this is my story, this is my song

No matter who you are, you can benefit from this simple resource that improves your titles and headlines!

Writing a book? Easy. Capitalising a title. . . infuriating. Whether you write books, articles, blog posts, or anything and everything in between, I’m sure you’ve run into the title capitalisation obstacle before. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve sat there wondering, Do I capitalise this “as”? What about the “before” here? And then I try the word both ways, going back and forth, wondering…

It's December! 🎉 Check out today's roundup to discover all the important stuff going on in the writing world this week and next.

It’s December!! Anyone else enjoying the chilly weather? Anyone not enjoying it? Personally, I love that time of year when I can finally, finally, dig my sweaters out from underneath my shorts. (Just kidding, I don’t actually put my pants in the same drawer as my shirts. I’m not a monster.) I feel like I can finally come out into the sunlight after six months of hibernation during the scorching…

There's lots of writing software out there, and I finally caved and got one. But how does it stack up against the rest of them?

A few weeks ago, I got an email from ProWritingAid that changed my life. Funnily enough, I had never used ProWritingAid before, but I was subscribed to their emails because of their writing events. Despite the positive reviews I had heard about the software, I used Grammarly instead because its free version was much more robust. So when I got this fateful email from ProWritingAid, I paid little…

Wondering what to do about AI-written content? Worried about robots becoming authors? Here's why we need to keep writing anyway.

Since Chat GPT debuted a year ago, discourse about AI in the writing world has only increased. Where do you stand on the issue? AI is an amazing feat of engineering, so revolutionary that it’s already changing the world. But, as the saying goes, with great power comes great responsibility. Already, there’s been a sharp spike in AI-assisted scamming traps, and some have even used AI to steal…

What's the most important part of your story? In today's reblog, JGlover introduces us to the all-important "story keystone."

What Is A Story Keystone? What in your story is so important that the rest of the story can’t stand without it? It’s the theme, of course. This is why I love thinking of theme as this new term I heard from JGlover’s post: the story keystone. Even after you’ve heard me harp on theme time after time, you still need to read this post. JGlover breaks down story keystones so well and gives tons of…

Storytelling wisdom can come from the unlikeliest of places! Journey with me as we learn from a fictional world we all (as in, 90s kids!) know and love.

I’ve been a nerd all my life; maybe that’s why I still play Pokémon as an adult.  Pokémon was as instrumental in my growing up as Disney, Star Wars, Narnia, and Lord of the Rings. Some of my earliest memories are waking up early to watch Pokémon on TV with my older sister. In my younger years, my friends and I pretended we had Pokémon and battled each other with gusto. I was obsessed with…

Thanks for showing up today even as you’re stuffed full of turkey, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, and whatever else you eat at Thanksgiving! Personally, my favourite was the apple pie. I promise it’s not just because I made it. . . Even if you don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, I hope you’ve had a wonderfully relaxing week full of gratitude. To end it, let’s take a look at some…

For those of you who celebrate Thanksgiving, I wish you a cheerful day filled with family, rest, gratitude, and lots of food! The power of finding beauty in the humblest things makes home happy and life lovely. Louisa May Alcott Happy writing, loving, and eating!—E.J. If you enjoyed this post, I hope you’ll consider buying one of my books, donating to the blog, reading my stories on Vocal,…

Unnecessary scenes, dialogue, and descriptions are all too common in books nowadays. Don't fall into that trap—learn how to get rid of the fluff!

Time. It’s one thing to experience it, another to relate it to a reader. It takes careful work to manage the flow of time in a fiction story. When do you describe a character brushing their teeth? Or waking up in the morning? When do you detail a conversation and when do you skim over it with a sentence or two of narration? Don’t make the mistake of thinking this is a minor issue. Your choices…

It's not too late to get ahead in NaNoWriMo—here's how!

How to Survive and Conquer NaNoWriMo NaNo’s over in a little over a week—which means you still have over a week to win! This is a great post of effective tips to employ during NaNoWriMo. Even if you’re almost done with your 50k-word novel, it’s never too late to try something new! I’ve tried some of these methods myself and they’ve worked wonderfully. Even if you’re super behind on NaNo, these…

You have an idea. You write a book. You publish a book. Hooray! But. . . there’s a step missing. A step that will ensure your book is professional. A step that will keep, rather than turn away, readers. Editing. Maybe you think I’m crazy for suggesting that someone would skip this step. If so, I’m very glad that you would never do this, because the reality is all too many authors are blind to…

The deals don't get any better than this! Visit this week's roundup for posts about self-publishing, a controversial writing question, and some incredible writing-related discounts you won't want to miss!

It’s been a weird week in Florida. I haven’t seen a ray of sunshine since Saturday, the temperature has sat around the low 70s, and it’s been drizzling almost constantly. I haven’t seen a week like this in years! Regardless of the strange weather, we’ve had a productive week here on the blog—and outside of it, too! Now’s your chance to catch up on all the writerly goodness that busyness (or…

Before you think about self-publishing, take a look at these all-important tips I wish I would have known before publishing my books.

If you’ve written a book, you can publish it.  It’s a freeing statement. As an author, it makes you feel like anything is possible! You can put any piece of your imagination out there for the world to see.  But self-publishing is not an easy journey. In our excitement to “get published,” we often overlook the “self” in “self-publishing.” “Self” means that it’s all on us. We have control over…

Ever get stuck while writing? These 11 quick tips will give you the jumpstart you need!

11 Fixes When The Words Won’t Flow Newsflash: we all get stuck sometimes. I love this post because it applies to all writers! We all have times when our normal process stops working and we need to do something different, even if it’s just for five minutes. The post above provides 11 simple, practical tips for getting the words to flow again, and I’ve employed nearly all of them myself with…

Not sure what to buy for the writer in your family? Looking to treat yourself with a nice gift? This is the last list you'll need, no matter your budget! Check out the best 15 writing gifts you can buy this year.

I can’t believe I’m already talking about Christmas, but here we are!  I know, I know, it’s the middle of November, but that means Christmas is a little over a month away. And that means if you haven’t started planning Christmas gifts, you’d better start now!  But don’t worry—I’m here to help! Whether you have a writer in the family, someone who’s interested in writing, or even if you want to…

I’m still learning. And hopefully, you are, too. I’ve been running this blog since early 2020, but I’m learning new things about content writing, running a website, and blogging all the time. Hopefully, I’m still able to provide relevant content even after 500+ posts! Over the past few weeks, I’ve been experimenting with post length and scheduled posting times. After reading some excellent…

Is your dialogue effective? As one of the great keys to creating a good story, dialogue is important to get right. Yet, poor dialogue is all too common in the books I edit. Join me in learning the basics of crafting effective dailogue and why it matters!

‘How are you?’ [Mr. Holmes] said cordially, gripping my hand with a strength for which I should hardly have given him credit. ‘You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive.’ ‘How on earth did you know that?’ I asked in astonishment. ‘Never mind,’ said he, chuckling to himself. ‘The question now is about hemoglobin. No doubt you see the significance of this discovery of mine?’ ‘It is interesting,…