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Understanding the “New Adult Fiction” Category

 

 

What is new adult fiction?

 

New adult fiction bridges the gap between young adult and adult books. It typically features protagonists between the ages of 18 and 26. The label was first used in 2009 when St. Martin’s Press hosted a contest looking for stories that could

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Working with Your Local Bookstore

We live in a digital world of pressing a button to order anything, including books. Does that mean traditional bookstores are obsolete? Of course not. Bookstore owners/managers can be an author’s friend and advocate in the community, but we, as writers, need to do our part in fostering that relationship.

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Building Your Brand as a Writer

Every well-known author has a “brand”. Think of Dr. Seuss, J.K. Rowling, Judy Blume, John Green. When you see their names and their books, you get a sense of what’s important to them and how they see the world.

You may have done our own branding, composing a banner for your blog

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The Right Way to Set Goals for the New Year

In the January 2016 issue of Children’s Book Insider I wrote the article “Why Resolutions Fail”. My theory is that we don’t keep our resolutions because we don’t truly have a plan for completing all the steps involved. But it’s just as important to set the right kind of goals

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Top Ten Grammar Bloopers

We’ve all seen blooper shows on television. Family bloopers. Actors’ bloopers. Talk show bloopers. But have you ever seen a grammar blooper show? Probably not. Well, I can’t provide you with an actual show on grammar bloopers, but I can give you my top ten.

You may ask why I

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Habits: Are They Holding You Back?

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.”–Aristotle

 

What personal habits are keeping us (writers) from reaching our writing goals? Cluttered workspace? Unclear goals? Perfectionism? Taking on too many projects at one time? Disorganization? Lack of discipline?

Weeding out the

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Real Time Management for Writers

Many of us have taken time management classes in an attempt to get more out of our days. However, sometime we don’t realize that writing and managing a writing career takes different types of time: actual writing time, time spent marketing, time spent communicating with clients (editors and others), time

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Understanding Copyright and Fair Use

 

COPYRIGHT

 

Did you know that you have invoked a copyright as soon as you write something—putting it on paper or other media? For many years I didn’t understand this concept. I thought I needed to take out a copyright on each short story, article, or book I wrote.

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Plan Your Career as You Would a Synopsis

Do you hate to write synopses? I do. After 34 books, you’d think that I could get it right, but writing synopses still gives me the heebie-jeebies. Maybe that’s why I also struggle in trying to plan a writing career. (A career plan—what’s that?)

Writing a synopsis and planning a

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Using Connectives to Make Your Prose Flow

Do you ever wonder how to use connective words? I do. I am constantly second-guessing myself on the proper use of such words as “than,” “as,” “nevertheless,” “neither,” “either,” etc.

Like transitions, connectives serve as a bridge, connecting anything from a word, a clause, a sentence, or a paragraph with

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Mastering the Vital Art of Transitions

I grew up in the Washington, DC/Maryland area. In navigating your way through the city and its many suburbs, you often need to cross over rivers, the Anacostia, the Potomac, to name just a few. Bridges provide the means for you to cross the rivers.

Bridges also provide the means

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What’s Holding You Back?

You’re a writer. Perhaps you’ve just started your writing career and dream of becoming a New York Times bestseller. Or maybe you’ve been writing for a while and sold some short stories, but you have yet to reach your goal of selling a book.

What’s holding you back?

 

FEAR

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Survival Guide for Writers

We all know about survival guides. There are guides to surviving in the wilderness. (I’d rather not, thank you.) There are guides to surviving parenthood, divorce, the death of a loved one, job loss, and just about every other conceivable situation.

I’ve decided that writers also need a survival guide.

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Nailing Down the Interview

Most writers at one time or another will conduct an interview to learn more about a career, a person, a historical event, etc. Interviewing does not come naturally to many individuals, especially those writers who tend to be introverted (like me). But there are skills we can learn to make

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The Writing Conference Success Guide

You have the opportunity to attend a writers’ conference. You’re more than excited; you’re also a bit nervous. What can you do to make the most of it? What can you do to prepare for it?

After attending many conferences, I’ve come up with what I call my “conference success

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To Build a Career, Give ‘Em What They Want

Nordstroms is a department store with a well-deserved reputation for providing not only quality goods but also quality service. Customer loyalty to the store is legendary. Associates are schooled in “the care and feeding” of customers.

 

Okay. You get it. Nordstroms is a great store. (And no, I’m not

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Productivity and the Writing Life

We all want to be more productive. Too often, though, we approach this goal with no clear idea of how to make it happen. Saying “I want to be more productive” is not likely to bring results. Start with a plan.

  • Define productivity in personal terms. Do you want to
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Glossary of Common Publishing Terms

What’s your writing IQ? Do you know the lingo used in the writing and publishing business? Take a look at the following definitions and see how many you know.

Let’s start at the beginning with basic terms:

 

Antagonist: the anti-hero or force who works to keep the protagonist from

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Networking Can Help Your Career, and the World

In the March 2015 issue of Children’s Book Insider I wrote about establishing your networking goals to help you boost your writing career. I also showed you how to identify your networking personality. Once you’ve done all that, you’re ready to put it all together.

There are principles that can

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Perfect Your Writing Style

Fashionistas talk a lot about style. So do writers. Interestingly, both groups use the word in much the same manner. Style, in fashion and in writing, is unique to the individual and revealed in the details.

I will never be a fashionista, so I won’t be instructing you in that.

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Get Targeted Feedback Through Response Sheets

Writers need feedback. Unfortunately, feedback can be hard to come by. What to do?

Your first reader should, of course, be yourself. After you’ve read through the manuscript and revised to the best of your ability, find several other readers to offer critiques. These first readers are often referred to

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Make Friends with Your Setting

You’ve done your character sketches. Maybe you’ve even interviewed your characters, had them write letters to you, and pinned pictures of them on your Pinterest page. You’ve written a detailed synopsis, done a chapter-by-chapter outline. You’ve identified your story’s theme. You’re all set to start writing. Right? Wrong.

What about

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Opening Lines: Make Yours Count

“Christmas won’t be Christmas without any presents,” grumbled Jo, lying on the rug.

 

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, if the was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of

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The Writer as Businessperson: How to Take Your Career Seriously

My husband owns a business that makes power supplies. He operates it as would any business person, with attention to inventory, marketing, record-keeping and, always, professionalism.

Did you know that writers are also business people? Sometimes, however, we forget that, focusing on the creative side and neglecting the business one.

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6 Steps to Fewer Rejection Letters

Most writers have weathered rejections.  I know I have.  For every acceptance I receive, I can count five to ten rejections.  I’ve learned to live with this. (Mostly.)  However, there are ways of minimizing rejections.

“I can’t control whether an editor likes my story,” an inexperienced writer may object.

Not

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FAQ: Creating a Memorable Title for Your Book

What makes for a great title? How do we come up with evocative titles? What role do publishers and editors play in title selection? Should you hold out for your original title, even in the face of editorial requests that you change it? What if you are doing a trilogy or series of books, how will that influence your titles? Can titles be copyrighted?

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5 Steps to Building a World in Sci-Fi & Fantasy

world

Building worlds in science fiction and fantasy involves more than simply deciding upon the name of that world. It means creating a language, a culture, rules and mores, dress and styles, a past or history.

 

Does that sound intimidating?  It needn’t be.

 

Just as in eating an