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Quote of the day
View your life with KINDSIGHT. Stop beating yourself up about things from your past. Instead of slapping your forehead and asking, “What was I thinking,” breathe and ask yourself the kinder question, “What was I learning?
~KAREN SALMANSOHN, author of The Bounce Back Book: How to Thrive in the Face of Adversity, Setbacks, and Losses
WRITING
Tips for Queriers: The Query, the Synopsis, and the First Page, Writer’s Digest | Tweet
Getting a literary agent is tough, and I know firsthand what it’s like to query without getting requests. I know how frustrating the radio silence and form rejects can be. If you’re querying, you want to do everything you can to maximize your chances of getting requests. Here are some of my tips for the three main pieces you send out querying: the Query, the Synopsis, and the First Page.
Rock Your Query: A Simple System for Writing Query Letters and Synopses (Rock Your Writing Book 3)
- When You Need to Completely Reboot your Book or Screenplay, Pat Verducci | Tweet
Pain. Agony. Defeat. The manuscript you’ve slaved over for months, the screenplay you’ve rewritten seventeen times, is not working. There’s a flaw deep in the set-up that’s preventing you from being able to make the story flow.
Rewriting: How To Do Things With Texts
- World Building 101, The Write Practice | Tweet
If you write fiction, you need world building. It’s the skeleton of your story: though unseen, those bones determine the shape of the beast.
The Plot Skeleton (Writing Lessons from the Front Book 1)
SCREENWRITING
- Zero Draft Thirty: Story Prep Fun With Index Cards!, Go Into The Story | Tweet
Here I thought I was crazy committing to write an entire first draft of an original comedy in November — FADE IN to FADE OUT in 30 days — especially how freakin’ busy I am. But as it turns out…
Story: Style, Structure, Substance, and the Principles of Screenwriting
SELF-PUBLISHING
To Self-Publish or Not to Self-Publish, Books by Women | Tweet
‘Are you sure you want to self publish again?” asked a colleague of mine who is traditionally published. We were discussing my plans to self publish my historical novel. I felt defensive because I knew what was coming next. I’d heard it before. “You will never land a traditional publisher if you do. Believe me, I know.”
Self-Publishing with Amazon (4 Books in 1)
PSYCHOLOGY
- You’re not as virtuous as you think, The Washington Post | Tweet
I’ve been teaching Stanley Milgram’s electric-shock experiment to business school students for more than a decade, but “Experimenter,” a movie out this week about the man behind the famous social science research, illuminates something I never really considered.
A Virtuous Woman (Oprah’s Book Club)
MOTIVATION
Does adversity harden hearts or warm them?
The Bounce Back Book How To Thrive In The Face Of Adversity Setbacks And Losses The Bounce Back Book
AGING
Negative stereotypes about getting older can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. How to improve your mind-set—and well-being.
Aging as a Spiritual Practice: A Contemplative Guide to Growing Older and Wiser
RESTAURANTS
The tipping minefield: who actually pockets your cash?, The Guardian | Tweet
You might think that the 12% service charge on your bill goes to the waiter but some restaurants share it with backroom staff while others make deductions for ‘admin fees’, breakages and customers who did a runner. Should we just get rid of tips altogether?
Tips: Getting More: A Restaurant Insider’s Guide to Making More Money
