Writer Unboxed

In the crowded lists of historical romances, bestselling novelist Madeline Hunter has carved an enviable niche. She’s been a publisher’s dream, writing 15 novels in seven years. Careful with historical details as well as prose, she’s been recognized in as many years by the Romance Writers of America’s RITA nominations for excellence in fiction, […]

Update on today’s post: Well, what do you know. Barnes & Noble has just reversed their decision! Read GalleyCat’s piece on this breaking news HERE. I appreciate their closing thoughts:
Interesting how consumer interest went from “a handful of pre-orders” to “enough customers… to warrant stocking it in our stores” in just two days, isn’t it?

If you’ve been keeping up with the WU Google Notebook updates (of course you have), you’ll already know all about the controversy over Barnes & Noble and their unwillingness to carry on their store shelves I Did it: Confessions of a Killer (the “If” in the title was removed by the Goldman family after winning […]

As most of you know, WU contributor Victoria Holmes is the brainchild behind the wildly popular WARRIORS series for YA readers.  The cat-clans are back in force in another adventure, FIRESTAR’S QUEST, certain to vault to the top of the NYT’s bestseller lists.  We are pleased to present this Take 5 with Victoria Holmes. 
1. What is the premise […]

I’m thrilled to announce that Donald Maass has agreed to an interview with me for Writer Unboxed. Maass, as most of you probably already know, has his own agency (Donald Maass Literary Agency) and is the author of my very favorite craft book for unboxing story, Writing the Breakout Novel. Seriously, if you don’t have […]

So. Here we go again.
After another year of dogged determination or sheer insanity, I’m ready to draft out the final chapter of my current wip. Except I don’t know how my book ends.
I mean, I have a vague idea of how it should end (hopefully leaving the reader slavering for more), but I’m […]

Madeline Hunter exploded onto the historical romance scene with the publication of her first novel in June 2000, and she’s been dominating the genre ever since with her blend of razor-sharp plotting, steamy seductions, and detailed historical research. She’s appeared regularly on the NYT and USA Today bestsellers lists, and has won oodles of […]

Here’s a profound philosophical insight for you: moving stinks.
Dick Francis, the guy who writes all those horse racing novels, has said, “I don’t like writing at all. I like having written.”
I don’t like moving. I like having moved. Settling into a new house. Unpacking boxes (often taking five years to do […]

Most of the time we don’t hear about the world of authors–outside of book signings and award nominations, that is. But lately I’ve been reading a lot about authors and their out-of-the-cave times. Since most of this isn’t really applicable to what I’ve been trying to accomplish with the Books & Business Google Notebook daily […]

Folks who’ve seen the movie As Good as it Gets know that there was something magical about the pairing of an obsessive-compulsive and an out-of-luck waitress. It wasn’t exactly a love story, but it was a story about an implausible pairing made authentic. (I’d argue that it was the “implausible” part of the equation that […]

Last weekend I took my daughter to see the animated movie Ratatouille, and I was blown away. I’d expected a light PG romp about Disneyfied animals who have crazy adventures in Paris. I didn’t realize I was going to be treated to a meditation on creativity and artistic expression in a subtle and […]

This from Yahoo News:
J.K. Rowling has been spotted at cafes in Scotland working on a detective novel, a British newspaper reported Saturday.
The Sunday Times newspaper quoted Ian Rankin, a fellow author and neighbor of Rowling’s, as saying the creator of the “Harry Potter” books is turning to crime fiction.
“My wife spotted her writing her […]