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Slushpile Standouts: episode four
December 09, 2020
What makes one manuscript stand out from the next? What snags and red flags will land your work in the bin rather than on the shortlist?
- On the craft
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- 1 comment
How to Win a Writing Competition, Part Two—notes from a contest judge
December 04, 2020
Taste is subjective, but craft is not.
- Contest updates
- On the craft
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How to Win a Writing Competition—notes from a contest screener
November 21, 2020
I can’t tell you how to write a golden contest submission, but I can share what wins me over when I’m screening entries, and I can also explain how the screening process works. Armed with this information, you should be able to take your contest hustle up a notch.
- Contest updates
- On the craft
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- 3 comments
Slushpile Standouts: episode three
November 20, 2020
In our third YouTube episode, two Darling Axe editors read the first pages of several manuscripts and pose the question: would you turn the page?
- On querying
- On the craft
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Writer Brain versus Reader Brain
October 15, 2020
The writer’s version of a home run comes when the reader is so deeply submerged in a scene that the world around them disappears.
- On the craft
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Burning Down the House
October 13, 2020
Revision is the thing. First drafts are a blast, then you roll up your sleeves and become a real writer.
- On the craft
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How to outline a novel in five steps
July 31, 2020
A page-turning read is one that’s built on: “This happens, and so this happens, which causes this to happen, resulting in this.” There’s causality in the story, and readers continue to wonder what will happen next.
- On the craft
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- 5 comments
Aim for the Heart: Crafting a Killer Midpoint
June 29, 2020
A successful midpoint reversal will take the mush out of the middle of your novel and keep your readers up late wanting to find out what happens next.
- On the craft
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We are dream-weavers: on the writer's maxim of "show, don't tell"
June 21, 2020
We are dream-weavers, and the one thing we don’t want is for our dreamers (readers) to wake up. We want them to be so caught up in the dream of our fictional world, it’s as though they’re living it themselves.
- On the craft
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Out of the gates: how to avoid overused openings in your manuscript
May 20, 2020
It makes sense that many authors endlessly revise their opening pages. Finding the right entry point is no small task.
- On the craft
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Slushpile Standouts: episode two
May 19, 2020
In our second YouTube video, two Darling Axe editors read the first pages of several manuscripts and pose the question: would you turn the page?
- On the craft
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Literary agents on revision
May 09, 2020
You only get one chance with an agent, so don't blow it by submitting your manuscript before it's truly ready.
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- 2 comments