When National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) is reaching its end, it is time to start thinking about how you will edit your new masterpiece. As you enter the new year, there will be plenty of time to make tweaks and rewrites so you can reach your goal of one day publishing your work. Many writers can be hard on themselves when it comes to editing, … Continue reading Tips for Editing Your NaNoWriMo Work in the New Year
As writers, we spend most of our time writing – as we should. We draft then revise, revise, revise, and revise until our manuscript is as perfect as possible. Then we move on to the next step. Query, query, query. Let’s go one further and say we sign with an agent. What now? More querying, but this time your agent is querying editors. It’s called … Continue reading A Peek into the Life of an Editor
September 28 – September 30, 2018, I spent the weekend at the SCBWI Carolinas “Word and Line” conference. The weekend was filled with craft, networking, and catching up with fellow writers and Pennies. But you know the feeling you get after spending a week or weekend at a workshop or conference filling your mind with ideas, tips, inspiration, and motivation? It’s a little exhaustion, a … Continue reading Conferences – Sharing What I Learn
Pitch Wars is here! The excitement is spreading through social media as hopeful mentees ignore their laundry, home-cooked meals, and the clock as they get their manuscripts ready. Mentors are also getting ready by putting on their reading glasses, grabbing their red pens, and stocking up on coffee and tea. The lucky mentor-mentee pairs will work together to get the full manuscript ready for the … Continue reading Let’s Meet the Pitch Wars Mentors!
Q: What is Four on 400? A monthly contest that provides ONE LUCKY MG or YA WRITER with feedback on their opening 400 WORDS! As part of our ongoing mission to support writers, we’ll give a MG or YA writer feedback on their work from four of The Winged Pen’s contributors. Q: Sounds exciting! How do I enter? To enter, simply comment at the bottom of this post! At 4pm (EST) … Continue reading December Four on 400 Contest is Here!
Thank you to all the brave souls who entered this month’s Four on 400 contest! Sharing your writing takes courage, and we appreciate your enthusiasm for our contest.Below, we’ve posted the first 400 words from this month’s winner, along with feedback from at least four of our members. We also encourage our readers to share their (constructive) suggestions and encouragement in the comments section below. MG Fantasy, JAMES … Continue reading Four on 400 November Contest Feedback!
Thank you to all the brave souls who entered this month’s Four on 400 contest! Sharing your writing takes courage, and we appreciate your enthusiasm for our contest.Below, we’ve posted the first 400 words from this month’s winner, along with feedback from at least four of our members. We also encourage our readers to share their (constructive) suggestions and encouragement in the comments section below. Camp Chrysalis (Middle … Continue reading Four on 400 October Feedback
Welcome to this week’s Master Your Craft post! Each Wednesday we’ll discuss prewriting and drafting a new book from the BIG IDEA to QUERYING. Last week, we continued our series on revision with a look at first and last pages. This week, we’re diving into making your language shine. After the long slog of drafting and re-drafting and revising and editing, it can be hard to remember what … Continue reading MYC: Playing with Language
Welcome to this week’s Master Your Craft post! Each Wednesday we’ll discuss prewriting and drafting a new book from the BIG IDEA to QUERYING. Last week, we continued our series on revision with Editing the Big Picture. This week, we’re diving in to crafting dynamic dialogue. Are your readers complaining of stilted dialogue, too many monologues, or not enough “voice” in your characters’ spoken words? If yes, you … Continue reading MYC: Dynamic Dialogue
Welcome to this week’s Master Your Craft post! Each Wednesday we’ll discuss prewriting and drafting a new book from the BIG IDEA to QUERYING. Last week, we talked about the importance of Writing with Emotion. This week, we’re stepping back and looking at the Big Picture. One thing this MYC series has taught me over the last few weeks is that there is no one way to write … Continue reading MYC: Editing the Big Picture
Welcome to this week’s Master Your Craft post! Each Wednesday we’ll discuss prewriting and drafting a new book from the BIG IDEA to QUERYING. Last week, we looked at the saggy middle. Today we’re tackling a somewhat controversial subject: revising while drafting. Two of our Pennies sat down and discussed their different approaches to revising your manuscript while you’re still drafting it. Richelle: When I say … Continue reading MYC: Two Opinions on Revising While Drafting
The last month has been an exciting time here at The Winged Pen as Pennies have been hard at work behind the scenes coming up with a surprise for you. Today, to coincide with Camp NaNo – the virtual writer’s retreat that helps you fit writing into your busy life – we’re excited to launch our new blog series: Master Your Craft with the Winged … Continue reading Introducing Master Your Craft: A New Series by the Winged Pen
