Link Feast For Writers, vol. 49 – Setting Special

Here’s your round of writing, book marketing and other interesting links. My apologies for missing weeks. I’ve been really busy with work and family.

Next Link Feast is due in two weeks, on Friday 21st of July. Because of work schedules I’m moving Link Feasts permanently for later weekday.

Enjoy the links. And please leave a comment. I’d love to hear what kind of links would be most useful to you right now 🙂

 

On Writing

Why Good Writers Sometimes Give Bad Advice? by Lisa Cron

To get the answers we need, we must ask the Right Questions by Jennette M. Powell

Authors: How Are You Backing Up Your Manuscripts and Business Files? by D.D. Scott

The Weirdest Story Ideas Come From Your Own Obsessions by Kelly Link

Pinterest: The Ultimate Writing Excercise by Shannon at DuoLit

Write Your Novel Step by Step by Melanie Anne Phillips

10 Traits of Great Protagonists by Janice Hardy

How to Prevent Predictable Plots by Noelle Sterne

Families: Google+ Worldbuilding Hangout by Juliette Wade

Why the Hero’s Journey Is a Tourist Trap by Lisa Cron

Figuring Out Your Story’s Turning Points by Jenny Hansen

How to Structure Your Story, Part 11: The Spiritual Crisis by Matt Bird

How to Structure Your Story, Part 12: Proactive Pursuit of the True Goal by Matt Bird

How to Structure Your Story, Part 13: The Timeline Is Unexpectedly Moved Up by Matt Bird

Setpiece Scenes: The Unlimited Production Budget by Alexandra Sokoloff

The 7 Essential Questions of Plot – Do You Ask Them? by Jenny Hansen

10 Things Your Opening Chapter Should Do:  A Check-List for Self-Editing by Anne R. Allen

Once More With Feeling by Shannon Donnelly

“Deepening” In to a Scene of Oppression by Juliette Wade

Make It Stick: The Art of Chapter Ending by Tiffany Reisz

Different Voices In Your Narrative by Juliette Wade

How to Write Characters Who Don’t Sound Like You by Janice Hardy

4 Most Common Mistakes Fiction Editors See by Victoria Mixon

How I Self-Edit My Novels: 15 Steps From First Draft to Publication by K.M. Weiland

Using a Critique Checklist, or, How Not To Look Like a Twit by Becca Puglisi

Create a Style Sheet For Your Manuscript by Rachelle Gardner

Should Authors Write Bad Book Reviews by Kristen Lamb

Is It Fair For Authors to Review Other Authors: Do We Ruin the Magic? by Kristen Lamb

 

Settings and World Building

10 Questions to Ask When Choosing Your Setting by Janice Hardy

Setting Your Tale – Part 1 by David Farland

Persistent World, Persistent Characters by David Farland

How Real Do You Want Your World to Be? by David Farland

Your Setting as a Petri Dish by David Farland

Resonance in Settings by David Farland

World Building Tips Learned at Louvre by Janice Hardy

Tips For Shared Worlds and Collaboration Between Independent Authors by Charlotte E. English

 

Book Marketing & Social Media

Writers: 5 Tips on How to Identify Your Target Audience by Colby Marshall

Tweeting Is Not a Marketing Strategy by Dan Blank

10 Free (or Mostly Free) Book Launch Strategies by Chris Robley

Reach New Readers With The Magic Of Audiobooks by Wolf Pascoe

7 Ways Authors Waste Time “Building Platform” on Social Media by Anne R. Allen

What Is Your Strategy For Social Media Intimacy? by Srinivas Rao

25 Tweet Ideas To Help Authors Fight Follower Fatigue by Toni at DuoLit

5 Ways to Use Pinterest For Book Promotion by Shannon at DuoLit

Getting the Most Out of Triberr as Authors by Kenra Daniels

 

(Self-)Publishing

Murder Most Foul by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

The New World of Publishing: Stop Submitting Manuscripts to Traditional Publishers by Dean Wesley Smith

The Stages of an Indie Writer by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

How to Survive and Thrive as an Indie Author by Karen Woodward

Writing on the Ether: Faster, Authors, Faster! by Porter Anderson

 

