Tag: Writing Tips

Addressing the Fear of Traditional Publishing – Guest Post by K. Orme

Addressing the Fear of Traditional Publishing – Guest Post by K. Orme

For a while now, I’ve noticed that a lot of authors in the indie community seem to be afraid of traditional publishing for one reason or another. While I fully believe that that traditional publishing path is not for everyone (I don’t think it’s for me, as a general rule), I do believe that we should think clearly about both publishing routes and choose one because it’s truly the best fit rather than because we’re afraid of the other! Today, I have K. Orme on the blog to dispel some of the fears that tend to crop up around traditional publishing, to further the informed choice between traditional, independent, or hybrid publishing. I hope you enjoy and find her article informative!


I have spent the last seventeen years learning my writing craft and studying publishing trends, deciding which publishing method is right for which of my books. Publishing has come a long way since then. It’s come a long way since I studied publishing in college, which was a course I took for my degree. (Officially, I have a BA in History and a Minor in Creative Writing, though I have enough credits to count for a second BA in English/Creative Writing, though it is unofficial.) And that’s only my college education. This doesn’t account for the multiple classes outside of college I’ve taken hosted by conferences and online colleges leading up to this point.

Suffice it to say, I know a little about the publishing industry and have seen trends come and go, as well as pervasive fears about what publishing can look like. And here I am, your resident overthinking author, to give you a little calming moment Continue reading “Addressing the Fear of Traditional Publishing – Guest Post by K. Orme”

What is Your Cover Saying? – 4 Keys to Quality Cover Design

What is Your Cover Saying? – 4 Keys to Quality Cover Design

Adapted from “Clean Fantasy and Boring Cover Syndrome,” originally published Nov. 28, 2017

Since subscribing to a number of clean fantasy authors’ newsletters, I’ve come across a disappointing trend. A lot of clean fantasy books have really unimpressive covers. The same is often true of indie authors, as a whole. You know the old adage “don’t judge a book by its cover,” and that’s great in principle, but when it comes to books, readers really do judge books by their covers. As a reader myself I can attest to this. Heck, it’s why I’m writing this post.

The fact is, that’s not a bad thing. Cover art should Continue reading “What is Your Cover Saying? – 4 Keys to Quality Cover Design”

Developing Fictional Views on Providence, Luck, and Fortune

Developing Fictional Views on Providence, Luck, and Fortune

St. Patrick’s Day has nothing to do with leprechauns, four-leaf clovers, or lucky pots of gold… except in grocery stores and on my blog today because I did allow the seasonal aesthetic to inspire today’s topic. Today we’re talking about how your fictional cultures view providence, luck, and fortune–whether they see all three as synonymous or maintain distinct categories. Let’s get started! (And to be fair, here’s a video–albeit a somewhat comedic one–about the actual reason we’ll be wearing green next week.)

Establish Your World’s Baseline

Before you develop individual cultures’ views of providence and luck, it’s beneficial to have an idea of what those terms really mean in your world and who (or what) is truly responsible for events occurring the way that they do. Is your world guided by a sovereign god/pantheon? Do things really come about by chance or luck? Are events steered primarily by man’s choices?

Knowing how things truly work in your world will inform Continue reading “Developing Fictional Views on Providence, Luck, and Fortune”

Organizing Years of Scattered Worldbuilding with Scrivener

Organizing Years of Scattered Worldbuilding with Scrivener

One of my primary goals over the past month has been to flesh out and solidify the world of Lightning and Thunder. This world has existed in my brain for somewhere around a decade (and I’ve published snapshots of it in Short Story Collection vol. 1), but it took me until now–writing a longer project in that setting–to finally compile all of my notes into one place, flesh out more specifics in areas where I’ve been banking on aesthetics and general principles, and iron out the inconsistencies that have popped up over a decade of scattered note-taking.

If you’ve been around for a while, you may have noticed that I have a pretty consistent Continue reading “Organizing Years of Scattered Worldbuilding with Scrivener”

5 Ways to Transition Between Scenes

5 Ways to Transition Between Scenes

I recently got a question from a newsletter subscriber about how much is needed when transitioning between scenes–especially when there is a jump in time and/or space involved. For example, if your characters are traveling, how much do you actually need to show and how can you transition smoothly if you skip over the details? Today’s post is expanding on some potential answers to this question, to answer it for others who might be wondering.

There are a number of ways to Continue reading “5 Ways to Transition Between Scenes”