Link Feast For Writers, vol 52

Hello dear readers, this Link Feast’s alive. It’s alive!

I’m sorry for neglecting you. Work has been crazy since I shifted departments. Excuses, schmexcuses but I will get bi-weekly steady again.

I’ve been sitting on these links for a while so it’s time to push this baby out into the world. Luckily the best writing advice and good blog posts in general don’t have an expiration date.

But if you want the freshest writing tips, I recommend you to check out the other link mash-ups in the Collected Wisdom section.

Next Link Feast coming up in two weeks on Sunday. Wrote that down to my calendar even. Or I will when I find it under all the crap 😛 House work hasn’t exactly been steady either.

Anyway, enjoy the links. And please leave a comment 🙂

 

If You Have Time For Only One Thing

How to Create a Three-Phase Writing Ritual by Debra Eve

 

On Writing

Learning From the Masters by Gabriela Pereira (the 4 types of books writers should read)

168 Hours: Time and Productivity #1 by Gene Lempp

Time Managament Tip: “Yes Makes Less” by Jenny Hansen

What’s on Your “Why To Do It” List? by Carleen Brice

Dreaming Big by Sharon Bially

10 Steps to Finding Your Writing Voice by Jeff Goins

When Nothing Goes Right, Go Left by Robin LaFevers

Fear: The Uninvited Guest by Robin LaFevers

Writing Is Magic by Kristan Hoffman

How to Be an Author 24/7 by Bill Ferris

Fifty Lessons From Fifty Shades of Grey – Part I (Writer Unboxed)

Fifty Lessons From Fifty Shades of Grey – Part II (Writer Unboxed)

Fifty Lessons From Fifty Shades of Grey – Part III (Writer Unboxed)

Drive, Don’t Chase by Jael McHenry (On following writing trends)

Levels of Conflict by John Vorhaus

4 Big Pitfalls in Story Opening by K.M. Weiland

The First Ten Pages of a Sceenplay by Erik Bork (totally applicable to the first chapter of a novel)

Adapting Screenplay Structure to Genre Novels by James Preston

Avoiding Boring Character Biographies by David Corbett

5 Reasons Why Han Solo Is the Most Realistic Person in Star Wars by Ryan Britt and Emily Asher-Perrin

Clothing Your Characters by Liz Michalski

Letting Your Characters Go by Juliet Marillier

Baby Got Back…. Story by Tiffany Reisz

Doing Research by D.B. Jackson

4 Steps to Successful Revisions by Cathy Yardley

Self-Editing For Everyone, Part 4: The Weakeners by Bridget McKenna

Cliffhangers and Book Series by Kristi Cook

Blind Spots and Obsessions in Historical Fiction: What Were They Thinking? by Dave King

 

Book Marketing & Blogging

5 ways to write a blow-your-mind manifesto by Alexandra Franzen

What are you about? What’s the theme of your life? Make me care. Nay, inspire me.

Marketing: Finding and Selling to Non-Book Book Audiences by Peter McCarthy

The Importance of Knowing Our Audience by Elizabeth S. Craig

Release Activities For the Reluctant Promoter by Elizabeth S. Craig

Don’t know what to blog about? 88 pieces of fill-in-the-blank inspiration by Alexandra Franzen

The Shy Writer’s Cocktail Party Survival Guide by Anne Greenwood Brown

 

Traditional Publishing

5 Reasons to Turn to Traditional Publishers Rather Than Self-Publish by Meg Waite Clayton

5 Essential Elements For Pitching Romance by Marcy Kennedy

How to Maintain a Healthy Author/Agent Relationship by Elizabeth Weed

 

Social Media

Twitter: A Dangerous Sense of Entitlement by Annie Neugebauer

3 Tips on Cleaning Up Your Twitter Account by Jenny Hansen

What If You Hate Facebook? Are You DOOMED? by Lisa Hall-Wilson

The B.A.R.F. Score: How To Know if Social Media is Working For You by Dan Blank

 

Collected Wisdom

Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig

Writing Resources by Gene Lempp

Must-Read Monday by Yesenia Vargas

 

Deep Stuff

100 Questions to Inspire Rapid Self-Discovery by Alexandra Franzen

I Did Not Marry My One True Love by Lisa Hall-Wilson

Insomnia, Wizard Vans, and Why Modern Women Read “50 Shades of Grey” by Kristen Lamb

 

Fun Stuff

10 Funniest Lines in all of Star Wars (According to me) by Ryan Britt

He’s That Bad and That Likeable: Pitch Black by Theresa Delucci

The Chronicles of Riddick: What Happens When You Let Vin Diesel Be Your Dungeon Master by Theresa Delucci

Weird Reality: Reality TV Aimed At Your Inner Geek by Shoshana Kessock

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. 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. 41

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.

