Tag: Writing Coach
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Beat Writer’s Block in 6 Simple Steps
Q: I’m about five chapters into writing my first novel and I’ve reached a total impasse. I flat-out don’t know where to go from here. Everything started out so well, I had lots of story ideas and the pages were coming fast. But now I’m stuck, and I don’t know what to do. Should I…
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5 Fast Ways to Stop Editing Yourself
Write a novel on an AlphaSmart. Why not? Q: When I’m writing a novel, how do I stop myself from going back and fixing things? As I write, I’m afraid to even look at the screen because I’ll hate what I wrote. I keep my eyes focused on my desk instead, or on objects that…
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How to Win Writing Contests or Die Trying
As I write this, my unpublished novel Cold Million is a finalist in the Colorado Gold contest, which is held every year by the incomparable Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers. The competition is stiff. I’m up against some of the finest undiscovered writers in Colorado. In fact, a couple of the finalists in my category are…
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The One Thing You Must Do to Get Published
As a writing coach, it’s my job to help people get a little perspective on their story problems. Recently, a client asked me to help him out with his first novel. He’d gotten halfway through and stalled out. I put together a laundry list of ways to fix his various story problems — and then…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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Win Literary Prizes and Help Fight Diabetes
Just a quick reminder that bidding starts Sunday for the Brenda Novak Diabetes Fundraiser. This year, aspiring writers get a chance to win some incredible prizes. Seriously, some mind-blowing stuff! Like lunch with agents, editors and other Very Important People. Or a chance to get your polished manuscript into the hot little hands of people…
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Literary Agents, Editors and You, at the Brenda Novak Diabetes Fundraiser
This is a great charity event! I’ve been wanting to donate to this for years. (True story: back when I worked at a book distributor, there were two pallets of Nora Roberts and Iris Johansen paperbacks I was almost able to donate, but then there was an unfortunate incident involving a blizzard, an aging forklift…
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Meet a Literary Agent and Help a Kid Learn to Read
It isn’t often that you get a chance to boost your own writing career and do a good deed at the same time. So when that opportunity comes along, you say, “Yes!” If you live in Colorado, here’s a great opportunity to personally meet with literary agent Sara Megibow and get one-on-one writing feedback. Sara…
LAURENCE MACNAUGHTON 