LAURENCE MACNAUGHTON

Tag: how to write a book

  • How Do I Finish My Novel?

    Q:  Hi, I’m trying to write a novel about two people who meet by accident and then discover that they share an element of their two dark pasts.  I have a few general story ideas, but nothing concrete.  I know where I want to start my novel and where I want it to end, but…

  • What Is Copyright, Exactly?

    What is copyright? Want to protect your work against copyright infringement without convincing literary agents and publishers that you’re a complete amateur? (Or worse, a paranoid loon?)  Here are a few simple points to remember. Basically, copyright protects the embodiment of an idea in a tangible form.  That can mean a published book (or movie,…

  • How To Write a Book from One Image

    Got writing questions?  Get answers! Q:  I have this singular, compelling image that keeps getting stuck in my mind, and it has inspired me to write my novel.  But it’s just one scene, really.  Is there any way I can develop a story from that?  Can you give me any idea how to write a…

  • Free Writing Websites

    Learn how to write a novel the right way. Wait, don’t tell me, let me guess — you, dear reader, want to learn how to write a novel!  (Well, the fact that you’re on a web site called “You Can Write A Novel” conveniently gives it away.)  I’ve always believed that when you want to…

  • Your 3 Writing Personalities: the Surprising Truth

    Can the E-Myth show you how to write a novel? In The E-Myth Revisited, bestselling author Michael Gerber doesn’t breathe one word about how to write a novel.  But the priceless wisdom in these pages might change how you think of yourself and your writing process. In a nutshell, the E-Myth puts forth the idea…

  • How To Revise A Novel

    Got writing questions?  Get answers! Q:  I have a writing question.  Actually, a rewrite question.  What do you do when you’re so sick of your novel that you just want to tear it into shreds?  I’m trying to edit my writing so I can send my novel out to literary agents and publishers.  I used…

  • Become a Pro Writer — One Hour at a Time!

    The more you write, the better you get.  That should go without saying, but discouragement can dim our perceptions, so I’m coming right out and saying it: Every hour you spend writing makes you a better writer.  I talk a lot about the learning curve of your first novel.  If you’re like most people, as…

  • Your Very Own Custom Erotica — for Charity

    Erotica author Tiffany Reisz Here to prove that you can write a novel about even the most risque of topics is author Tiffany Reisz, who has a two-book deal with Harlequin Spice and three erotica novellas either out or coming out in the next year.  She has also graciously donated a truly unique item to…

  • How To Make A Disastrous Booksigning Event A Success by J.A. Konrath

    Author J.A. Konrath I happened across this writing article by J.A. Konrath recently at  Backspace, The Writer’s Place.  I remember reading it years ago, probably in Writer’s Digest somewhere.  Joe really knows his stuff when it comes to literary agents, publishers and how to write a book.  So check this out; it’s a great piece…

  • Defrag Your Writer Brain in 3 Easy Steps

    If you’re like me, ideas swirl around you all the time — stories, characters, settings, dialogue, and so on.  It sticks in your brain, so you write it down.  Before long, you have so many scraps of paper around you that a single gust of wind could turn you into a human snow globe. This…