 

If You Have Time For Only One Thing

Self-Publishing and Traditional Publishing: Enjoy the Best of Both Worlds – Interview with C.J. Lyons by Jane Friedman

 

On Writing

Feeling Overwhelmed? Eat That Frog by Kristen Lamb

Organizing: Eat Dessert First! | Dialogue is War | Make Readers Click On Buy by Randy Ingermansson (eZine PDF)

Why You Get Nothing Done When You Have a Lot On Your Plate by Shanna Mann

5 Quick Tips to Write More by Kathy Steffen

Writing Goals Sheet by Gabriela Pereira at DIY MFA

Enemies of the Art, Part 7 – Failure to Focus by Kristen Lamb

8 Tips For Finding Motivation to Write by Karen Woodward

Closing the Gap: Moving from Notebook to Story by Susan Jackson Rodgers

Dwight V. Swain on How to Write a Novel by Karen Woodward

“In the case of good books, the point is not how many of them you can get through, but rather how many can get through to you” – Mortimer J. Adler

How to Write a Character From Start to Finish by Jeff Gerke

Tags, Traits and Tells by Karen Woodward

The Table Theory of Characterization by Ryan Howse (uses Firefly as an example <3)

The Elementary Life of a Sidekick by Alex Bledshoe

How to Build a Story World Based on a Character by Jeno Marz

Roleplaying Games, Writing and Creation of Magic Systems by Karen Woodward

The Inciting Incident/Call to Action (Key Story Elements) by Alexandra Sokoloff

How to Add Jeopardy to Your Story Before the Main Conflict Starts? by Roz Morris

37 Ways to Keep Readers’ Pulses Racing—and Keep Them Reading by Jordan McCollum

Theme Me Up: How to Develop Your Theme by Janice Hardy

Alternative Ways to Describe Character Reactions by Janice Hardy

Good Writing: Using the Senses by Karen Woodward

A Short Course in Line Editing by Michelle Seaton

Analyzing Story Structure by Karen Woodward

Top Ten Romantic Movies by Alexandra Sokoloff

5 Techniques to Spice Up Your Writing by Jon Morrow

The Terrible Addiction by Annie Laurie Cechini

 

Book Marketing

“Marketing is just telling the right story to the right people.” – C.J. Lyons

Learn Your Craft, Dummy – No, I’m Not Talking About Writing by Edward Robertson

Why Even a Novelist Should Know How to Write Strong Copy by Dana Sitar

The 5 Phases of Microbusiness Brand Development by Abby Kerr

Your Secret Sauce: 9 Steps to Creating an Addicting Brand by Tea Silvestre

The Marketing Rule of 7 by Tea Silvestre

The Author With the Biggest Mailing List Wins by David Gaughran

3 Steps to Building Your Street Team by C.J. Lyons

5 Ways to Market Your Romance Novel by Tim Grahl

4 Great Examples of Author Websites by Caitlin Muir (AuthorMedia)

Are You Making This HUGE Book Marketing Mistake? by Shannon at DuoLit

How to Sell eBooks by J.A. Konrath

Your Amazon Author Central Page by Bufo Calvin

 

(Self-)Publishing

SWOT Your Way to a Sustainable Writing Business by Vickie Taylor

Why Writing Is a Business and How to Win At It by Nick Thacker

Recipe For a Successful Synopsis by Jami Gold

Checklist: The 6 Essentials For Submitting Your Novel to Agents by Brian A. Klems

5 Things I’ve Learned From Self-Publishing by James Calbraith

THING 2. Sucessful Seduction and the Naked Truth: Rethink Cover Design for a Small, Small World by Elle Lothlorien

Why and How to Use Multimedia to Enchance Your eBooks by Harry Guinness

What I’d Like to See from eBooksellers in 2013: A Holiday Wishlist by Edward Robertson (Great analysis of strenghts and weaknesses of Amazon, Nook etc.)

