The Link Feast, vol. 57
Welcome to the Link Feast. I hope today’s smorgasbord is to your liking. Next Link Feast will be served on Sunday 14th of April.
If you have a topic or issue you’d like me to cover next time, please share it in the comments. Your wish is my command.
Now, onto the links.
If You Have Time For Only Thing
No, Really, Why Do You Write? By Heather Webb
On Writing
Where Do You Get Your Ideas? By Neil Gaiman
http://www.neilgaiman.com/p/Cool_Stuff/Essays/Essays_By_Neil/Where_do_you_get_your_ideas%3F
All Books Have Genders by Neil Gaiman (he tells the story of how the idea of the book American Gods came clearer to him)
http://www.neilgaiman.com/Cool_Stuff/Essays/Essays_By_Neil/All_Books_Have_Genders
Whence Cometh Ideas? 10 Fun Idea-Generating Activities and Story Starters by Erika Hoffman
Whence Cometh Ideas? 10 Fun Idea-Generating Activities and Story Starters
10 Ways to Conquer the Inner Critic by Mike Lucas
http://storyrunner.houseoflucas.com/2019/01/10-ways-to-conquer-inner-critic.html
One Free Trick: How to Use the Writing Skills You Have to Learn the Ones You Don’t by Arkady Martine
How to Get Inspiration When Writing Erotica by Rachel Kramer Bussel
https://frolic.media/how-to-get-inspiration-when-writing-erotica/
Love the Grind by Ilona Andrews
http://www.ilona-andrews.com/love-the-grind/
Whose Character Is It Anyway? By John J. Kelley
How to Create a Compelling Character by Shirley Jump
Creating Characters Who Clash by Angela Ackerman
https://jamigold.com/2019/03/creating-characters-who-clash-guest-angela-ackerman/
Nasty, Menacing, Murderous Protagonists We Love… And Why by Donald Maass
Six Common Villain Mistakes and How to Avoid Them by Oren Ashkenazi
Representation in Fiction: How to Write Characters Whose Experiences Are Outside of Your Own by Diana M. Pho
Representation in Fiction: How to Write Characters Whose Experiences Are Outside of Your Own
Planning Super Light Stories by Chris Winkle
How J.K. Rowling Outlines Her Books (The Paperblanks Blog)
Writing to the Beat: Translating Story Beats to Any Genre by Jami Gold
https://writershelpingwriters.net/2017/09/writing-to-the-beat-translating-story-beats-to-any-genre/
Storyteller’s Rulebook: Have At Least 6 Difficult Decisions by Matt Bird
http://www.secretsofstory.com/2015/03/storytellers-rulebook-have-at-least-six.html
Genre Structures: Charting the Big Dilemmas by Matt Bird
http://www.secretsofstory.com/2015/03/genre-structures-addendum-charting-big.html
Rulebook Casefile: Big Decisions and the Midpoint Disaster by Matt Bird
http://www.secretsofstory.com/2015/04/rulebook-casefile-big-decisions-and.html
4 Pacing Tricks to Keep Reader’s Attention by K.M Weiland (Captain Marvel examples. Squee!)
Deepening Our Story: Theme It Like You Mean It by Jami Gold
https://writershelpingwriters.net/2018/03/deepening-our-story-theme-it-like-you-mean-it/
Learning to Write to Theme with Last Jedi by Bryan Young
Best Scenes From the Wheel of Time, Part 10: Nynaeve and Lan in the Borderlands by Elanda Tonil / Suze from Tarvalon.net
https://blog.tarvalon.net/?p=31
(The post features a few scenes from high fantasy epic series the Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan. The characters in the scenes are a married couple and they have a difficult decision to make. Then we see the aftermath. Spoiler warning if you haven’t read the series yet but intend to. If that’s not an issue, I highly recommend checking the scenes out for learning purposes.
