Warning Signs for New & Independent Authors

April 29th, 2024  |  Season 8  |  11 mins 6 secs

balticon, beta-reading, books, critique, writers, writing, writing tips

It’s a jungle out there for new writers. Do you know the difference between a real publisher and a vanity press? What kind of scams are currently circulating? What rights are you giving away when you sign that contract… or even enter that contest?

7 Ways Writers Handle Rejection

April 22nd, 2024  |  Season 8  |  5 mins 51 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, writers, writing, writing tips

How do you deal with rejection?

13 Types of Responses Writers Get When Querying Agents

April 15th, 2024  |  Season 8  |  12 mins 35 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, writers, writing, writing tips

Otherwise known as "Tales from a form rejection letter connoisseur"

How many of these have you gotten? Any I missed?

Picking a Point of View

April 8th, 2024  |  Season 8  |  6 mins 18 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, writers, writing, writing tips

When you're writing a story, you need to pick a point of view. (POV)
First, second, or third? Close or omniscient? And whose story are you telling?

Drafting a Manuscript Using Voice-To-Text

April 1st, 2024  |  Season 8  |  9 mins 38 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, writers, writing, writing tips

When your words aren't flowing, sometimes that means you should mix things up. Have you tried using your phone and these 5 tips?

The 5 Components of a Query Letter

March 25th, 2024  |  Season 8  |  13 mins 9 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, querying, writers, writing, writing tips

Writing Query Letters seems intimidating, but it's just a business letter. Past the gimmicks and bios, here are the 5 things you really need.

9 Terms All Querying Authors Should Know

March 18th, 2024  |  Season 8  |  8 mins 44 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, querying, writers, writing, writing tips

While many publishing terms are used to mean multiple things, these are a few basic concepts that the industry mostly agrees on.

5 Songs to Query To

March 11th, 2024  |  Season 8  |  5 mins 47 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, writers, writing, writing tips

There are many emotional states that a querying author goes through. So, let’s explore a few of them through song.

Season 8: Trailer

March 4th, 2024  |  Season 8  |  42 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, writers, writing, writing tips

For season 8: I'm back with tips from the query trenches, when the writing gets hard, and craft advice from the pros!

The Day After The End Of Winter (Fiction)

December 25th, 2023  |  Season 7  |  19 mins 13 secs

beta-reading, books, christmas, critique, story, writers, writing, writing tips

For the Christian holiday, here is one of my original stories -- a re-imagining of the origin of Santa Claus. This is an early draft, but be warned, it is not a feel-good piece. The fae drive hard bargains.

Why That Writing Advice is Both Right and Wrong

December 18th, 2023  |  Season 7  |  9 mins 55 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, writers, writing, writing tips

What writing advice is completely right -- most of the time? And when should you break the rules? (Spoiler -- always break the rule if it's not working for your story)

Are You Using The Easy Way to Find Markets For Your Short Stories and Poetry?

December 11th, 2023  |  Season 7  |  4 mins 21 secs

beta-reading, books, critique, writers, writing, writing tips

If you're writing short stories and poetry, it can be hard to find markets to publish your works -- if you're not looking in the right places!