Show, don’t tell is easy to preach and hard to do. Here’s what it really means, the filter words to cut, and when plain telling is the smarter move.
Show, Don’t Tell: How to Fix Telling in Your Writing Read More »
How to write a redemption arc readers actually believe, with a real cost, a true fall, slow change, and a few people who never quite forgive.
How to Write a Redemption Arc That Feels Earned Read More »
Marketing a cozy mystery series doesn’t have to mean living on social media. Here is what actually sells cozy books, from one indie author to another.
How to Market a Cozy Mystery Series Without Burning Out Read More »
Planning a cozy mystery series? Learn to build recurring characters, a series bible, and a small-town world readers will happily return to, book after book.
How to Plan a Cozy Mystery Series Readers Will Binge Read More »
Build a cozy mystery suspect list that plays fair: how many suspects you need, what makes each one squirm, and where to hide the killer in plain sight.
How to Build a Cozy Mystery Suspect List That Plays Fair Read More »
How to write a cozy mystery opening readers cannot put down: lead with the sleuth, build the town first, and plant the case before the body lands.
Cozy Mystery Opening Chapters: How to Hook Your Reader Read More »
A craft guide to writing red herrings in a cozy mystery that mislead the reader without breaking fair-play rules or insulting their intelligence.
Red Herrings in a Cozy Mystery: How to Plant Them Without Cheating Read More »
There is a particular kind of novel that stops being a story and turns into a sermon with characters. You can feel the moment it happens — the dialogue goes stiff, somebody starts saying things no human says out loud, and the book quietly stops trusting you. I write faith-informed fiction, and avoiding that trap
Writing Faith Without Preaching Read More »
Ask a room of kids to “write about your weekend” and watch a certain number of them go completely still. Pencil down. Eyes on the desk. That stillness isn’t laziness. It’s the blank page doing what blank pages do best: scaring people. I make writing-prompt resources for teachers and parents, and the single most common
How to Get a Reluctant Writer to Write the First Sentence Read More »
Children are the toughest dialogue critics alive. They may not tell you your kid character sounds fake. But, they may just quietly decide the book is “for babies” and never pick it up again. I learned a lot about this writing a book narrated by a seven-year-old. Here is what actually makes a young character
Writing Dialogue a Kid Will Actually Believe Read More »