Blogging

8 Ways Blog Writing Is Unique by Mark Schaefer

Six Steps to a Stress-Free Blogging Habit by Skellie at DailyBloggingTips

3 Ways to Blogging Success by Joel Friedlander

How to Write Your Best Post Ever, Part 1: Planning by Vinita Zutshi

How to Write Your Best Post Ever, Part 3: Editing by Vinita Zutshi

The Brain-Dead Simple But Effective Way To Become a Better Writer by Greg Digneo

5 Ways to Bond With Your Audience by Henneke Duistermaat

Why You Shouldn’t Create a Newsletter (and What to Do Instead) by Jon Morrow

How to Add a Click to Tweet to Your Blog Posts by Caitlin Muir

5 New Ways to Think About Guest Posting by Annabel Candy

How to Use Google+ To Easily Record a Video Blog by Marcy Kennedy

How to Read More Blogs In Less Time by Rachelle Gardner

 

Collected Wisdom

Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig

Writer Resources by Gene Lempp

Monday Must Reads by Yesenia Vargas

 

Deep Stuff

5 Life-Saving Facts About Blood Clots by Jenny Hansen

5 Simple Behaviours That Help Prevent Blood Clots by Jenny Hansen

Do You Need a Judgement Day Bucket List? by Jenny Hansen

The Truth About Why You Aren’t Learning Anything in Your Online Classes by Tea Silvestre

25 Things to Know About Sexism and Misogyny in Writing & Publishing by Chuck Wendig

Boudicca: An Archetype For the Ages by C.P.D. Harris

Introduction to the Green Beret Survival Guide and Why You Need It by Bob Mayer (a must read for anyone interested in Post Apocalyptic books)

 

Fun Stuff

An Earnest Attempt to Make You Feel Good Avout Game of Thrones Again by Leah Schnelbach

Movie Review: Man of Steel by Melinda VanLone

No, Man of Steel’s Superman Is Not Your Superman. And That’s Okay by Emily Asher-Perrin

The Great Fantasy Novel Nomination: The Warded Man by Peter V. Brett by Myke Cole (having just read the first three books of the series, I had to share this. Impressive fantasy)

Fiction Affliction: June Releases in Urban Fantasy by Suzanne Johnson

Fiction Affliction: Genre Benders For June by Suzanne Johnson

Fiction Affliction: June Releases in Fantasy by Suzanne Johnson

Link Feast For Writers, vol. 48

Writing blogs are a great way to learn about the craft and marketing our work. Enjoy the posts I’ve hoarded, some older, some recent.

And tune in for the next Link Feast, coming out in two weeks.

 

If You Have Time For Only One Thing

What’s Your Excuse For Not Writing? by Monica Bhide

 

On Writing

What Are the Odds of Success? … Really? by Kristen Lamb

Dare To Suck (great video, 3:56 min) by Jenny Hansen

Getting Organized by Karen Woodward

Creative People Say No by Kevin Ashton

Don’t Talk About It – Drive the Flaw to the Surface for Great Fiction by Kristen Lamb

How to Push Your Character to Their Limits by David Corbett

Does Your Novel Have Too Many Characters? by Janice Hardy

Genre Structure, Part 2: Thriller, Conspiracy and Action by Matt Bird

Specific Genre Structures, Part 3: Horror by Matt Bird

Specific Genre Structures, Part 4: Drama and Tragedy by Matt Bird

The 7 Basic Plots: Voyage and Return by Liz Bureman

How Convenient – Plot Contrivance by Elizabeth S. Craig

How to Build a Scene: Do You Have Surface Conflict and a Suppressed Conflict? by Matt Bird

A Psychological Self-Help Tool For Fiction Writers by Joseph Burgo

Hooks, Lines – And Sinkers by Shannon Donnelly

WriterStrong: Getting Fresh Emotion on the Page by Laura Drake

What’s the Visual? Adding Power to Your Writing by Margie Lawson

Three Great Tips From An Old Crime Writer by John Yeoman

Revision Tips by Angie Smibert

Writing a Book: What Happens After the First Draft by Joanna Penn

Ask Jami: Can This Story Be Saved? by Jami Gold

5 Ways to Find the Right Freelance Editor by Stacy Ennis

What Should We Expect From a Freelancer Editor? (A Timely Debate) by Therese Walsh

How to Serve and Swallow Criticism by Kristan Hoffman

7 Ways to Write a Stand Alone Book With Series Potential by Kurtis Scaletta

10 Things to Remember About Sequels by Janice Hardy

Three Ways Serials Can Improve Your Writing by Susan Kaye Quinn

4 Tips For Beta Reading In Other Genres by Jami Gold

Seven Ideas For Crafting Creative Book Reviews by Jody Hedlund

 

