Exploring Spaces to Gain New Perspectives for Your Writing
April 25, 2022
Noticing spaces gives us new perspectives for our writing … More Exploring Spaces to Gain New Perspectives for Your Writing
Category: Skills
Slow Down and Discover Rich Details
March 28, 2022
Contour drawing slows us down and frees us up to explore details that breathe life into our story’s characters and settings. … More Slow Down and Discover Rich Details
Drawing to Discover the Extraordinary
February 28, 2022
Let drawing help you look more carefully and discover the extraordinary in the ordinary, … More Drawing to Discover the Extraordinary
Look, Discover, Create
January 24, 2022
Here are 3 ways to fit “looking time” into your day. … More Look, Discover, Create
Great Writing Isn’t Born—It’s Built Sentence by Sentence with Self-Editing
January 3, 2022
While I was self-editing my first children’s novel in 1989 (gasp, yes, I hung out with Methuselah et al.), I consulted a great little book called Self-Editing for Fiction Writers: How to edit yourself into print. The wise authors, David King and Renni Browne, helped me look professional in many areas including dialogue and proportion … More Great Writing Isn’t Born—It’s Built Sentence by Sentence with Self-Editing
The Right Amount to Write
December 20, 2021
All around the internet, at writer’s conferences, and in any gathering of literary minded folks, you’ll find writers of all genre and for all ages asking this question: “Is it important to write every day?” As this year comes to a close and a new year is dawning on our horizon, this is also a … More The Right Amount to Write
The First Page of Your Picture Book
November 15, 2021
A picture book is all about your Main Character (MC) and the problem he or she is trying to solve. As in all manuscripts, the first page of your picture book plays an important role. We’re going to talk about the text that will eventually become the first page of the published book. Because the … More The First Page of Your Picture Book
Choosing Your Mentor Text
October 18, 2021
As any brave explorer would do before embarking on a journey, it’s important for us as children’s writers to choose a reliable flashlight to help us find our way.For writers, our flashlight is a mentor text. What exactly is a mentor text, you may ask? In a nutshell, it’s a children’s book that you want … More Choosing Your Mentor Text
Websites for YA Writers
July 1, 2021
Compiled by Jean Matthew Hall If you would like to read up on writing for young adults before our September 18, 2021 Master Class with Tessa Emily Hall here are a few helpful website. Some contain quick tips. Some go into much more depth. They are handy resources for you to refer to again and … More Websites for YA Writers
Book Review: Social Media for Today’s Writer
March 4, 2021
Social Media for Today’s Writer offers practical advice for building an author platform. Read a full review here. … More Book Review: Social Media for Today’s Writer