Happy New Year! Each year around this time, I like to take a few minutes to think about my goals for the coming year. As a devoted list-maker, I usually jot down a list of short-term tasks, longer-term projects and shoot-for-the-moon goals that I want to accomplish in the next twelve months. We’ve written about that process before here and here. But this year, I wanted to try … Continue reading Welcome to 2021: Create Your Own Vision Board
Welcome to 2021! We are all anxious to put 2020 behind us and focus on a new year filled with promise and productivity. There are dreams of writing the next book, attending conferences, and having books signed in person! However, I realize the promise of a great 2021 may take a while to arrive and instead of being discouraged, I have been inspired online challenges … Continue reading Tic Tac Toe for Writers
All of us at The Winged Pen are looking forward to seeing the end of 2020 and have high hopes for 2021…especially all the new Pennie books coming out, including Halli Gomez’s LIST OF TEN, Jessica Vitalis’s THE WOLF’S CURSE, Gabrielle K. Byrne’s THE EDGE OF STRANGE HOLLOW, and Gita Trelease’s EVERYTHING THAT BURNS. To prepare for the excitement, we’re going to take a few weeks off. But never … Continue reading Goodbye 2020 Road Trip
Who wouldn’t want to be Scarlet Leigh? Just look at her Instagram. Scarlet isn’t just styled to perfection: she is perfection. Scarlet has a gorgeous, famous boyfriend named Jack and there’s a whole fanbase about their ship. To everyone watching online, their lives seem perfect . . . but are they really? The sun is hot in California . . . and someone’s going to get burned… Continue reading Recommended: INFLUENCE by Sara Shepard & Lilia Buckingham
Welcome to another edition of our new semi-regular series: Blast from the Past. A refresher: We will occasionally read (or listen to) a book we had loved as children but have not re-visited as adult writers. And then we’ll tell you about it. How did the story hold up? Is the magic still there? What differences do we notice, both cultural and in storytelling techniques and … Continue reading Blast from the Past: Judy Blume
It’s Thanksgiving week, so my post today is on why I’m thankful for my writing journey.
Why write this post?
Because I generally spend a lot of time not thankful for my writing journey. There are so many reasons to gripe: Continue reading 8 Reasons I’m Thankful for My Writing Journey
Today we’re talking with a few 2021 debut authors about writing in multiple points of view. As writers we know it’s hard to get the character arc and voice down for one character, but two, three, four? Let’s see how these authors tackle this writing style. TWP: Why did you decide to write in more than one POV? One of the central questions my book … Continue reading How to Write in Multiple Points of View
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
This year has been pretty nutso. All the chaos and news demanding our attention can make reading new books hard – at least it has for me. I’ve found myself turning more and more to books, movies and TV shows that I’ve already experienced – for comfort, for predictability, for the relaxation that comes with knowing what’s next. Well, we Pennies decided that re-reading might … Continue reading New: Blast from the Past!
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
In July, I introduced you to The21ders, the debut group for the authors of middle grade and young adult novels being published in 2021. Today I’m going to talk about the debut year timeline. (And you will see why the knowledge and support of the group is so important) Depending on when your contract is signed, the publishing date set, and the deal announced, you … Continue reading The Debut Year Timeline