Book Marketing

The Business Rusch: Word of Mouth by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Entropy Is Real and Author Careers Need Feeding Daily by Kristen Lamb

5 Reasons Relationships Are the Core of Your Author Platform by Dan Blank

Ideal Reader Excercises and Why You Should Do One (New Free Resource) by Laura Pepper Wu

A Checklist of Basic Promotion Materials For Indie Authors by Chris Robley

New Author Series: How Do You Build a Fan Base Anyway? by Lindsay Buroker

How Sue London’s First Novel Became an Amazon Success in a Couple of Weeks by Lindsay Buroker

Book Marketing Tips For Fiction And Non-Fiction Authors by Joanna Penn (17:41 min video)

Marketing Sweat Equity in Book Publishing by Susan Kaye Quinn

How to Write a Back Blurb For Your Book by Joanna Penn (5:02 min video)

Selling Your Book – Hook, Line and Sinker by Susan Kaye Quinn

Street Teams: Why You Need One and How to Create One by Steena Holmes

How to Launch a Bestselling Book by Michael Hyatt

If You Write Two Different Kind of Books, Do You Need Two Different Websites? by Liz Higgs

Lessons Learned Froma a Magazine Launch – Use Them In Your Book Promotions by Laura Pepper Wu

Does This Bio Make Me Look Fat? 8 Tips For Enchanting Your Author Bio by Laura Pepper Wu

 

(Self-)Publishing

The Secret Way to Find a Literary Agent by John Yeoman

Mark Coker, Founder of Smashwords, Shares Survey Results: 5 Ways To Sell More eBooks by Karen Woodward

Lets Get Visible: Cracking The Amazon Algorithms With David Gaughran by Joanna Penn

Why I’m Totally Okay With Giving My Book Away Free by Dana Sitar

The Business Rusch: Shifting Sands by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Amazon’s New Scifi, Fantasy and Romance Sub-Categories by India Drummond

eBook Pricing Strategies: Pulsing and Pacing by D.D. Scott

Amazon Fan Fiction Model: Is It a Good Idea? by Jami Gold

 

Blogging

Why You Should Blog to Build Your Writing Career by Justine Musk

How to Create a Blog Purpose Statement in 3 Simple Steps by Darren Rowse

7 Questions to Ask Yourself to Bring Clarity to Your Blogging by Darren Rowse

On Hamburgers and Hooks: How to Effortlessly FIND (Not Write) Your Compelling First Line by Kelly Diels-Rostant

How to Write Your Best Post Ever, Part 2: Writing by Vinita Zutshi

Pixabay – A great blog photo source (free to use quality photos)

3 Things I’ve Learned From Blogging Every Day For a Year by Karen Woodward

Author Blogging 101: Blog Analytics by Joel Friedlander

Adding Google Analytics Tracking Code to WordPress by Joel Friedlander

Direct Marketing, Scottsdale Arizona, and Why a $10 Ebook Can Change Your Life by Joel Friedland (Turn your most popular blog posts into eBooks)

 

Social Media

Finding Your Authentic Social Media Voice by Abby Kerr

Get the Most Out of Facebook in the Least Amount of Time: A 10 Tip Guide by Anne Chaconas

The Ultimate Guide To Goodreads For Authors by Joanna Penn

29 Tips From the Top Google Plus Geeks by Ramsay at Blog Tyrant

Pinterested Explained By Someone Who Doesn’t Get It by Drew Hoolhorst

 

Collected Wisdom

Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig

Monday Must Reads by Yesenia Vargas

 

Deep Stuff

Personal Growth: The Right – And Wrong – Way to Share It With Others by Marie Forleo

We Have Always Fought: Challenging the ‘Women, Cattle and Slaves’ Narrative by Kameron Hurley

Living In Dystopia by Eugene Myers

Why Superheroes Are an Awesome Allegory For Real Teen Life by Leigh Anne Kopans

 

Fun Stuff

Relationships: The Male vs. Female Perspective In Under 2 Minutes by Jenny Hansen

Shall We Begin? Star Trek Into Darkness Spoiler Review by Keith DeCandido

Nitpicks and Not Being a Know-It-All: Talking To Your Friends About the Game of Thrones (When They Haven’t Read the Books) by Bridget McGovern

Who Actually Deserves to Win the Game of Thrones by Chris Lough

Nebula Award 2012 Winners

News Events I Shouldn’t Laugh At (But Do) — Michael Douglas, By The Tweets… by Jenny Hansen

If Margaret Mitchell Submitted Gone With the Wind Today by Leigh Michaels

A Day Made of Glass (5:29 min video with cool futuristic tech)

5 Tips To Get Book Endorsements and Reviews

“The best time to start promoting your book is 3 years ago. The second best a year ago. If that’s not possible, start now.”