In case you are totally confused by the strange names and who these people are, Tarmon Gai’don means the Last Battle against the Shadow, an event foretold in a prophecy. Lan is an uncrowned king like Aragorn, except that his whole country was annexed by the Blight (a tainted area) and the monsters living there when he was a baby. He has dedicated his whole life to fighting them. Borderlands like Shienar are the countries at the edge of the Blight and defend their people from the monsters. Nynaeve, his wife, is a sorceress and an Aes Sedai, a Servant of All, who are respected but who most people are wary of. Lan is her Warder, a warrior dedicated to protecting her. He is a man with two causes and that is causing the dilemma.)
Story Revisions: Keeping Track of Changes by Jami Gold
When Your Query Reveals a Story-Level Problem by Susan DeFreitas
https://www.janefriedman.com/novel-query-problems/
How to Get an Extra Novel Written In a Year by Janice Hardy
http://blog.janicehardy.com/2019/03/how-to-get-extra-novel-written-in-year.html
Exploring Three Ways to Structure Your Book Series by Kristen Kieffer
https://www.well-storied.com/blog/structure-book-series
Four Ways to Plot a Trilogy by Kristen Kieffer
https://www.well-storied.com/blog/4-ways-to-plot-a-trilogy
How to Write a Trilogy: Q&A Session by Kristen Kieffer
https://www.well-storied.com/blog/how-to-write-a-trilogy-qa-session
7 Tips for Collaborating on a Novel by Dan Brotzel, Martin Jenkins, & Alex Woolf
http://blog.janicehardy.com/2019/03/7-tips-for-collaborating-on-novel.html
App Happy: 11 Free (or Mostly Free) Mobile Apps for Writers by Jess Zafarris
Book Marketing, Blogging and Social Media
Schmoozing For Introverts: How to Network Like a Pro by Lisa Cooper Ellison
https://www.janefriedman.com/schmoozing-for-introverts/
What’s More Important: Author Websites or Social Media? By Jane Friedman (she says author website)
The Ultimate Guide to Social Media For Writers 2019 by Dave Chesson
https://kindlepreneur.com/social-media-for-writers/
(Now take a deep breath. Yes, many different social media are mentioned but that doesn’t mean you need to be on all of them. Choose one that sounds right for you – maybe one you’re already using. Great, stick to that one. But if your audience is on another platform than the one you’re using, consider at least checking that place out. For example if you write YA, younger people are not on Facebook much but many frequent Instagram instead)
Aaand then I go against my advice. Goodreads is a place where you should set up your author page even if you wouldn’t use it at all after that. Because a social media specifically created for readers? It would be silly to not have a minimum presence there. Hence the next link.
The Ultimate Guide to Goodreads For Authors by Dave Chesson
https://kindlepreneur.com/how-to-use-goodreads-for-authors/
Book Marketing: 5 Ways to Stand Out As an Author on Social Media by Eevi Jones
Book Marketing: 5 Ways To Stand Out As An Author On Social Media
13 Copywriting Tips to Help You Write a Better Novel by Robert Lee Brewer (frankly, these work better for a blog post. But perhaps something to consider in the editing phase of your novel)
https://www.writersdigest.com/whats-new/13-copywriting-tips-help-write-better-novel
Penny Sansevieri’s Top Book Marketing Complaints by Penny Sansevieri
Changes to Amazon Advertising: What Authors Need to Know by Dave Chesson
Deep Stuff
How Inuit Parents Teach Kids to Control Their Anger by Michaeleen Doucleff (stories are powerful)
Can Inuit Moms Help Me Tame My 3-Year Old’s Anger by Michaeleen Doucleff (some repeat of the previous article but also personal stories. A really interesting read)
Life, Well Lived, Will Weep (poem) by Holly Lisle
Marvel bids farewell to the original Avengers by introducing new, vaguely similar ones by Todd VanDerWerff
https://www.vox.com/culture/2019/3/18/18266003/marvel-avengers-captain-marvel-phase-4
Fun Stuff
13 Series to Read If You Love J.D. Robb’s ‘In Death’ Series by T.A. McIagan
https://www.bookbub.com/blog/books-if-you-love-j-d-robb
(And if you don’t know what series I am talking about, go and buy the first book Naked Death. It’s futuristic police procedural with kick ass murder cop Eve Dallas who has a haunted past and who falls for Roarke, a suspect, a billionaire and mostly reformed street thief. You’re in for 40+ books of this awesomeness. J.D. Robb is an alias of Nora Roberts.)
