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The First Page Challenge 2023—1st place
October 07, 2023
"Caterina is pretty sure she can outrun the Fioretti boys, but she isn’t sure if she can outrun their father."
- Contest updates
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The First Page Challenge 2023—2nd place
October 07, 2023
"Silent, silvery fields and dark clutches of tightly packed trees whip past the windows as I drive; the long branches of ancient oaks hang in the space above the road, obscuring the darkening sky. I shiver. I’d hate to break down out here."
- Contest updates
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The First Page Challenge 2023—3rd place
October 07, 2023
"The rain may have stopped, but the water will continue to rise."
- Contest updates
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The First Page Challenge 2023—results coming soon
October 01, 2023
This year about 160 entries landed in our inbox. It's always a pleasure to read snippets from so many stories brimming with potential.
- Contest updates
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Who Cares?! The importance of stakes in fiction
September 27, 2023
External conflict is essential to keeping the story moving, but it's the internal conflicts of your characters that make the reader care.
- On the craft
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Goodreads Giveaway: Immersion & Emotion
September 25, 2023
We are giving away a whack of free digital copies of our new craft book!
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Awkwardness: The Novelist's Secret Weapon
September 14, 2023
In our personal lives, we expend a lot of energy trying to avoid awkward situations. In fiction, we should embrace them.
- On the craft
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Foreshadowing: The Shape of Things to Come
September 08, 2023
Planting false clues or intentionally distracting the reader from what’s actually happening can be a great way to avoid predictability in a plot and create a satisfying twist. Foreshadowing is the tool you need for this type of misdirection.
- On the craft
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Story Skeleton—Jane Eyre
September 07, 2023
Setting is the key organizational tool in Jane Eyre.
- Story Skeleton
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Book: launched!
September 05, 2023

"A great novel is honed, not hatched."
- On the craft
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Five Prompts for Writing Relatable Characters in Children’s Stories
August 31, 2023
Perhaps your story’s hero is a loose sock who has woken up on the bottom of the dryer all alone. How will it be reunited with its pair?
- Little Darlings
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Writing Retreat UPDATE: It was a dark and stormy night...
August 30, 2023
It’s easy for life to intrude on writing time. Setting aside time exclusively for your creative work is a way to honor your commitment to the craft.
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