What About the Needs of the Reader? by Elizabeth S. Craig

Why Children Hold The Key To Your Future As An Author by Jonathan Gunson

 

Blogging

How Not To Show Up Like an A-List Blogger by Charlie Gilkey

Quirky Much? How Your Oddities, Flaws and Peculiar Habits Help You Build a Stronger Brand by Tea Silvestre

How to Create an Agile Content Marketing Strategy (and Stay Sane Doing It) by Pamela Wilson

Your Signature Dish: How to Create a Program That Sizzles by Tea Silvestre

5 Silly Ways You’re Sabotaging Your Blog without Even Realizing It by Tommy Walker

Experiences That Make Readers Excited to Spread Your Message by Danny Iny

Why Guru Strategies for Blog Growth DON’T WORK
 and What Does! by Danny Iny

Wordalicious – How to Choose the Tastiest Words For Your Message by Tea Silvestre

5 Elevator Pitch Tips For Your Blog by Amy Lynn Andrews

What Happens If You Stop Blogging? by Annabel Candy

 

Social Media

Digital Sheep Get Slaughtered – Being Safe On Social Media by Kristen Lamb

Feeling Overwhelmed With Social Media? Social Media Can Make Us Crazy–Part 2 by Kristen Lamb

Promoting Your Book on Facebook and Twitter Is a Total Waste of Time by Mary W. Walters (the antithesis)

How to Use Twitter to Develop and Promote Your Zone of Genius by Justine Musk

7 Splendid Articles on Using Goodreads As an Author by Iain Broome

 

Collected Wisdom

Writing Resources by Gene Lempp

Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig

 

Deep Stuff

Show Up In a Different Way by Charlie Gilkey

The One Thing You Must Do To Achieve Break-Through Results by Michael Hyatt

Restock Your Happiness Well by Ginger Calem

“People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they’re not on your road doesn’t mean they’ve gotten lost.” – Dalai Lama

Do We Have the Right to Judge Other People? by Marcy Kennedy

The Truth About Constipation and Life by Shannon Lell

Note to Self: Don’t Get Organized by Gretchen Rubin

Library Love: The Sexy Librarian And Our Collective Imagination by Stephanie Bonjack

Defeating the Great Depression by Sarah Hoyt

23 Science Books That Are So Exciting They Read Like Genre Fiction by Annalee Newitz (great material for all writers with a dystopian bend)

 

Fun Stuff

What Kind of a Book Reader Are You? A Diagnostics Guide by Jen Doll (Thanks for the link, Jenny Hansen!)

Incredibly Weird Photos of People With Their Pets (Mommy Has a Potty Mouth)

Movie Spoilers: Who exactly is Peter Dinklage playing in X-Men: Days of Future Past? (and other cool tidbits) by Alasdair Wilkins

The 12 Most Horrifically Bad Dates in All of Science Fiction and Fantasy by Meredith Woerner

The 7 Greatest Bromances in Space by Rob Bricken (fear not, no slash here)

Trailer Frenzy: A Creepy Near Future Book About Government Experiments on Teenagers by Annalee Newitz

Link Feast For Writers, vol. 40

This week’s Link Feast comes on Thursday since my and my kids have been sick as dogs for the past week. I haven’t been able to start compiling the old links I promised. But I hope you don’t mind mostly fresh links instead 🙂

I was surprised by how fast I could whip this up. Having a steady system, and no time to get side tracked and get perfectionist helped.

If you have a preference of what kind of links would be useful to you right now, please let me to know in the comments.

 

If You Have Time For Only One Thing

Book Marketing for Shy Authors by Laura Pepper Wu

 

On Writing

Redefining the Writing Conference by Kristen Lamb (Join the first WANACon)

6 Steps to Launching a Dream by Andy Traub

Who’s On Your Team? by Jael McHenry

What to Do When Our Families Don’t Support Our Writing by Jody Hedlund

Creating Your Literary Ecosystem: The 10 Elements of a Successful Writing Career by Chris Robley

How To Write More And Create A Daily Writing Habit (4:55 min video) by Joanna Penn

“Do a Costanza” with Your Book’s Competition by Lynne Klippel (Do some comparative analysis before committing to writing the book. You need a fresh angle to the genre/plot/type.)