13 Romances to Read If You Love Roarke From the ‘In Death’ Series by Chanel Cleeton
https://www.bookbub.com/blog/romances-to-read-if-you-love-roarke-from-in-death-series
Spring 2019 Books We Cannot Wait to Read by Stubby the Rocket
https://www.tor.com/2019/03/20/spring-2019-books-we-cannot-wait-to-read/
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. 43
This week’s Link Feast got a tad bloated since I wanted to make this one to be special. It will be the last Link Feast for a while.
I got a full time job. So until I get used to the vastly diminished free time and balancing work and family, my blogging is pretty much on hold. I might be able to whip up some partially written posts but I make no promises when.
Meanwhile, enjoy the link collections of Elizabeth S. Craig, Gene Lempp and Yesenia Vargas. And write. And then write some more 🙂
If You Have Time For Only One Thing
Be the Gatekeeper of Your Mind by Rachelle Gardner
On Writing
How To Push Past The Bullshit And Write That Goddamn Novel: A Very Simple No-Fuckery Writing Plan To Get Shit Done by Chuck Wendig
The Forrest Gump Guide to Writing That Bites Readers in the Buttocks by Jon Morrow
How Badly Do You Want the Dream? by Kristen Lamb
7 Things Confident Writers Don’t Do by Kristen Lamb
Enemies of the Art, Part 8 – Being a Starter, Not a Finisher by Kristen Lamb
To Find Success, Learn to Embrace the Meantime by Kristen Lamb
Defining Yourself as a Writer by David Farland
The Appeal to “Intellect” in Fiction by David Farland
How to Work on More Than One Book At a Time by James Scott Bell
8 Books For Writers by Raima Larter
A 12-Step Checklist For a “Sexy” Synopsis by Shannon Donnelly
Concept
Good to Great: Nail a Better Concept to Empower Your Story by Larry Brooks
“Side Effects” (Deconstruction 1) – The True Concept by Larry Brooks
“Side Effects” (Deconstruction #2) – Putting Concept to Work In the Narrative… Even Before You Write It by Larry Brooks
Characters
Three Questions to Get to the Heart of Your Story by Janice Hardy
Dig Deep Into Character by Kathy Steffen
Why Character Arcs (and Growth) Make Readers Care by Janice Hardy
Strong Character Voices by David Farland
Cultural Guilt by David Farland
How to Get Out of Your Character’s Way by Amy Sue Nathan
Dealing With a Large Cast of Characters by David Farland
Plotting
Plot, Story and Tension by Karen Woodward
Writing and the Monomyth, Part 1 by Karen Woodward
Writing and the Monomyth, Part 2 by Karen Woodward
4 Steps of Organizing Plot Ideas Into a Novel by Jody Hedlund
Visual Methods of Writing by Robert Ferrigno
Worksheets For the Breakout Novelist by Donald Maass
Storyteller’s Rulebook: Move Up the Timeline by Matt Bird
Putting Emotional Twists In Your Tales by David Farland
How to Write a Scene in 11 Steps [Infographic] by Jason Boog
Compelling Writing
Making the Pages Cry by Becca Puglisi
Immerse the Reader in Your World and Never Let Them Up For Air by Kristen Lamb
Those So-Called Clichés by David Farland
Revising
How To Karate Your Novel And Edit That Motherfucker Hard: A No-Foolin’ Fix-That-Shit Editing Plan To Finish The Goddamn Job by Chuck Wendig
Edit Your Shit: Editing For Content by Chuck Wendig
Self-Editing 101 – 13 Questions to Ask Yourself About Your Opening Chapter by Anne R. Allen
Avoid Reader Confusion by Elizabeth S. Craig
Telling Yourself to Show: How to Identify Flat Scenes by Janice Hardy
What Is Your Stylistic Device? by Patience Bloom
10 Proofreading Tips For Self-Publishers by Anna Lewis
Genres
Sleeps With Monsters: Epic Fantasy Is Crushingly Conservative? by Liz Bourke
What Is Gaslight Fantasy? by Terri Windling
Dystopian Round Table: The Appeal of Dystopian Fiction by John Joseph Adams
Teens and Dystopias by Scott Westerfield
Book Marketing
What’s Going On with Readers Today? Goodreads Finds Out
5 Essential Skills For Today’s Online Marketer by Chris Brogan
Building an Author Brand by Ali Cross (IndieReCon)
