177: Browbeaten into Submission
176: Break into Publishing
November 22, 2019
Submissions: Preparing to Send
Successful submissions require research and using my market guides. Putting time into pre-submission activities decreases the number of avoidable rejections.
What Are Agents Looking For?
Each literary agent has unique interests, specialties, and dislikes. Your submission to each agent should be personalized for that person. Find out how.
Researching Agents
Researching agents is the key to finding one that is a good fit for you and your work. Here’s what to look for in an agent and when you to run the other way.
Building a Better Bibliography
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > What sources matter most? Today, we’re wrapping Research Month on the IFW blog. What good is all that research without a good bibliography? This article comes from our book SEARCHING: A RESEARCH GUIDE FOR WRITER. For more practical…
Research Never Stops
Most successful writers are researching all the time. We just call it reading. Reading for exploration improves your writing in all kinds of ways—find out now!
Research Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them – Part 2
Paula Morrow reveals even more ways to make sure your research is working for you and not against you when you submit to editors. Read on for her insider tips.
4 Research Perils and Prevention
Without parameters, research can send you down a rabbit hole you can’t afford to follow. Consider these 4 perils the next time you research a writing project.
Research Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them – Part 1 | IFW
Famed editor Paula Morrow brings us Research Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them because research is essential whether you write fiction or nonfiction. Expert tips ahead!
4 Unexpected Benefits of Research
Research is a necessity for any writer, but with it comes benefits in other areas of life that may surprise. Consider these benefits the next time you research.
Steps on the Research Road Part 2
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > In last week’s post, Steps on the Research Road Part 1, Joan Broerman and Marie-Therese Miller shared tips for using books, online searches, and databases to research topics for our fiction and nonfiction stories. This article is just…
Asking Questions
You know that tiring toddler stage where your child asks questions and never stops? Poke your inner toddler and stir your curiosity. Dive in to read more!
Steps on the Research Road Part 1
Quality research is vital whether you focus on books, articles, short stories, or novels. Enjoy these research tips from Joan Broerman and Marie-Therese Miller.
Needful Things: Revision Begins on Page 1
In a first draft, it’s common to explain a lot as you begin to understand the story, but that has to go in the revision. So what does belong at the beginning?
Winning Nonfiction: A Path for Revision
Nonfiction writing includes outlines, research, and many drafts. The revision process gives us the chance to polish the content, presentation, and style.
Guilty Secret: Revision is Not My Favorite Thing | IFW
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Some people adore revision. They so talk excitedly about belching out their story in a rush of words and then relishing the time put into turning that rush into something a reader can love. I can admire that…
Revising: A Time to Fine-Tune Your Style
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Making your writing more distinctive. As experienced writers know, revising involves more than changing word counts, fixing punctuation, or checking for accuracy. Revision is also the time —think “opportunity”—to make our writing more vibrant, meaningful, and distinctive. Fine-tuning…
Misunderstood Verbs
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Verbs are the powerhouse of the sentence. Because of that, understanding how verbs work will help you tremendously in the revision process. It’s only by knowing what verbs are all about that…
Revising for a Strong Start
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > A checklist for hooking your reader. As the saying goes, we have one chance to make a first impression, and it’s the same with writing. Editors, agents, and readers tend to cast aside stories with weak beginnings. It’s…
Three Steps to Writing Better Dialogue
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Fiction, the kind accepted by children’s magazines and book publishers, relies on a careful balance of great action, strong setting and believable dialogue. Readers love dialogue. It lightens the page, making the…
