I wrote my first book report in third grade and it was a disaster. Like the little homework-lover I was, I’d prepared: I read the book well in advance and wrote a portion each night (I distinctly recall it being chunked into requiring a paragraph or two write up about setting, characters, maybe “new toContinue reading “How to Write a Book Synopsis (and Know When a Book is Ready to Query)”
Tag Archives: novel
Plotting, Pantsing, and Meal Planning
Meal planning was once a tool exclusively to organize budget- and health-friendly meals that reduced the likelihood that I’d panic-order pizza delivery multiple nights a week. It’s taken on an entirely new art form during pandemic: we stretched our bi-weekly grocery run to three weeks, innovated new aisle routes to maximize efficient shopping and minimumContinue reading “Plotting, Pantsing, and Meal Planning”
How to Procrastinate Until Your Book Writes Itself
It’s been a long time since I wrote a brand new story idea. I’ve been in revision land a looooooong time. The blank page can be awfully intimidating, writing something rough and misshapen and new, especially after working on something that has years of polishing, and I found myself avoiding some serious butt-in-chair writing time.Continue reading “How to Procrastinate Until Your Book Writes Itself”
How to Revise a Novel (Before You Waste a Year Fixing 300 Pages That Never Get Any Better)
Writing is rewriting is rewriting is rewriting. After years of reading craft books about how to shape hooky opening chapters and structure A+ plots and experimenting with nearly every revision process an author has ever posted on the internet—handwritten index scene cards taped to the wall, printed out chapters sorted like puzzle pieces on the floor, color-coded highlighters, color-coded sticky notes, red ink markup onContinue reading “How to Revise a Novel (Before You Waste a Year Fixing 300 Pages That Never Get Any Better)”
End of an Era
It’s come time to retire my little old laptop. It overheats, turns off and on on its own command, is the equivalent weight of a pile of bricks, and despite multiple battery replacements over the years it can last only about fifteen minutes when not plugged into an outlet. I want to retire it nowContinue reading “End of an Era”
Outlining After the Fact, Remembering Where You’ve Been
In the popular terms of “pantser” and “plotter,” I’m not really sure what camp I fit in with yet. Besides the unique experience of NaNo, (which didn’t help me create anything of quality) I’ve never sat in front of a blank screen waiting for the characters to take action on their own accord, dumping whateverContinue reading “Outlining After the Fact, Remembering Where You’ve Been”
Hannah Karena Jones 