The ABCs of Voice Values: Learn to “Read” Your Brand & Your Right People (Part 1, A-G) by Abby Kerr
Marketing Plans Made Easy by S.R. Johannes (IndieReCon)
Insert Brilliant Category Romance Title Here! by Patience Bloom
10 Ways to Make Your Cover Stand Out in the Crowd by Alicia Kat Dillman (IndieReCon)
Creative Book Launches That Command Attention by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi (IndieReCon)
Money Matters Most in Book Marketing by Rob Eagar
Top 10 Tips: How to Create an Effective Author Website by Malle Vallik
E.C. Myers: Reading Between the Lines (this is one of the juiciest bios & author introductions I’ve ever seen)
12 Steps to Blog Tour Success by Joel Friedlander (IndieReCon)
Why Non-Fiction Books Are the New Ultimate Business Card by Ryan Holiday
(Self-)Publishing
The Financial Reality of a (Trad Published) Genre Novelist by Jason Boog
The Death of Publishing by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
How Have Things Changed In the Last 3 Years in Indie Publishing by Bob Mayer
Interview with Jane Friedman (The State of Publishing and All Kind of Great Writing Tips) by Jerry Waxler
Lessons Learned and Tips From Indie Authors by Ali Cross (IndieReCon)
Top 10 Tips For Successful Self-Publishing by Barbara Freethy (IndieReCon)
Measuring Success by Susan Kaye Quinn (IndieReCon)
Partnering With an Agent by Steena Holmes (IndieReCon)
Amazon’s Bestselling Author Theresa Ragan Treats You to the Steps She Took to Self-Publish
Building a Best-Selling Publishing Team by Miral Sattar of BiblioCrunch (IndieReCon)
The Recipe For Indie Success: Advice From 4 Successful Authors by Shannon at DuoLit
Joe Konrath Talks About How to Sell Books on Amazon by Karen Woodward
Breaking Into International Markets by Orna Ross of ALLi (IndieReCon)
Amazon’s Recommendation Engine Trumps the Competition by David Gaughran
The Shocking Truth: Book Buyers Have Minds of Their Own Chris McVeigh
Here’s the Problem With Book Publishers’ Discovery Problem by Laura Hazard Owen
(Fascinating insight on how super readers – most writers, I suspect – can understand how the average readers discover and select books. An average reader being someone who only reads 6 books / year)
What Aren’t Bookstores Doing? by Jenn Northington
Blogging
Why Do We Blog? by Molly Greene
Is Blogging Still Essential to a Fiction Writer’s Platform by Mike Duran
What the Heck Do I Blog About? Blogging Ideas For Fiction Authors Stuck In a Rut by Laura Pepper Wu
Make Your Blog the Event of the Year (And Have People Clamor to Attend) by Tea Silvestre
Get It Done: 7 Tips for Writing When You Don’t Have Enough Time by Tea Silvestre
Social Media
9 Tips For Making Online Friends by Jami Gold
Build Your Online Writing Community by Gabriela Pereira
Resolve to Tweet Better in 2013 by Nina Badzin
How I Got a Six-Figure Twitter Following (and Why It Doesn’t Matter) by Jane Friedman
0 – 4000 In a Snap – How to Build a Quality Twitter Following Fast by Molly Greene
Twitter Basics – The Proper Care and Feeding of Hashtags by Marcy Kennedy
Facebook: Should We Use a Profile Or a Page by Lisa Hall-Wilson
Facebook Tricks For Better Engagement by Lisa Hall-Wilson
Top 5 Mistakes Writers Make On Facebook and How to Avoid Them by Lisa Hall-Wilson
The Weird Thing About Facebook: Status Updates Are the Most Memorable Writing You Do by Jennifer Miller
It’s Not You Facebook, It’s Me — Okay, It’s Partly You: Why I Unfriended Almost Everyone by Matthew Ingram
Collected Wisdom
Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig
Writing Resources by Gene Lempp
Friday Features by Yesenia Vargas
Deep Stuff
Must Read Monday: The Happiness Project by Roni Loren
15 Ways to Rock Your Sister’s World by Jenny Hansen
Women in Media: Why Our Stories Count by August McLaughlin
2 Critical Myths That Separate Top Performers From Ordinary People by Ramit Sethi (This is a sales page. But you can ignore that and focus on the meat, the myths. And yet, if you have sales pages, are yours this convincing?)
