What happens when an online friend becomes a real-life nightmare?
Roisin hasn’t made a single friend since moving from Ireland to Massachusetts. In fact, she is falling apart under constant abuse from a school bully, Zara. Zara torments Roisin in person and on social media. She makes Roisin the laughingstock of the whole school.
Roisin feels utterly alone… Continue reading Recommended: FRIEND ME by Sheila M. Averbuch
I’ve been thinking about manuscript critique and revision a lot lately.
A LOT, a lot.
I’ve been working on a young adult thriller that feels like it has taken forever to pound into shape. As one of my critique partners mentioned more than once, “You don’t have to write 95,000-word manuscripts with 4 point-of-view characters. There are easier stories to write.”
True enough. And I’m extremely lucky to have wonderful critique partners (CPs) who will read my 95,000-word monstrosity and help me make it better.
As I revised on my own and then with notes from CPs, I spent a lot of time thinking about manuscript critiques and. . .
Continue reading 8 Tips for Getting a Great Manuscript Critique
Today, we’re so excited to host the cover reveal of a story by one of our own!
Ten: three little letters, one ordinary number. No big deal, right? But for Troy Hayes, a 16-year-old suffering from Tourette Syndrome and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, the number ten dictates his life, forcing him to do everything by its exacting rhythm.
A harrowing yet hopeful account of a teen living with Tourette Syndrome and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder . . . and contemplating his own mortality. Continue reading Cover Reveal: LIST OF TEN by Halli Gomez
An atmospheric retelling of tales from Persian culture. Girl, Serpent, Thorn begins as many retellings do, with a neglected princess hidden away from the world. But the fact that Soraya’s skin is poisonous to the touch gives the story a unique twist. As as the princess begins to see her condition not as a curse but as a source of power, the story really becomes interesting. . . Continue reading Recommended: GIRL, SERPENT, THORN by Melissa Bashardoust
The first thing that drew me into this story was the rich magical world. Kallia performs in a club, descending from above the stage masked and sitting on a crystal chandelier as depicted on the book’s cover. She controls the entire space—lights, music, and atmosphere with her magic, drawing every eye.
But Kallia seeks a bigger stage and freedom from Jack whom she has reason to mistrust. . . Continue reading Recommended: WHERE DREAMS DESCEND by Janella Angeles
This is the absolutely true account of how Lansburg, Pennsylvania was invaded by aliens and the weeks of chaos that followed. There were sightings of UFOs, close encounters, and even abductions. There were believers, Truth Seekers, and, above all, people who looked to the sky and hoped for more.
Only. . . there were no aliens. Continue reading Recommended: IT CAME FROM THE SKY by Chelsea Sedoti
Today we’re hosting Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi of Writers Helping Writers on the blog. They’ll tell you a bit about their Writer’s Showcase event, new book, and a great freebie to check out. Awesome, right? Continue reading A Resource to Help You Choose the Right Job for Your Character + Giveaway
What if you could fast-track the reader’s understanding of a character without chunky paragraphs of description that kill the story’s pace? And what if you could use a common element of daily life to explore story goals, relationships, themes, and even the character’s internal growth? You can. It’s time to activate the power of your character’s occupation… Continue reading Recommended: THE OCCUPATION THESAURUS by Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi
I wrote a post last month on 8 Writing Tools We Love. It made me think about another writing tool I use frequently that both writers and bloggers could benefit from: Canva.
Canva is a great online graphic design tool and you don’t need to be a pro to use it. I discovered Canva when Richelle wrote a post about DIY Infographics and I wanted to give them a try. Graphics are great when you want to use images other than just photos in blog posts. . . Continue reading Using Canva to Create Graphics: An Intro for Writers & Bloggers
The most important thing when you’re writing is the words, but it helps you to have some tools to speed the writing process along. Here are 8 tools we love and use for writing fiction. They help with writing blog posts and freelance jobs too.
We hope you find a couple tools on this list that are helpful for you!
1. Grammarly
Continue reading 8 Writing Tools We Love
This book has been on my TBR for a while and once I started it, I was mad at myself for waiting so long!
It’s the story of Mimi, the youngest of four kids and a budding baker. Mimi. . . Continue reading Recommended: MIDSUMMER’S MAYHEM by Rajani LaRocca
We’re thrilled to announce that LIST OF TEN, an #ownvoices young adult contemporary novel by Halli Gomez, will be published spring, 2021 by Sterling Children’s Books!
Since Halli is one of our own, we wanted to get the inside scoop on her path to publication. Continue reading Book Announcement: LIST OF TEN by Halli Gomez
