Raymond Obstfeld is The Man when it comes to fiction writing.  A well-respected novelist with 28 titles in just about every genre imaginable to his credit, many screenplays and adaptations, works of non-fiction, and magazine articles as a contributing editor for Writer’s Digest, he also finds time to teach creative writing at Orange Coast College.
But [...]

If you missed part one of my interview with screenwriting expert Blake Snyder, click HERE, then come back. Blake is an analytical genius when it comes to dissecting films to ID what makes them work–or fail. His book, Save the Cat!, and its follow-up, Save the Cat! Goes to the Movies provide aspiring screenwriters with [...]

Today’s guest blogger is Gavin Cramblet (aka Chro) from a blogsite we like called Journey of the Scribe. When he recently talked up a service called YouWriteOn, we thought, “Hmm, wonder if he’d be willing to jump in our sandbox for a while and tell us more about it?” Happily for us, he agreed, though [...]

Juliet Marillier’s Wildwood Dancing is being released in paperback form today in the United States. Though Wildwood Dancing was written as a fantasy tale for the younger sect (8th grade and up), the lyrical prose is still true to Juliet’s voice and promises a satisfying read for teens and adults alike. We’re happy she took [...]

John Hewitt over at Writer’s Resource Center posted one of the most hilarious and truthful rants about writing critique groups that I’ve yet read: 10 Ways to Annoy the Hell out of your Writers Group.
Honestly now. Raise your hand if you’ve ever come to a critique meeting eager to hear useful feedback about your [...]

Blake Snyder is a true authority on both the craft of storytelling and the business savvy required to sell a screenplay in Hollywood. He’s personally written and sold dozens of scripts, including some million-dollar sales (Blank Check to Disney and Nuclear Family to Steven Spielberg). His avid love of movies created a strong drive in [...]

The following is adapted from the first chapter of the book I plan to publish based on my blog, Flogging the Quill. Jump-start Your Novel with Kitty-cats in Action will have new and expanded material that adds up to a bookful of coaching on the craft of creating compelling fiction.
For what it’s worth…
Writing for effect [...]

Uh, oh. It’s looking bleak for the second-largest book chain in the US. Check out the WU Google Notebook for books & business news, including the scandal over a British author not allowed to enter the US; a movie and a degree for author Sandra Brown; the latest on the Audible-Amazon love connection; the book [...]

Some writers pride themselves on saying they never read other people’s books, at least not people working in the same genre as they are, saying they don’t want to be influenced by someone else’s work. I find this a truly bizarre and barbaric notion. How can a writer not be a reader too? How can [...]

A really interesting set of studies came out of Johns Hopkins recently, showing what happened to jazz performers when improvising music. Are there lessons here for writers, too?
This, from Science Daily:
A pair of Johns Hopkins and government scientists have discovered that when jazz musicians improvise, their brains turn off areas linked to self-censoring and [...]

You know how you start Googling something and you end up in a completely different place on the Intertubes than where you originally wanted to go?
I don’t know how I landed HERE, but I’ve just spent a delightful afternoon reading What if the Lord of the Rings was written by Someone Else? (I gotta talk [...]

Sweat coated Athena’s upper lip.  She licked it, shuddered at the sensation, and knew the night would be a memorable one.  The blue Missoni dress clung to her body, the fabric matted on her curves like tissue paper.  The dress had been air-mailed by Ottavio Missoni himself, specifically for Athena to wear tonight…..
Athena stepped onto [...]