crowd?

Blog posts for writers - March 23

Hooked on Book Dreaming

To Boldly Give Advice No Man Has Given Before at Editorial Anonymous

How Long? from Rants & Ramblings

The Craft of Writing: Every Character Has A Story by Deborah J. Ross at Book View Cafe

When the Supporting Cast has More Visible Growth Than the Main Character from Livia Blackburne

Opposite of Foreshadowing at Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers

It's a Story From the Very First Word by scott g.f.bailey at the Literary Lab

Craft books: Writing the Breakout Novel by L. Jagi Lamplighter at Jordan McCollum's blog

The overutilization of protagonist names and pronouns--and cupcakes from Getting Past the Gatekeeper

7 Things I've Learned So Far, by James Dashner from Guide to Literary Agents

CONTESTS

win an ARC of Jim Butcher's new Dresden Files novel at Et in arcaedia, ego.

Shadow Conspiracy Photo Contest by Sarah Zettel at Book View Cafe

Workshop Scholarship Available via Writer Unboxed

Guest Blog Post: Grants for Writers--As Diverse As You Are by C. Hope Clark at Writer Beware

Blog posts for writers - March 22

Writing Nowadays: Bad Queries by Steven Harper Piziks at Book View Cafe

Author Platforms at The Blood-Red Pencil

Squinting Modifiers at edittorrent - I know, I'm a grammar nerd, but I love this stuff

Setting Description...Writing More Than Just What You See at The Bookshelf Muse

World Building Week: The Foundation from The Other Side of the Story

What’s in a name? from the Magic District

Knowing Enough to be Dangerous at Mystery Writing is Murder

Mental Health Monday at Diamond–Yup, Like the Stone

Medical Mondays: Don't lick that bridge! from The word is my oyster

Audacity from Stephen Parrish - what to concentrate on

The Law of the Garbage Truck from Life -- a wonderful philosophy

HURRAY!

Happy to Be Nominated, but Winning Doesn't Suck! at * Fiction Groupie * - congrats to Roni Griffin!!!

CONTESTS

Grant Me Ten via Paperback Writer - mostly grants you can apply for

The Harper's Pen Award (2009) Finalists at The Sorcerer's Guild

Blog posts for writers - March 21

Footnotes: 4 Articles on Agent Pet Peeves from Guide to Literary Agents

YA writer lands 2 multi-book deals: How she did it at The Book Deal

Pets in Fiction from The Writing Spectacle

Best Tweets for Writers (week ending 3/19/10) at There Are No Rules

CONTEST

Awesome news and competition from Adventures In Writing

Interview the Author Week! And Book Giveaway! at Step 1: Write, Edit, and Revise.

Blog posts for writers - March 20

Do you have any sacred cows? (Go fish) from Jordan McCollum

Growing as a Writer from Chip MacGregor

Let Them Eat Cake from Editorial Anonymous

DELUDED COVERING LETTERS from Help! I Need a Publisher!

#150- from Query Shark - a query critique by a pro

Blog posts for writers - March 19

Profile Series: Deb Salisbury at 5rivers News, Views and Points of Interest - an interview about me with my publisher

Writing a book? This better be personal! by Lori Devoti at Book View Cafe

what's at stake? by brian yansky at brian's blog: writer talk

5 Query Letter Tips at Guide to Literary Agents

Ask The Editor: Making the Big Time by Maryann Miller at The Blood-Red Pencil

Should You Hire a Professional Editor? by Jane Friedman at Writer Unboxed

52 Qualities of the Prosperous Writer: Number Eleven, Good Health at the Sharp Angle

And here you thought the sky was falling…for shame! at Behler Blog - watch the whole video. There's a reason it's gone viral!

CONTESTS

Contests and Contests and Awards...Oh My! at Book Dreaming

Surprise/Friday's Marketing RoundUp (3/19) at Market My Words - win a free query critique.

Blog posts for writers - March 18

Juliette Wade at TalkToYoUniverse has given me the Sugar Doll Award. Thank you, Juliette! I'm to pass it on to five people and tell ten things. Here are the five (I need to think about the ten).

Lydia Kang at The word is my oyster
Traci at Writer's Corner
Cheree at Justified Lunacy
DaniSue at Revelations of a Smoothie Girl
Laura Diamond at Diamond–Yup, Like the Stone

Onward to today's links ...

