I knew that the second book in my Serpent Catch series was doomed. There were three indicators. The first was that my publisher had been bought out by a conglomerate that wanted to ditch all of the science fiction and fantasy authors—literally dozens of them. The second came when my
Once in a panel, I was asked, “Who inspired you to become a writer.” I’ve been asked that question many times before, so I knew the answer, but before I could speak up, I had a realization: More than anyone else, I inspired myself. Let me explain. Certainly there were a
I felt gratified that my first novel was well received, but I discovered that no matter how well you think things through with a novel, you’re apt to make mistakes.For example, I knew that I wanted to write fantasy, but my publisher thought I was doing so well in science
UPDATE AUGUST 2020: The anthology is still doing very well, here is the latest from this year: L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 36: Anthology of Award-Winning Science Fiction and Fantasy Short Stories You can also find more about the contest at Writersofthefuture.com ORIGINAL POST: As
As we read stories, we are constantly making judgments. We may admire an author’s style, even as we are annoyed by a plot twist that we saw coming; or we might get creeped-out by the foreshadowing, while we’re annoyed by the author’s cynical tone. It seems to me that one
When I got my first writing contract from Bantam Books, I had two problems. One was my health. I was still fighting off my chronic fatigue syndrome. The second problem was that I had never written a complete novel. Sure, I’d written a dozen short stories and I’d started four novels, but
My arm shook over the mouse button in apprehension. A single shot, a single click, was all I had to turn this hard-sought opportunity into success. What if I wasn’t ready? Had I studied enough? What if I’d played it safe? Was I unoriginal? Hell, anything but that! Amazing opportunities
Before we get to today’s writing tip, just a quick note that my Phoenix writing workshop is next weekend, and this is your last chance to sign up. This is also the last live writing workshop I will be doing in the U.S. until November. If you would like to come, but are having
When I switched my major from medicine to “Editing” at BYU, I really decided to immerse myself in my writing. Now, I don’t want you to think that I gave up on everything else. I had other artistic interests. I had always been good at sculpting, had studied photography, and
Of course, we all want knockout love letters every time that we publish. It’s more than just the praise that we crave, a great review can go a long way toward generating sales. A rave in a major venue like Publisher’s Weekly or The New York Times not only sells
As a young writer, I had a lot of doubts. Perhaps foremost was the problem that I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my life. Like most teens, I spent a lot of time . . . trying to figure it out. My father really wanted me to
I’m not sure exactly when I got hooked on writing. As a child I began experimenting with drawing pictures and adding a few words of story to them, as many children do. At the age of 9, I wrote a little poem about Halloween and drew a picture to go
Frequently I’m asked, “How do you write a novel series?” and I’m left to flounder for words. You see, I know what they really want. They don’t want to know just how to write a series. Any fool can do that, and a lot of them try. There is no
For eight long years, I had been giving in to my desire to tell stories, and the stories that I wrote were all confined to the bottom drawer of my desk. . . . I almost gave up hope. I enjoy telling stories. Here’s a brand new story, but unlike
Every story consists of a character with a problem, and deals with his attempts to resolve that problem. This happens in several phases. In phase 1, the character recognizes that he has a problem–a big problem, one that will change his life. In phase 2, the character tries to resolve
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