That book promotion advice is especially true when it comes to endorsements and reviews. You’re more likely to get praising blurbs from people who know you, like you and whose backs you’ve rubbed.

But if you don’t have those connections yet, don’t despair. You can get endorsements and reviews with a kick ass book, thorough research, well crafted emails, determination and follow-up. Have faith in you and your book.

Here are my top 4 tips for getting endorsements and reviews:

1. Lay the foundation.

Join a reader/writer community of your own genre at least 4 months before your book comes out. It can be a fan forum, Kindle author forum or Twitter hashtag group or what ever medium suits you and your Ideal Readers. Dedicate 10 minutes a day to getting to know some people there. If they have blogs, read them and comment.

I recommend the wonderful WANA community (We Are Not Alone). Our Twitter hashtag is #MyWANA. Twitter is a great way to discover the blogs of WANAs and frequent them.

Also, make your book as gorgeous as it can be. You need a pretty cover and top notch blurb. Having a clear website with all the information readers and book bloggers might need is a big plus.

2. Call in favors.

When you have blogging buddies who read your genre, ask them to blog a review and/or post a short review to Goodreads or Amazon. Return the favor when their book is out.

And don’t forget to pimp your book to your flesh space friends who read. Pester… er, cajole them to post reviews to Goodreads and Amazon. If they loved your book, they’ll do it gladly.

3. Know your field and give before you ask.

Follow a few book blogs of your genre that review books you enjoy. Leave comments and share their links – book bloggers appreciate the love as much as any blogger. If you’ve given first, they’ll remember you and might be more willing to review your book if they have time.

For endorsements for indie authors, it might be smart to focus on succesful self-published authors in your genre. Another great option is writers whose workshops or courses you have taken. You can also use snippets of reviews as endorsements.

To get 2 reviews/endorsements, you might have to ask as many as 10 people. Authors and book reviewers are busy, and reviewers have To Read Lists as long as your arm. Make it as easy as possible for them to review your book. Give them all the information in your email and have a clear and informative website. Maybe even create a specific section there for reviewers.

4. Do book giveaways like crazy.

Give em away on your blog, your friends’ blogs (bribe them with guest posts) and on blog tours. The more books out there, the more likely they’re read and reviewed by readers. Rafflecopter is your friend. Goodreads is another great place to get your book baby on the hands on readers.

5. Keep gathering reviews after the book release.

Reviews are important even after the launch. Book blogger reviews give you visibility and reader reviews give you credibility. Once you’ve established an email list, you can ask readers to post their reviews in Goodreads and Amazon. The more reviews there are, the easier it is to get more. It’s a snowball effect.

 

Last but not least, check out these links with more specific advice:

Reviews and Endorsements: Do They Matter? by Darcy Helle

Quotes For Your Book – How and Why to Get Them by Sue Collier

The Discoverability Challenge: With More Authors Self-Publishing Each Year, How Will Your Book Get Noticed? by Jessica Bennett

8 Step Plan For Landing Book Promotion Endoresements by Dana Lynn Smith

Gutsy Book Buzz: How to Get Endorsements by Sonia Marsh

7 Ways to Get Your Book Reviewed by Dana Lynn Smith

Indie Book Reviewer – A Listing of Bloggers Who Review Indie Books

How to Get Reviewed at The Kindle Book Review

Getting Reviewed – The Indie Author Condundrum by Eric Dontigney

How to Get Books Reviewed by Giacomo Giammatteo (Giveaways are they key to getting reader reviews)

How to Write an Email That Will Win You A Book Review by Catherine Ryan Howard.

Getting Book Reviews: 10 Things Reviewers Hate by Alexander Tate

Requesting Book Reviews by the Bookish Babe

Link Feast For Writers, vol. 47 – Motivation Special

I was supposed to post these Links two weeks ago. My apologies. All work and no play makes Reetta a dull girl. I haven’t had the energy to even read lately and I love reading more than anything. Today I had a free day and it’s amazing what few hours of uninterrupted me time does for you.

I dubbed this the Motivation Special because that’s the theme of many links this round. I’d love to hear in the comments how you keep motivated?

Marcy wished for tips on how indie authors can get book reviews and endorsement blurbs. I’ll dig up some related links next week. Meanwhile, do you have advice for Marcy?