What Defines Success? from Elana Johnson - I love her definitions

The Middle Way: A new method of timing your queries from Getting Past the Gatekeeper

How To Format a Query Letter from Nathan Bransford - clear and to the point

Subsidiary Rights and Why We Keep Them from Upstart Crow

Chapter Breaks from Mystery Writing is Murder

Do you use parallel drafts? from TalkToYoUniverse

Protagonist & Climax from Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers - a simple explanation I really like

Clea Simon and Why We Kill at The Blood-Red Pencil

Don't Stick Your Nose In It from Writer's Corner

Story Openings: What Constitutes Significant/Meaningful Action? at There Are No Rules

Prithee, Inform Me: Paying for POD from Pimp My Novel - a poll about paying for POD in a library

why famous authors don't want to read your unpublished manuscript from the Intern

Unofficial CP appreciation day at the Magic District

NEWS

QueryTracker Upgrade - The QueryTracker main site and forum will be unavailable this weekend (March 20th and 21st) while we perform an important upgrade.

Blog posts for writers - March 17

Status Updates at BookEnds, LLC - when you wonder about your query's status

do I really want to be published? from Editorial Ass

When do I want to hear from you? (this is not a trick question) from Janet Reid

Maintaining mental health while querying from Behler Blog - good advice

Q&A 2010—Round Three from Pub Rants - more answers from an agent

Pitching to agents: How to throw a fiction fast ball by Kathryn Craft at The Blood-Red Pencil

Backward Mapping: Arriving at the destination before the journey from Justified Lunacy - good thoughts on plotting, or just planning

Re-Write Wednesday: Onward...No? from The Other Side of the Story

Knowing Our Genre, Audience, and Market from Mystery Writing is Murder

What makes a sympathetic hero? from Plot to Punctuation

CONTEST

i don't want to go on the cart from The Ham-Sized Fist Award - he's trying to create an award for the for best Heroic Fantasy or Sword-and-Sorcery short fiction. Right now he's looking for a new name for the award. Suggestions are welcome.

Blog posts for writers - March 16

First Girl Ever by Marie Brennan at Science Fiction and Fantasy Novelists - thoughts on plots

9 Strategies for Surviving the Second Book by Therese Walsh at Writer Unboxed

Writing Doesn't Love You from Writer's Corner - quotes worth thinking about

“Brainedness” and plotting by Jordan McCollum - verrrry interesting!

Q&A 2010—Round Two at Pub Rants - check out question #4 on re-querying

what if a submission needs more work? (Your Questions continued) from Editorial Ass

Tales from the Slush Pile from edittorrent

Here’s the thing about promo plans… from Behler Blog

The Secret Strength of Killer Queries: Specificity from Nathan Bransford

Self-Publishing, Step One. from Step 1: Write, Edit, and Revise.

5 Traits That Bag an Boyfriend Agent, Courtesy of Cosmopolitan Magazine at The Rejectionist

There is nothing to fear but fear itself… at Behler Blog -- ROFL

CONTEST

I've been interviewed, and I am giving away a FREE copy of my book. at Step 1: Write, Edit, and Revise.

Blog posts for writers - March 15

I'm thrilled to have won a copy of Erin Hart's new novel, False Mermaid, on POE'S DEADLY DAUGHTERS -- Thank you!

“I have a blog” from Behler Blog - an editor's thoughts on platform

Rookie Mistakes from Bent on Books - an agent's thoughts on what to NOT do in your query

Thoughts on Thank You from BookEnds, LLC — A Literary Agency

Common Questions Answered from Rants & Ramblings - thoughts from yet another agent

Things I Thought Were Obvious File #127 from the Rejecter - an agent's assistant

Learning What *Doesn’t* Work from Mystery Writing is Murder

Showing & Telling in Scenes & Dialogue by Jane Friedman at There Are No Rules

Foreshadowing from Plot Whisperer for Writers and Readers

VERY COOL :

Mental Health Monday at Diamond–Yup, Like the Stone -- Laura a psychologist. She has four interesting answers for writers - and will be open to more. She's partnering with:

Medical Mondays! Mental Health Mondays! at The word is my oyster. Lydia is a medical doctor. Have a medical or mental health writing question? Send it in!

Blog posts for writers - March 14

what's a standard submission process like? from Editorial Ass

Being Midlist from Mystery Writing is Murder

Living As a Ghost – Without Having to Die First by Kim Pearson at The Blood-Red Pencil

Kids and a Sense of History by Sherwood Smith at Book View Cafe

PUNCTUATION POINTS from Help! I Need a Publisher!