Sacred Silence – Why You and Your Book Require It by Lynne Klippel

Success: Is It Happening to You, Only You Don’t Realize It by Angela Ackerman

Lessons Learned From the Original Star Wars Trilogy to Up Your Writing Game by Lydia Sharp

The Football of Story by Art Holcomb

Authors vs. Characters: Can Our Morals Be Different by Jami Gold

3 Things You Need to Know Before Writing a Female Protagonist by Veronica Sicoe

Character Development – Distinguishing Secondary Characters From Each Others by Elizabeth S. Craig

Sleeps With Monsters: Where Are the Older Women? by Liz Bourke

How to Use Stereotypes In Your Writing by Veronica Sicoe

Key Story Elements: Opening Image by Alexandra Sokoloff

The Man (Or Woman) In the Mirror by Donald Maass

The Rule of Three by Alexandra Sokoloff

Revision: Shrunken Manuscript Technique by Darcy Pattison

Revision: Shrunken Manuscript vs. Spreadsheet Plotting by Darcy Pattison

Common Structural Problems by Stuart Horwitz

Rewriting: The Genre Pass by Alexandra Sokoloff

Five Rules For Choosing and Using Beta Readers by Lexi Ryan

 

Book Marketing

Got Platform? by Lynne Klippel

Why You Should Google Yourself: It’s Not Vain – It’s Good Business by Anne R. Allen

Fears That Stop You From Marketing Your Book – And How to Overcome Them by Lynne Klippel

50 Shades of… Book Buyers by Lynne Klippel

Filling a Need and Finding Your Niche by L. Diane Wolfe

When Your Book Does Not Fit: How to Ensure Your Book Delivers for Your Ideal Readers by Lynne Klippel

Using the Before, During and After Technique to Market Your Book by Lynne Klippel

10 Things to Write to Help You Rock Your Book Launch by Dana Sitar

How to Promote Your Book (When You’re Scared Out of Your Mind) by Toni at DuoLit

Get Incoming Links to Your Author Website by Dana Lynn Smith

Top 10 Ways to Promote a Virtual Book Tour by Dana Lynn Smith

The Book News Media Wants by Brian Feinblum

5 Great Author Interview Practices by Chris Robley

 

(Self-)Publishing

How eBook Readers Shop And The Importance Of Sampling by Joanna Penn

Self-Publishing: Prioritizing Fast, Cheap and Good by Jami Gold

Do You Judge Books by Their Covers? by Jami Gold

 

Blogging

Is It Finally Time For You to Step Up? by Sonia Simone (A prime example of the power of a story)

Why Some Blogs Make Me Cranky by Sharla Rae

The Art of Being Interesting by Jonathan Morrow

Forget About Lenght and Focus on Value by Danny Iny

The 3 Essentials of Breakthrough Content Marketing by Sonia Simone

The 7 Facets of Confident Writing by Greg Narayan

The Perfect Blogging Output Level by Greg Narayan

7 Libraries Of Sensational Photographs You Can Use For Free by Jonathan Gunson

 

Social Media

How to Find Readers on Twitter by Jonathan Gunson

How to Promote Your Books on Pinterest by Lindsay Buroker

64 Google+ Content Strategies by Maria Peagler

 

Collected Wisdom

Writing Resources by Gene Lempp

Twitterific by Elizabeth S. Craig

Friday Features by Yesenia Vargas

 

Deep Stuff

10 Ways to Foster a Love of Reading by Jody Hedlund

12 Cognitive Biases That Prevent You Being Rational by George Dvorsky

Read to Lead: How to Digest Books Above Your “Level” by Ryan Holiday

Surviving Transition: Impulse Power by Gene Lempp

 

Fun Stuff

33 People Who Will Make You Feel Better About Your Dance Moves by Benny Johnson

Two Men Get a Glimpse Into What Childbirth Feels Like (Video) by Devan McGuinness

Fiction Into Reality: Why We Borrow From What We Love by Emily Asher-Perrin

10 Greatest Prison Breaks in Science Fiction and Fantasy by Charlie Jane Anders

5 Reasons We Still Love the Fifth Element by Brian Salisbury

30 Insanely Easy Ways to Improve Your Kitchen by Alanna Okun

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