Maps, character charts, history notes, plus writing advice and more
Here are some resources I’ve found helpful on my writing journey. Some sites may not be updated recently, but still have helpful info in the archives. Also! I check out my writing advice articles on Writer Unboxed. Writing Blogs Querying References Writing Craft Podcasts Book Podcasts Industry Talk & Author Interview Podcasts Last updated Dec 2025
It’s writing craft time! Beginnings are critical, because if you don’t nail them, no one’s going to flip to the next page in your story. The goal of a good beginning: make the reader curious about what will happen next. Sound simple? But how do you do that? I think every opening should do at least one of these things (but usually more): When I set out to write this novel, I really didn’t know how to write a compelling opening scene so I decided to try writing all the beginnings I could possibly imagine (9), and I learned a lot…
You’ve written a novel! Congratulations! If you want to sell it, now you’ve got to go through what’s called the querying process. Here’s a quick rundown of how to do that. 1.Write a good query Is your book finished and edited? Now you’ll want to write your query. It’s a letter that captures what your novel is about, and hopefully entices the agent to read more. The goal of a query is to get a request for a partial (50-100 pages) or the full manuscript. That’s it 2. Put together a list of agents You’ll want to make a list of agents…
The purpose of a query is to get an agent or editor interested enough to request the full or partial manuscript. Not all books lend themselves well to being summarized this way, but it’s easier to sell a book if you can. There are 4 main sections in a query: 1) Metadata: This part includes word count, genre, title, why you’re querying this agent. Book comps go here too if you’re using them. For example, “This book would appeal to fans of [X].” or “This book is [X] meets [Y].” Some people prefer to add this section after the pitch,…
Once long ago, I was a university career counselor, and so I absolutely love getting questions about careers and goals and what it takes to be a writer. First off… if you write, you’re a writer. Full stop. There’s no need to tell people you’re an aspiring writer, or an unpublished writer. Just like if you’re an artist, it doesn’t matter if you sell your art or not to be one – you just are. The best thing you can do right now for your writing is to read as much as possible, and read in every genre: fiction, non-fiction,…