Fun Stuff
How Game of Thrones Season 3 Will Split A Storm of Swords by Chris Lough
‘Hunger Games’ Success Proves Dystopia Is the New Supernatural by Brooke Tarnoff
F*ck Year Warrior Women Picture Blog
Are You Ready to Have Kids? This Quiz Should Tell You by Little White Lion (thanks for this funny link, Jenny Hansen)
Writer Horoscopes Monopoly Style by Donna Gambale
Link Feast For Writers, vol. 42
This batch of links comes on Thursday again. I made this edition a little thicker as I will be on a blogging hiatus next week. Hubby is on a vacation so we’ll have family time.
Enjoy the links! Until March.
If You Have Time For Only One Thing
Create Your Personal Vision – You Can Do It If You Can See It by Cigdem Kobu
On Writing
Be the Watchdog For Your Own Rights by Susan Spann
The Most Important Quality in Best-Selling Authors by Jody Hedlund
Making Writing Resolutions That Stick by Gabriela Pereira
Turning Those Writing Resolutions Into Reality by Gabriela Pereira
The Hardest Writerly Truth of Them All by Chuck Wendig
How to Stick to Your Goals by Veronica Sicoe
Yoga For Writers by Raima Larter
Prewriting: The Trick to Preventing Writer’s Block by David Farland
Write In the Flush of the Moment to Free Up Flow by Sam Horn
How to Increase Concentration – The 5 Key Steps by Sulagna Dasgupta
Make Your Own MFA in Creative Writing: How to Build a DIY Creative Writing Curriculum by Chris Robley
8 Tips From Chuck Wendig on How to Read Like a Writer by Karen Woodward
Beyond the Basics: 5 Ways to Take Your Writing Further by Joanna Penn
How Do You Know Your Writing Is Getting Better? by Janice Hardy
Words From George R.R. Martin by Aderyn Wood
Analyzing What to Write by David Farland
Analyzing Your Novel’s Audience by David Farland (that elusive High Concept)
Audience Analysis, Part 2 by David Farland
Do We Stick With a Genre or Write What We Feel? by Julia Robb
Fate Core and Creation of Magical Worlds by Karen Woodward
On Writing the Non-Western Fantasy Setting by Miriam Forster
Writing Race in YA by Nicola K. Richardson
How to Raise the Stakes in Your First 50 Pages of Your Novel by Jeff Gerke
Can Story Themes Help Pantsers Write? by Jami Gold
Three Ways to Ground Readers In Your World by Janice Hardy
Spinach Scenes (And How to Deal With Them) by Leila Austin
Five Ways to Create Context In Your Story by Dr. John Yeoman
Voice Tips From Pros by Becca Puglisi
How to Revise For a Stronger Theme by Jami Gold
3 Ways to Compress Your Story Like Les Misérables by Joe Bunting
What Makes a Romance Novel Truly Romantic by Jody Hedlund
The Pride and Prejudice Beat Sheet by Marilyn Brant
Writing Historicals – How Accurate Must You Be? by Anne Cleeland
Writing a Feel Good Story by Karen Woodward
Writing Warm and Fuzzy by David Farland
Testosterone Fueled Fiction by David Farland
How to Write Short Story Characters by Karen Woodward
6 Ways to Stand Out At a Writer’s Conference by Barbara Santos
Book Marketing
Author Platform Starter Kit (72 page long PDF) by Dan Blank (AWESOME resource)
You, amplified (a poem about marketing) by Colleen Wainwright
Designing a Brand That Works – 6 Key Elements by Tea Silvestre
11 Tips For Creating a Remarkable Brand by Tea Silvestre
6 Places to Look Outside Your Business Niche for Creative Inspiration (& 3 Places Never To Look) by Abby Kerr