 

If You Have Time For Only One Thing

How Practicing My Pitch Helped Me Write a Better Book by Kathleen Pooler

You can do this pitch thing even if you’re going to self-publish. Just answer some core questions about your book and see if your answers thrill your beta readers and editors.

 

On Writing

Never, Never, Never Lose Your Work by Rachelle Gardner

Gut Check: How Bad Do You Want It? by Toni at DuoLit

What’s Your Excuse? by C.J. Lyons

Eight Ways Writing a Novel Is Like Becoming a Parent by Ali Luke

6 Tips on How to Read Critically by Karen Woodward

3 Steps To Better Prose by Karen Woodward (Excercise)

I Quit! by Talli Roland

When Is It Time To Quit On Our Dreams? by Marcy Kennedy

Minimizing Risk as a Writer – A Guide For the Risk-Averse by Elizabeth S. Craig

Hiring an Editor – Yay or Nay? by Janice Hardy

 

The Craft of Writing

Good Writing vs. Talented Writing by Passive Voice

Why Is Storytelling Ability So Important by Jami Gold

Ways to Create Multi-Dimensional Characters – Tip #1 by Kristen Lamb

The 3 Types of Characters Arc – Change, Growth and Fall by Veronica Sicoe

Stellar Writing Sells! by Margie Lawson

The Problem With “Revealing” Information That’s Already In the Cover by Janice Hardy

Cliffhangers by Karen Woodward

Creating the Perfect Ending by Karen Woodward

Writing Emotion Without the Melodrama by Angela Ackerman

Emotions That Escalate: How to Build Tension Successfully by Angela Ackerman

Four Fiction Felonies That Make Your Plot Unbelievable by Marcy Kennedy

Handling Scene Transitions With Multiple PoVs by Janice Hardy

Why We Fall In Love, Part 1: The Secure Attachment Style by Fae Rowan

Why We (And Our Characters) Fall In Love, Part 2: The Avoidant Insecure Attachment Style by Fae Rowan

Why We (And Our Characters) Fall In Love, Part 3: Ambivalent/Anxious Attachment Style by Fae Rowan

Why We (And Our Characters) Fall In Love, Part 4: Disoriented/Disorganized Attachment Style by Fae Rowan

10 Steps to Writing a Novella by Delilah S. Dawson

Why Do You Enter Writing Contests? by Jami Gold

 

Book Marketing

4 Things To Keep In Mind When Choosing a Title For Your Book by Karen Woodward

The Secret Recipe For Writing a Perfect Pitch by Marcy Kennedy

Why Authors Who Say “I Don’t Have Enough Time For Promotion” Are Doomed to Fail by Toni at DuoLit

Why Facebook Is Blue: The Science of Colors in Marketing by Leo Widrich

 

(Self-)Publishing

Infographic: 5 Key Book Publishing Paths by Jane Friedman

Should You Self-Publish: 15 Questions by Orna Ross

Does Self-Publishing Have a Formula For Success? by Theresa Ragan

New Minimum Lenght For eBooks on Amazon: 2500 Words by Karen Woodward

A Passive Guy Opinion on Traditional Publishing by Dean Wesley Smith

 

Blogging

2 Strategic and Compelling Reasons to Keep Blogging—Plus When to Kill a Blog by Dan Blank

Get Clear On Your Brand Proposition & Unique Selling Proposition (USP) by Abby Kerr

10 Reasons Why People Buy Your Prodcuct Or Share Your Idea by Bernadette Jiwa

How to Have a Successful Blog on 1–3 Hours of Work a Day by Tristan Higbee

How Your Local Book Store Can Help You Consistently Create Content by Sean D’Souza

Our Secret Blog Post Formula by Caitlin Muir

Why Writers Should Write Guest Posts by Gabriela Pereira

 

Social Media

Four Questions to Define Your Social Media Presence by Martina Boone

100 Things For Authors To Tweet About by Caitlin Muir

Why You Need a Hashtag For Your Next Book by Caitlin Muir

Don’t Think of Pinterest As a Social Media by Erin MacPherson

Supercharge Your Pinning With These 7 Free Tools by Caitlin Muir

The Pinterest Cheat Sheet To Image Sizes by Caitlin Muir

 

Collected Wisdom

Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig

Writing Resources by Gene Lempp

Monday Must-Reads by Yesenia Vargas

 