Making it plausible from edittorrent

TimeTimeTime, See What You've Done to Me from The Writing Spectacle

Sunday Mirthbombs from Behler Blog - the winners of the Bulwer-Lytton contest

CONTESTS

3 Contests via Paperback Writer

Blog posts for writers - March 13

Matterhorn by Janet Reid - this is how she wants queries to read

Resources for Synopsis Writing from Livia Blackburne

More on platform also by Janet Reid

Undermining Our Protagonist’s Perspective from Mystery Writing is Murder

Hearing Voices by Dani Greer at the Blood-Red Pencil

The End. What? It's Not The End? from The Alchemy of Writing

Week’s Links from Diamond–Yup, Like the Stone

CONTEST

Erin Hart Returns with "False Mermaid" by Sandra Parshall at POE'S DEADLY DAUGHTERS - she's giving a copy of her new book

Blog posts for writers - March 12

Things I Learned This Week from * Fiction Groupie *

Gut instinct – you have more of it than you know from Behler Blog

Tell Yourself a Story from The Literary Lab - instead of outlining

Great characters are like origami from Plot to Punctuation

Contest Redux from Kidlit.com - more about beginnings

The Abyss from Books & Such -writing and the hero's journey

Read It Aloud... from Writer's Corner

Friday Five/Marketing Round Up (3/12) from Market My Words - great links

Don't Miss Out! from Step 1: Write, Edit, and Revise. - 50% off her new release

The Ten Best Things You Can Do For Your Manuscript from the Intern

CONTESTS

Reminder: Third ''Dear Lucky Agent'' Contest Ends Sunday! from Guide to Literary Agents

Reminder: Fantabulous Followers Giveaway from Elana Johnson

Reminder: Fantabulous Followers Giveaway from Shooting Stars

Blog posts for writers - March 11

Art, Information, Theft, and Confusion by Ursula K. Le Guin at Book View Cafe

The long and the short of building a synopsis at Arizela's Blog

OUTLINE and SYNOPSIS from Help! I Need a Publisher!

Literary striptease – do you have a message? from Behler Blog

Ask the Editor: Character Growth from The Blood-Red Pencil

The virtue of repetition by Jordan McCollum

7 Things I've Learned So Far, by Libby Gleeson from Guide to Literary Agents

How self publishing can lead to a real book deal from the Book Deal

Thankful Thursday from Diamond–Yup, Like the Stone - Why DO I keep going?

The "Dream Agent" by Elana Johnson - great advice

Only as Much as I dream Can I Be from Book Dreaming - I love this one

CONTEST

New Contest: Pitch Pride and Prejudice, Get Zombies - from Getting Past the Gatekeeper
The skinny: write a pitch letter for Pride and Prejudice and, if yours wins, receive a print of a Jane Austen letter to her cousin, and a signed copy of Carrie Ryan's The Dead-Tossed Waves.

Blog posts for writers - March 10

The Wrong Way from BookEnds, LLC

Friends Don't Let Friends Overwrite from * Fiction Groupie *

Less Is More... from Writer's Corner

Shelf Awareness in Novel Genres and Women's Fiction H. L. Dyer at QueryTracker

Webinar Update from Rants & Ramblings - this looks interesting

Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast by Ann Aguirre at Writer Unboxed

Blog posts for writers - March 9

AUTHOR AGE MATTERS - PS RE KIDS/YA from Help! I Need a Publisher!

Midwifing an Idea into a Novel from Upstart Crow

Research – plausibility from Behler Blog

Productivity and the Muse from TalkToYoUniverse

Writing What You Know, Part II from Elaine English

Flashbacks in Fiction from The word is my oyster

Myth: This Will Solve Everything (part 2) from Writer Unboxed

Guest Blog Post: Content Mills--Why Aspiring Writers Should Avoid Them from Writer Beware

CONTEST

Pyr Celebrates 5th Anniversary With Essay Contest - Grand Prize Winner Embarks on a ‘Pyr and Dragons Adventure’

Blog posts for writers - March 8

Organic characters from Arizela's Blog

Are you accidentally dismembering your characters? from Plot to Punctuation

The writer's relationship to the reader from TalkToYoUniverse

Writing Invisibly from Gabrielle Edits

The End from The Other Side of the Story

Freaking Myself Out from Mystery Writing is Murder - about revising

Writing Nowadays: Querying and Submitting by Steven Harper Piziks at Book View Cafe

TOO OLD TO DEBUT??? from Help! I Need a Publisher!