5 Goldenly Creative Ways to Tell Your Brand Story by Tea Silvestre
Taking Responsibility For Your Marketing Plan by David Farland
Building a Platform vs. Promoting a Book by Rachelle Gardner
Bigger Bang For Your Marketing Bucks by Tea Silvestre
Are You Neglecting This Important Book Sales Tool? 5 Steps to a Great Blurbs by Mark Edwards
10 Ways Proven to Draw Readers to Your Novel’s Website by Thomas Ummstattd
The Cheese Factor: Keep the “Cheesiness” Out of Your Author Website by Kerry Lonsdale
Build Your Mailing List! 5 Ideas That Really Work by Toni Tesori of DuoLit
Email Marketing For Authors: 6 Articles by Chris Robley
Teaching Your Fans to Shout Out For You by David Farland
Getting Book Reviews: Hit Me With Your Best Pitch by Kelly Jensen
How to Take a Good Author Photo by Chris Robley
5 Tips to Improve Your Amazon Author Central Page by Cat Rambo
Life in an Ottoman Harem by Colin Falconer (This is one of the most interesting book promotion posts I’ve ever seen. A great story)
(Self-)Publishing
Think Like a Publisher 2013: Return on Investment by Dean Wesley Smith
Are Self-Pub Books the New Slush Pile? by Rachelle Gardner
Query Letters: Author Meagan Spooner and Agent Josh Adams discuss SKYLARK by Stephanie Kuehn
Ebook Parts by J.A. Konrath
Using a Variety of eBook Price Points to Build an Indie ePublishing Empire by D.D. Scott
2013 YA Cover Trends, Part 1 by Kelly Jensen
2013 YA Cover Trends by Kelly Jensen
2013 YA Cover Trends, Part 3 by Kelly Jensen
Blogging
How to Find Your Message and Stand Out by Justin Dixon
Blog For Your Right People by Abby Kerr
17 Ways to Turn Your Blog Readers Into Loyal Fans by Tea Silvestre
7 Surprising Things About Blogging by Victoria Mixon
Blogging Tips: 3 Fast Fixes by Angela Ackerman
The Science of Storytelling: 6 Ways to Write More Persuasive Stories by Gregory Ciotti
How Do You Feel About Re-Posting Old Blog Posts? by Janice Hardy
Social Media
Where’s the Line Between Spamming and Sharing by Jami Gold
The Brave New World of Social Media – Love Never Needs Updating by Kristen Lamb
12 Social Media Mistakes For Authors to Avoid by Anne R. Allen
Quick-Start Pinterest Tips by Stormy Sweitzer
Books, Reading and Pinterest by Kelly Jensen
YA Authors on Pinterest by Kristen Hubbard
LinkedIn—Making The Most of Your Six Seconds by Jenny Hansen
Collected Wisdom
Writing Resources by Gene Lempp
Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig
Deep Stuff
Date a Girl Who Reads by Rosemarie Urquico (I’ll definately give this spiel to my kids when they’re older 🙂 )
Why Do We Read? by David Farland
How to Be Creative When Your Brain Doesn’t Want to Play by Gary Korisko
The Story of a Boy Who Went to Prison by Shannon Lell
Beauty of a Woman Blogfest: Do Breasts Define the Female? by Jenny Hansen
Beauty of a Woman Blogfest: What Would You Trade to Look Young Forever by Marcy Kennedy
An 18-Minute Plan Managing Your Day by Peter Bregman
18 Minutes Free Resources by Peter Bregman
Smile At Your Unfinished List by Jonathan Mead
Fun Stuff
The Best Stuff Revealed in the Game of Thrones Season 2 Blu-Ray Set by Chris Lough
“As You Wish…” Eight Unabashedly Romantic SF/F Love Stories by Ryan Britt and Emily Asher-Perrin
The 5 Soapiest Romances in the Star Wars Expanded Universe by Natalie Zutter