Deep Stuff

How to Stay Motivated During the Dark Times by Jenny Hansen

Splice Time In New Ways to Have More of It by Penelope Trunk

Bootstrapping the Industrial Age by Kevin Kelly

 

Fun Stuff

If Calvin Tweeted by Julie Glover (Calvin & Hobbes rocks)

A Knight, a Wizard and a Lady of the Lake: Immortal Monday by Debra Kristi

Profound and Hilarious Poetry Written by Arranging Books by Lauren Davis

Defending ‘Iron Man 3”s Big Plot Twist by Matt Singer

Link Feast For Writers, vol. 46

Here’s your bi-weekly round of writing, book marketing and otherwise interesting links. My apologies for skipping last week and not hitting Wednesday. I’m still not entirely adjusted to the new schedule thanks to the day job.

Next Link Feast is due in two weeks, on Wednesday 8th of May.

Please leave a comment and tell me what kind of links would be useful to you. Is there an area of writing you’re struggling with right now?

 

On Writing

How to Create and Maintain the Habit of Writing by Karen Woodward

How To Not Write Crap by Karen Woodward

5 Tips to Help You Make Your Deadline by Liza Palmer

The Biggest Problem With Writing Advice by Suzannah Windsor Freeman

Confessions of a Converted Structuralist – Or How I Realized the Error of My Ways by Veronica Sicoe

Wisdom for Writers From Steve Jobs (Yes, THAT Steve Jobs) by Tiffany Reisz

Dean Wesley Smith Writes a Novel in 10 Days by Karen Woodward

The Writing Life: Knowing When To Say No And When To Say Yes by Roni Loren

Writing for Inspiration by David Farland

 

Characters & Plotting

Mysterious Characters and the Search of “Who Am I?” by David Farland

Rich Character Voices by David Farland

What Downton Abbey Can Teach Us About Tension by Janice Hardy

What Slush Pile Readers Look For In a Novel by Karen Woodward

The Most Important Thing at the Start of Your Novel by David Farland

The Strange: How to Hook A Reader’s Interest by Karen Woodward

Ooh, plot device! by Susan Bischoff (Act 1 done right)

Fixing a Scene by Jenny Hansen

Plot Fixer: Weak Black Moment and The End Does Not Satisfy by Kara Lennox

Great Fiction Goes For the Guts by Kristen Lamb

Triggers and Taboos in Fiction by Veronica Sicoe

 

Scenes, Dialogue and Other Goodness

How to Set the Tone and Mood In Your Scenes by Janice Hardy

The End Game by Joe Moore

Les Edgerton Shows How to Write Amazing Dialogue – Part 1

Les Edgerton Shows How to Write Amazing Dialogue – Part 2: An Excercise

Les Edgerton & Two Tips to Take Your Dialogue to a Whole New Level – Part 3

Body Language Cues to Emotion by Joanna Waugh

Speaking of Revising by Nicole L. Reber

5 Common Problems In Your Young Adult Manuscript by Kristi Cook

Do We Expect Too Much Realism In Our Manuscript? by Janice Hardy

Love and Romance: Do You Believe in Magic? by Susan Bischoff

Utopia and Dystopia – The Many Faces of the Future by Veronica Sicoe

5 Writing Lessons I Learned From Being an Editor by Emily Wenstrom

Larry Brooks on the Structure of Short Stories by Karen Woodward

How to Write a Short Story by James Scott Bell

Three Tips For Being a Better Beta Reader by Jami Gold

How to Choose the Right Conference by Gabriela Pereira

 

Book Marketing

The Myth About Introverts and Extroverts – Could You Be an Ambivert? by Kristen Lamb

When Titles Go Bad by P.J. Parrish

How Fiction Authors Can Steal Marketing Ideas From Their Non-Fiction Friends by Toni at DuoLit

Book Marketing Using Paid Promotion: Targeted Email Lists by Joanna Penn

Secrets of Copywriting: The Power of a Strong Value Proposition by Pete Sandeen

How to Get Honest Book Reviews by Karen Woodward

10 Book Club Tips by Dina Santorelli

 

(Self-)Publishing

Help! I’m Published and I Can’t Get Up by James Scott Bell

How Self-Publishing Has Changed the Industry by Clare Langley-Hawthorne

Answers to 14 Questions You’re Too Afraid to Ask Literary Agents by Barbara Poelle

Real Life Diagnostics: A Look at a Middle Grade Query Letter by Janice Hardy

Kris Rusch Says: Don’t Accept A Book Advance Of Less Than $100,000 by Karen Woodward

