The time leading to a book launch is stressful, hectic, and exhilarating! Hopefully, the launch goes well and lots of friends and readers show up for your talk at a library or bookstore.
Then, there’s the time after the launch. Continue reading Back to Writing After the Book Launch
The 2023 New England SCBWI Conference will be held Friday, April 28th – Sunday, April 30th.
This is my go-to writing conference because it’s always got great depth in everything kidlit, from writing picture books to middle grade and young adult novels, plus graphic novels and illustration. I was looking for the inside scoop to share with readers and got it and thanks to Co-Director Jim Hill.
This year’s conference will be extra special because:
– It’s the conference’s 50th anniversary!
– It’s IN PERSON. While Zoom conferences are great, I think we’re all ready to meet up live with writing and illustrating peeps who we haven’t seen for a bit.
For a run-down on what the schedule includes and more, read our full article! Continue reading A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the 50th Annual New England SCBWI Conference with Co-Director Jim Hill
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
I always get a bit excited when a book I’m waiting for finally releases, so it’s great to finally share that The Conflict Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Obstacles, Adversaries, and Inner Struggle (Vol. 2) is now out! This SILVER EDITION is the twin of the GOLD EDITION, and continues to explore all the ways we can better leverage the conflict in our story. If you are new to these … Continue reading More Conflict for You: The Conflict Thesaurus SILVER EDITION is Now Out (plus a giveaway!)
It’s always fun when there’s good news to share, and today is one of those days. You may know Angela Ackerman & Becca Puglisi, the authors of The Emotion Thesaurus. Well, I’m a big believer in the helpfulness of their books and so joined their Street Team for The Conflict Thesaurus: A Writer’s Guide to Obstacles, Adversaries, and Inner Struggles (Vol. 1). It’s just released, and I am so … Continue reading A New Writing Guide for You: The Conflict Thesaurus +Giveaway
What made you want to become a writer? For many of us, the love of words and stories began in childhood. There are certain books that will never quite lose their shine — books that inspire the writers in us even today, simply because they helped us discover the magic of truly good stories. (Click to read more!) Continue reading Why Everyone Should Seriously Consider Writing a Children’s Book
Do you read short stories? Have you written any? I love them and have written a few of my own. This month, it seems as if short stories dominated my reading list. I judged a teen short story contest with 33 entries and read two books of short stories. As you can see, I’ve thought of nothing else and that is what prompted this post. … Continue reading Tips for Writing Short Stories
If you are asked to list the writing advice you’ve been given, your list will be similar to others. Show don’t tell. The three act structure. Write what you know. This last one is what we’re going to look at today. Specifically, what it means, what the perks are, and how to do it. The phrase write what you know means to choose an aspect … Continue reading Write What You Know. What Does That Mean?
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
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
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!