Explore a Living Map of Ankh-Morpork by Stubby the Rocket
10 SFF Book Series So Addictive Tou Never Want Them to End by Charlie Jane Anders
10 Fantasy Book Series That Could Replace Harry Potter at the Movies by Charlie Jane Anders
2012 Nebula Award Finalists Announced (Tor.com)
Portrait of Lisane da Patagnia by Rachel Swirsky (Nebula Award Nominated Short Story)
Fiction Affliction: February Releases In Urban Fantasy by Suzanne Johnson
Fiction Affliction: February Releases in Fantasy by Suzanne Johnson
Fiction Affliction: Genre Benders For February by Suzanne Johnson
Creating a Sub-Genre by Accident: Georgette Heyer’s The Corinthian by Mari Ness
Link Feast For Writers, vol. 36 – Fascinating Edition
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.
This week there is a whole category dedicated to Sally Hogshead’s book “How To Fascinate” and the seven triggers she describes. These triggers can be used to make anything fascinating, including your blog, your characters, first chapter and so on.
If You Have Time For Only One Thing
10 Ways for an ADD Writer to be OOH! SHINY!…Productive by Kristen Lamb
On Writing
The Secret to Finding Time to Write, Market, Promote and Still Have a Life by Jane Friedman
Talent Is Cheaper Than Table Salt by Kristen Lamb
Nine Good Gifts For the New Year by Juliet Marillier
12 Tips For Recovering From Writing Burnout by Jami Gold
Five Bits of Writing Advice by Diana Peterfreund
The Secret to Writing a First Novel by Julianna Baggott
The Starburst Method: Discovering Your Characters by Karen Woodward
Character Interview Questions That Really Matter by Juliette Wade
Psychoanalyzing Your Villain by Ryan Greenspan
Female Leads and Romances by Nicole Ciacchella
Gender in YA Books by Ilona Andrews
When Do You Start the Story? by Shannon Donnelly
The Starburst Method: Hero’s Journey, Part 1 by Karen Woodward
The Starburst Method: Hero’s Journey, Part 2 by Karen Woodward
Plot Fixer #10: A Loss of Focus by Kara Lennox (Great post about themes)
Must Every Scene Be Different? by Juliette Wade
Time Marches On: Dealing With the Passage of Time Between Scenes by Janice Hardy
How to Research an Ancient Society For Your Fiction by Laura Pauling
The Editorial Process by Steve Laube
One Simple Trick to Effective Self-Editing by Steph Auteri
Young Adult Predictions For 2013 by Kristi Cook
The “New Adult” Genre: Why Does It Exist? by Jami Gold
How to Create a Weekly Schedule With Google Calendar by Amy Lynn Andrews
Book Marketing
Don’t Make Your Book Launch Like a Trip to the Dentist by Dan Blank
Are You Selling Your Book to the Wrong Readers? by Shannon O’Neill
What’s a Niche Market and Where are They Hiding? by Victoria Noe
Which Comes First: Branding, Design or Copywriting? by Abby Kerr
Making Your Launch Day Count by Matthew Turner
What I Did to Launch My Book In Its First Seven Days (Wise Ink)
5 Things on the New Year’s “To-Do” List for Every Purpose-Driven Author (Wise Ink)
Book Promotion: What You Can Learn From Richard Branson’s One Track Mind by Steven Lewis
How to Find Out More About Your Readers Without Having to Ask by Steven Lewis
What To Do When Your Book Isn’t Selling by Rob Eagar
Online Book Reviews: Games People Play by Anne R. Allen (an eyeopening post)
How to Fascinate Others
[Hook your readers to your characters and your blog.]