Self-Publishing Goals: Increase Your Income Streams by D.D. Scott

Self-Publishing Grabs Huge Market Share From Traditional Publishers by David Gaughran

 

Blogging

4 Ways Blogging Will Make You a Better Writer by Dan Blank

Sacred Cow-Tipping – Why Writers Blogging About Writing Is Bad by Kristen Lamb

An Open Letter to All the Bloggers Cluttering the Web with Forgettable Content by Mark Hermann

How to Make Sure You Never Run Out of Blog Post Ideas Again by Beth Hayden

How to Dominate Your Niche by Brian Clark

7 Lessons to Improve Your Author Website (or, Learn from My FAIL!) by Toni at DuoLit

Creating a Reader Friendly Website by Ellen M. Gregg

10 Important Questions You Should Ask a Website Company Before Buying a New Website by Caitlin Muir

WordPress Is Being Attacked: 3 Precautions You Can Take by Amy Lynn Andrews

How to Find Images For Your Blog With Photo Pin by Amy Lynn Andrews

 

Social Media

How to Set Up a Professional Twitter Profile by Shaney Lee

Did Facebook Change Something? 5 Tips For Page Owners to ‘It’s All Good’ by Lisa Hall-Wilson

Pinterest For Authors in 10 Steps by Amanda June Hagarty

5 Pinterest Tricks For Indie Authors (Wise Ink)

 

Collected Wisdom

Writer Resources by Gene Lempp

Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig

Friday Features by Yesenia Vargas

 

Deep Stuff

The Parental Paradox & Caterpillar Conundrum—How I Grew Up to Be THAT Mom by Kristen Lamb

I, Antagonist, part 1: The Procrastination by Susan Bischoff

How to Be More Productive By Limiting Open Browser Tabs by Amy Lynn Andrews

Why Daily Learning Beats the Gobble Gobble Learning by Sean D’Souza

The Perfect Health Regimen That Only an Absolute Dictator Could Impose by Esther Inglis-Arkell

Your Approach to Mistakes Defines Your Success by Penelope Trunk

Men and Women and the Real Workplace Revolution by Penelope Trunk

 

Fun Stuff

*squee* Thor: The Dark World trailer

X Is For X-Chromosome: 18 Interesting Facts About Women by Jenny Hansen

12 Phrases That Are Never a Good Sign For Hero’s Survival by Charlie Jane Anders

Little Girl Superheroes by Susanna Polo

10 Heroes Who Got More Interesting After Being Gender Swapped by Charlie Jane Anders

The Ultimate Guide to This Summer’s Science Fiction and Fantasy TV by Meredith Woerner

NYPD 2095 – The Best Police Protection Money Can Buy (12:21 min long short video)

Link Feast For Writers, vol. 45: Antagonist Special

Blog posts are a fun and fast way to learn about writing and marketing our books.

Here’s a smorgasbord of links for you. The chef recommends this week’s special, the dark and conflicting section of the menu. Bon appetit!

 

On Writing

3 Writer’s Commandments and the Dreaded “S” Word by Jenny Hansen

Three Phases of Becoming a Master Author by Kristen Lamb

6 Ways to Write Every Day by Karen Woodward

5 Unexpected Lessons From Inside the Iowa Writer’s Workshop by Dina Nayeri

Being Profilic by David Farland

Changing the World One Story At a Time, Part 1 by David Farland

Changing the World One Story At a Time, Part 2 by David Farland

Idea vs. Concept by Larry Brooks

How to Develop Any Idea Into a Great Story by Elizabeth Sims

Character Development Tricks by Sheldon at Dramaticapedia

Creating Emotional Frustration In Your Characters by Rachel Scheller

Different Kind of Story Openings: Shock and Seduction by Karen Woodward

7 Reasons Agents Stop Reading Your First Chapter by Livia Blackburne

Storyteller’s Rulebook: Beware of Instant Conflict by Matt Bird

How to Organize Time For a Dramatic Story by Michael Rabiger & Mick Hurbis Cherrier

5 Ways to Practice the Art of Double Duty Writing by Susan Squires

Don’t Be an Information Dumper by Don McNair

Storyteller’s Rulebook: Add an OMFG Scene by Matt Bird

Jawing About Writing and Writing About Jaws by Sharla Rae

Series vs. Stand-Alone: What Should We Work On Next? by Jami Gold

The Rules of Romantic Comedy by Karen Woodward

What Is Urban Fantasy Anyway? by Emma Newman

Do You Make These 5 Surprising Short Story Mistakes? (Writer’s Relief)

