If there are two publishing industry terms I see mixed up the most, it’s probably synopsis vs blurb. Both are very important to the publishing process, so it’s important to know the difference to be professional in conversation, and to accomplish your publishing goals.
Category: Publishing
Pitching a literary agent this year? Get prepped.
Writing conference season is just around the corner. If you read my article about how to get a literary agent through pitching instead of querying, now is the time to prepare.
Breaking down online platforms for writers: Medium, Vella, and others
If you’re new and trying to navigate the online platforms for writers, it can be overwhelming. Amazon is omnipresent, but the second you join a writing group you hear about Vella, Radish, Medium, Vocal, and dozens of others. It’s wild out there.
Writing Blurbs (Part 3): Progression
Blurbing, dear friends, is the art of condensing. We’ve talked about what a blurb is and discussed its essential elements. We dove into how to streamline a blurb and build emotional momentum by limiting proper nouns and decluttering our details. What’s left is to discuss is writing blurbs that progress —how to take those minimal details…
Writing Blurbs (Part 2): Limiting Details
In the previous post of this series, I emphasized limiting details when writing blurbs. But why do that—and how? How does an author narrow down exactly what to mention, and what to exclude? Limit or eliminate place names The most obvious reason for this is to avoid visual clutter. Especially in fantasy or historical fiction,…
My experience with a pen name
In addition to using a pen name for different genres or to keep your fictional persona separate from your real-life, there are other reasons someone might choose to write under a nom de plume.
A simple checklist for self publishers
My second self-published poetry collection comes out next week. I thought the second time around would be easier. I was wrong. Turns out going wide is more work than sticking with Kindle Direct (Amazon). I learned the ropes a bit when I published prisonbreaks, and Killing Ghosts felt bigger to me. I wanted to give…
The Challenges of Writing A Poetry Book
Writing a poetry book is not as glamorous as I anticipated it to be. I’ve been writing poetry for decades, verses jotted down when emotions run too high. Poetry comes to me in fits of rage, holes of depression, fleeting moments of lust, times of loss, sorrow, self-reflection. Most of the time, inspiration comes during…
Publishing Companies: What are the differences, and which one should you choose?
After you’ve finished writing and editing your novel, the inevitable question is what to do next. Your baby is all grown up and ready to go out into the world! But then you’re hit with the paralyzing decision of what path to take. Traditional publishing? Self-publishing? Small press? There are so many options, and when…
How to Find an Agent For Your Novel
You finally did it! You not only wrote an entire novel, but you went through agonizing rounds of edits, killing off your darlings and making the story the best it can be. Now, you’re facing that terrifying question: what next? For anyone looking to break into traditional publishing, then the first step can seem like…