The Power of Contractions

The Power of Contractions

At some point in life, you learned about contractions, and your world changed. With a little apostrophe, you could suddenly combine two words into one. Then, something changed. After years of saying can’t, don’t, and wouldn’t, you fell back into old...
Use Less Dialogue for a Better Book

Use Less Dialogue for a Better Book

Our world moves quickly. We drive fast cars, fly across the world in a few hours, and watch screens that jump from scene to scene in an instant. Let your characters talk too much, and your book will move slowly. Have a slow-moving book, and you’ll lose readers....
Tab Button: Why Writers Shouldn’t Use It

Tab Button: Why Writers Shouldn’t Use It

You’ve used the tab button for years. It’s how you indent after a new paragraph. But if you’re a writer, it’s time to do away with the tab key. Here’s why to give it the boot and what to do instead. The Tab Key Wastes Your Time If you use...
Farther and Further—Which to Use?

Farther and Further—Which to Use?

You found a way to fit writing into your day. Every day, you’ve been pumping out word after word. Now, in the heat of a writing session, you get a brain freeze. Your character is being chased and needs to keep traveling, but you’re unsure whether she...
What’s Your Point of View?

What’s Your Point of View?

From the great American novel to the billboard by the grocery store, every piece of writing has a point of view. If you’re writing, you can’t write without one. So what is point of view? It’s who’s telling the story—whose eyes the readers use...
Get Your Book in Stores

Get Your Book in Stores

Modern technology makes it easier to publish a book and sell it online. But some people still like buying their books inside brick-and-mortar buildings. To reach them, you’ll need to get your book in stores. How can you make this happen? You don’t have to...