 

Writing the Antagonist

Structure Part 3: Introducing the Opposition by Kristen Lamb

Scene Antagonists and Big Boss Troublemakers by Kristen Lamb

What Makes a Great Villain? by Alexandra Sokoloff

Villains: The Forces of Antagonism by Alexandra Sokoloff

Make Your Antagonist a Force For Good by Jami Gold

12 Tips On How To Write Antagonists Your Readers Will Love To Hate by Karen Woodward

Not All Villains Are the Heroes of Their Own Stories by Matt Bird

The Language of the Corrupted by Matt Bird

 

Book Marketing

Platform Is Craft by Dan Blank

The Dirty Secret of Author Platform (Hint: It’s Difficult) by Dan Blank

Mark Coker, Founder Of Smashwords: Six Ways To Increase Book Sales by Karen Woodward

12 Ideas For Email Updates You’ll Actually Enjoy Writing by Toni at DuoLit

Before Publishing Your eBook: A 3 Month Checklist by Laura Pepper Wu

(Note: This is a product plug. This ebook sounds really useful, and the previous books of Laura have been high quality. But make up your own mind.)

Book Marketing: 9 Activities to Boost Your Author Career by Dana Sitar

Where Can Authors Advertise for the B&N, Apple, and Kobo Stores? by Lindsay Buroker

 

(Self-)Publishing

Four Steps To a Winning Query by Gabriela Pereira

Amazon KDP Select: Is It Worthwhile For Authors? by C.J. Lyons

Amazon Buys Goodreads: What Does It Mean for Authors and Readers? by Dan Blank

Business Rusch: The Logic Behind Self Publishing by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

The New World of Publishing: The Assumption of Agents by Dean Wesley Smith

Self-Publishing in 30 Minutes and 50 Seconds by Joel Friedlander

 

Blogging

The Changing Nature of Blogging For Fiction Writers by Jody Hedlund

5 Ways to Improve Your Blog Today by Dino Dogan

21 Critical Tasks to Perform As Soon As You Start a Blog by Ramsay at Blog Tyrant

How to Blog Like You Mean to Change the World by Justine Musk

Don’t Let the Well Run Dry: Content Strategy and Your Blog by Liz Bauman

The Art of Keeping Your Audience Coming Back For More by Robert Bruce

Recycle Your Blog Content: 3 Ways to Re-Feature Popular Articles on Your Site by Chris Robley

3 SEO Myths That Scare Writers (And How You Can Use Them to Your Advantage) by Alexis Grant

Google Reader Alternatives by Amy Lynn Andrews

When Should We Upgrade to a Paid Site? by Jami Gold

WordPress.COM vs. WordPress.ORG — Which Is Better for Writers? by Jami Gold

Is Your Site Secure? Tips From a Tech Guy by Jay Donovan

Does Your Site Welcome Disabled Readers? by Linda Adams

 

Social Media

What To Do When Social Media Bums You Out by Abby Kerr

But Do You *Like* Like a Facebook Page? by Talli Roland

4 Compelling Reasons For Creative People to Start Using Google+ by Mark McGuinness

Pinterest for Authors: How to Promote Your Writing on the Fastest Growing Website Ever by Chris Robley

How Novelist Justine Musk Builds a Fictional World on Pinterest by Lauren Rae Orsini

Directory of Book Bloggers on Pinterest by Mandy at The Well-Read Wife

 

Collected Wisdom

Writer Resources by Gene Lempp

Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig

Friday Features by Yesenia Vargas

 

Deep Stuff

The Grass Is Greener When You Water It by Lisa Hall-Wilson

The Not Knowing Path of Being an Entrepreneur by Leo Baubata

What We Lack in a Hyperconnected World by Leo Baubata

The Green Beret Survival Guide by Bob Mayer (some really useful questions to ponder if you live in an earthquake area – or write Post-Apocalyptic novels)

 

Fun Stuff

The Blacksmith Duel by Jim Paw-Paw Wilson

10 Dinosaur Myths That Need to Go Extinct by Brian Switek

Immortal Monday: Hades, God of the Underworld by Debra Kristi

The Day Thor Came To Visit by Kristy K. James

Fiction Affliction: April Releases In Urban Fantasy by Suzanne Johnson

Fiction Affliction: Genre Benders For April by Suzanne Johnson

Fiction Affliction: April Releases in Fantasy by Suzanne Johnson