How to Fascinate Others… And Why Authors Should Take Note by Jeannie Campbell
Fascination Trigger #1: Power by Jeannie Campbell
Fascination Trigger #2: Passion by Jeannie Campbell
Fascination Trigger #3: Mystique by Jeannie Campbell
Fascination Trigger #4: Alarm by Jeannie Campbell
Fascination Trigger #5: Prestige by Jeannie Campbell
Fascination Trigger #6: Trust by Jeannie Campbell
Fascination Trigger #7: Rebellion by Jeannie Campbell
(Self-)Publishing
How Long Should You Try to Get Published? by Jane Friedman
Protecting Amazon From Itself by Sarah Hoyt
(If you have short stories for sale on Amazon that have been published previously elsewhere (especially if the anthology is still in print), this is a must read.)
How to Format Word Document For Amazon by Karen Woodward
Blogging
When Should I Launch My Author Website? by Thomas Umstattd
5 Days of PR For Bloggers – Day 1: Take Inventory and Set Goals by Cassie Boorns
5 Days of PR For Bloggers – Day 2: Write a Great Bio by Cassie Boorns
5 Days of PR For Bloggers – Day 3: Creating Content and Driving Traffic by Cassie Boorns
Five Kinds of Blog Posts Proven to Drive Traffic by Susan Johnston
Keeping Your Blog Focused by Kenra Daniels
5 Days of PR For Bloggers – Day 4: PR Tactics For Your Blog by Cassie Boorns
5 Tips For Maintaining Your Blogging Momentum by Susan Johnston
5 Tools to Keep Your Writing Fresh by Reena Cruz
Why Bloggers Think Your Pitch Sucks by Cassie Boorns
Social Media
Privacy and Social Media – How to Control Your Personal Information by Joanne Phillips
3 Tools to Help You Find the Best Time to Tweet by Caitlin Muir
3 Ways Authors Can Use Pinterest Guilt Free by Caitlin Muir
How to Save Copy of Your Pinterest Boards as a PDF by Cheryl Enlow
Collected Wisdom
Top 10 Writing Blogs For Writers 2012 – The Winners (Write to Done)
Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig
Friday Features by Yesenia Vargas
Deep Stuff
In Your Life’s Tag Cloud… Remember You by Angela Brown
The Beauty and the Beast of Optimism by Coleen Patrick
2013: The Year of Taking Control by Ramit Sethi
How to Build Resilience For the Year Ahead by Mark McGuinness
Relationship Advice – Why Won’t Anyone Be Honest With You? by Ramit Sethi (I love his tough love)
Would a Jedi Mind-Trick Work On You? by Lisa Hall-Wilson
Fun Stuff
You’re Not Really a Fan Unless You’re Wearing It On Your Underwear by Ellie Ann Soderstrom
Cover Posing For a Good Cause by Jim Hines (he mocks the silly Urban Fantasy & Fantasy female poses for charity)
77 Science Fiction and Fantasy Movies to Watch Out For In 2013 by Charlie Jane Anders
10 TV Cliffhangers That Make Great Series Finales by Charlie Jane Anders
Fiction Affliction: January Releases In Fantasy by Suzanne Johnson
Fiction Affliction: January Releases In Urban Fantasy by Suzanne Johnson
Fiction Affliction: “Genre-Benders” For January by Suzanne Johnson
What Roleplaying Can Be Like (With 8 Fantasy Authors) by Brent Weeks [Might be gibberish to uninitated but I LOLed]
About Reetta
I'm a Finnish fantasy / urban fantasy writer who loves reading, roleplaying and all things medieval. 
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