Contributed by Linda Wilson All writers experience it: low times. A low time can rear its ugly head after a particularly painful rejection, a bad case of writer’s block, or in my current challenge, a serious case of lack of writing time. At times like these there is only one thing to do: Seek inspiration….
Author: Karen Cioffi
Karen Cioffi is an award-winning author and children's ghostwriter. She loves to help those who want to be the author of a children's book fulfill their dream. Contact Karen today to get your story started!
Writing for Children – Know What You’re Doing
As with anything you attempt to do, it’s essential to know what you’re doing. My father was a contractor – he built homes. How structurally sound do you think those homes would have been if he didn’t know what he was doing or didn’t know how to read blueprints? Or what about a musician who…
8 Must-Know Tips to Get Your Book Visible for Free
Are you thinking about writing a children’s book? Or, maybe you have one published already. Well, unless you’ve written a book for ‘your eyes only’ or maybe your family’s, you’ll want to make your book visible. You’ll want as many people as possible to see what you’ve written. This is especially true if you want…
Children’s Ghostwriter, Rewriter, or Writing Coach – Which Do You Need?
Are you going to wait until you’re in your fifties, sixties, seventies, or older to fulfill your dream of being a children’s author?
Talking Yourself Into Success or Out of It
I had a client who began to talk herself out of the project after the book was almost complete. Keep in mind this had nothing to do with money – the project was already paid for. The client simply began second-guessing herself. I was able to convince her that ‘nothing ventured, nothing gained.’ I told…
Chapter Book Guidelines
I like writing children’s chapter books. They allow the writer more freedom than picture books or early readers, but they’re not as involved as middle-grade or young adult books. The children’s chapter book is just right—at least to me. I’m currently working in three different genres: picture book, chapter book, and a young adult. And,…
Get Your Self-Published Book Into Libraries – 6 Must-Know Tips
Have you wished you could have your book in the library system? How thrilling would it be to have someone borrow your book from your local library? For a long while this was only possible for traditionally published books. But that’s no longer the case. I read a great article at Jane Friedman’s site about…
Tips on Polishing Your Novel
Contributed by Linda Wilson, Children’s Author You’ve finished your book. All the major edits and rewrites are done. Now it’s time to polish. Polishing includes the obvious edits, including making sure the story elements are present, verbs are active, every chapter moves the story forward, etc. Fiction Short List: – Does the beginning draw you…
Writing – Do Not Worry About Failures
“Don’t worry about failures; worry about the chances you miss when you don’t even try.” Jack Canfield had a dream. He and co-author Mark Victor Hansen, both motivational speakers, compiled true inspirational stories from people in their audiences. They put these stories in a manuscript, called it Chicken Soup for the Soul, and sent it…
What Do Fiction Writing and Film Editing Have in Common?
I read an interesting article on editing. Well, not just editing, but how to do it effectively. Did you know that in “Apocalypse Now, Francis Ford Coppola filmed and edited thousands and thousands of feet of film. Mental Floss puts the footage at 1.5 million feet.” (1) So, why did Coppola take so much footage?…