Killing Your Character(s)

We’ve all heard the advice as authors to “kill your darlings” but in her article, “How to Successfully Kill a Character: The Checklist,” K.M. Weiland shares her thoughts on when it’s a good idea to kill them, and when not. Check it out!

12 Fundamentals Of Writing “The Other” (And The Self), by D. J. Older

This is an excellent article to review when writing characters outside of ourselves. “12 Fundamentals Of Writing ‘The Other’ (And The Self)” by D. J. Older, author of the YA novel, Shadowshaper, among others.

The 5 Basic Elements of an Author Website, by Frances Caballo

In the article, “The 5 Basic Elements of an Author Website,” Frances Caballo offers some unique insights into the design and content of an author’s webpage. The insight that stood out for me is to consider using an infinite scrolling format. She suggests that the format is well suited to authors of picture books and YA, as those audiences are well familiar with scrolling on their electronic devices. An infinite scrolling page may… Read More

The Total Beginner’s Guide to Submitting Short Fiction for Publication, by Amanda C. Davis

Amanda C. Davis is a prolifically published short story author. She has both self-published her stories and contributed to anthologies. In her post, “The Total Beginner’s Guide to Submitting Short Fiction for Publication,” she offers tips for newbies on how to go about submitting your stories for publication. P.S. In addition to writing, Amanda also designs book covers. She offers both specially designed covers as well as stock covers that can be modified for your book.

43 Words You Should Cut From Your Writing Immediately, by Diana Urban

In her article, “43 Words You Should Cut From Your Writing Immediately,” Diana Urban provides a useful list of watch words to eliminate from your writing. Check it out!  

Are These Filter Words Weakening Your Fiction? by Suzannah Windsor Freeman

“Are These Filter Words Weakening Your Fiction?” is a useful article on words to eliminate to make your fiction stronger. Well, ok, to make *my* fiction stronger.

Virtual Mentors for Picture Book Makers, by Jennifer K. Mann

In Virtual Mentors for Picture Book Makers, Jennifer Mann documents her learning curve in producing children’s picture books. It is a lovely article and resource for aspiring picture book authors.

Unbound

One of our Wordherders found this site that crowd sources authors’ pitches. Check it out! Unbound

Story Glue, by Anna Elliott via WriterUnboxed

I found this article interesting, and thought the rest of the Wordherders might too. In Story Glue, Anna Elliott discusses what makes her pick up a book in her limited reading time.

A Guide to Black Hair #2 – Natural Styles, by Justina Ireland

Here is the second article in the series by Justina Ireland, A Guide to Black Hair #2 – Natural Styles — Justina Ireland. Note especially the “Red Flag Words” at the bottom of the article. Thank you, Justina, for helping avoid personal blind spots.