Kid Ninja by Michele Lang at The Magic District - great advice & love that kid

CONTESTS

Fantabulous Followers Giveaway at Elana Johnson's Blog - Enter to win one of seven SIGNED BOOKS

The Amanda Project - Marketing an Interactive Story (Part 1) at Market My Words - Shelli also will draw a winner

Fantabulous Followers Giveaway from Shooting Stars - You could win a submission/critique from an agent!

HEAVY METAL WEEK!!! HEAVY METAL REJECTION CONTEST!!!! from the Rejectionist

Blog posts for writers - March 7

Three Things To Tell Your Teenage Writing Self by Chris Dolley at Book View Cafe

Writing and Young Adult Books by Sherwood Smith at Book View Cafe

7 Things I've Learned So Far, by F. Gerard Jefferson from Guide to Literary Agents

15 Lessons From the Masters from Wordplay

You Can't Please Everyone... from Writer's Corner

Read an Ebook Week from Book View Cafe - eBooks on sale

Author Spotlight & Book Giveaway with Denise from Step 1: Write, Edit, and Revise.

Blog posts for writers - March 5

Quick Tip for Hyphens and Adjectives at edittorrent

Who is the Robin to your novel's Batman? from Plot to Punctuation

Busted!—Kingsolver caught integrating her setting from The Blood-Red Pencil

Put Baby in the Corner from The Other Side of the Story

Flake-out Friday 3 from Diamond–Yup, Like the Stone - a bit about loglines

Ode to Spell Check by Jerrold H Zar at AuthorCulture -

I Wrote a Novel by Stephen Parrish

Blog posts for writers - March 4

Losing words, gaining meaning from Arizela's Blog

When the right word is wrong from Jordan McCollum

How does one land a job as a literary agent? from Ask a Literary Agent

Submitting a Partial from BookEnds, LLC

NO! SOMEONE GOT THERE FIRST! from Help! I Need a Publisher!

The importance of criticism from Justified Lunacy

Courtesy and Critique: A Plea from The Alchemy of Writing

What Writing and Lying Have in Common from Nathan Bransford

Having What It Takes from Pimp My Novel

52 Qualities of the Prosperous Writer: Number Nine, Saleable from the Sharp Angle

Selecting the Tense for Your Story from The Blood-Red Pencil

thoughts on YA: of xylophones and violins from the Intern

HURRAY!

A Drumroll Please... from The Other Side of the Story

Blog posts for writers - March 3

Tax Deductions for Writers: Guest Post by Pamela S. Thibodeaux at AuthorCulture

Guest Blogger Karen Collum: Lady in Waiting at Literary Rambles

Tips for Developing Character Voice from Dee Garretson from Livia Blackburne

The Elements of Awe by Donald Maass at Writer Unboxed

What’s Unique about the Writer’s Lens from Mystery Writing is Murder

Rejection Lessons from "American Idol" from Market My Words

Time Management, Where Are You? from Diamond–Yup, Like the Stone

How To Title Your Book from Rants & Ramblings

Beware the Silent Critter from Shooting Stars

Re-Write Wednesday: Oh, That's Subtle from The Other Side of the Story

In Which We Uncharacteristically Attempt to Offer You Some Comfort from the Rejectionist

Blog posts for writers - March 2

Muse Medicine: Body Electric from Arizela's Blog

What’s Scary at Mystery Writing is Murder

New and Updated Publishing Dictionary from BookEnds, LLC

how are multiple book deal advances divided up? (Your Questions continued) from Editorial Ass

Two good points from my correspondence this morning from Getting past the Gatekeeper - short and sweet

Archetype vs. Cliche from Nathan Bansford

Living on the Wall from The Other Side of the Story

Secrets Every Writer Should Know About Query Letters at Writer Unboxed

CONTESTS

Contest Announcements! There’s FOUR of ‘em!!! Whee! via Diamond–Yup, Like the Stone

Blog posts for writers - March 1

Kids Contest Winners Announced! at Guide to Literary Agents - Hurray, Lisa Amowitz!

Be Flexible from The Other Side of the Story

Can you see it too? POV conundrum from Justified Lunacy

How much description? from TalkToYoUniverse

Voice vs. writing well by Jordan McCollum

Leap and the Net Will Appear by Suzette Saxton at QueryTracker

Phrasing a First Impression from Gabrielle Edits - about query letters

My brain is popcorn via Behler Blog - eeek! I didn't know that could happen!