Why Create a Professional Blog? I’m not a tech person. Or a visual person. Or a business person. For a long time I wrote posts on the free wordpress.com site, not even considering a professional blog. But then I had a baby, which meant I was suddenly very intrigued by the notion of making money from blogging. Because every… View Post
The Number One Mistake Writers Make When Querying Agents
When it comes to querying agents, I made all the mistakes… Addressing the query to the wrong agent. Sending the wrong materials. Accidentally querying the same agent twice. I’m sad to say I have done them all. And then some. No, I haven’t stalked agents or sent them gift bags full of glitter and decorative soaps. (Definitely… View Post
SIREN SISTERS by Dana Langer – A Middle Grade Bookshelf Review for Writers
SIREN SISTERS by Dana Langer published by Aladdin, January 2017 suggested age range: 9 – 13 SUMMARY: A soon-to-be siren finds herself responsible for the lives of her sisters–and the fisherman they curse–in this haunting debut novel. Lolly Salt has three beautiful sisters. When they’re not in school or running their small town’s diner, they’re secretly luring ships to… View Post
How NOT to Choose Your MFA Writing Program (And 7 Tips on How to Do It Right!)
It’s a funny story how I chose my MFA Writing Program. Warning: don’t do what I did. (For the 7 tips, scroll down.) I was twenty four and in my second year as a full-time math teacher when I stopped by a little bookstore near my house in Uptown New Orleans and my eyes fell on a paperback… View Post
5 Challenges to Writing a Diary Novel
The first six weeks of my baby’s life I didn’t do any writing except a bit of blogging, but I did do some manuscript swapping with other writers. I managed to read one full manuscript for my writer friend Bethany Veinman, often while breastfeeding. Ironically, her work-in-progress was a diary novel, which is the format of my most recent… View Post