The Creative Secret to Hooking Readers on Page One

The Creative Secret to Hooking Readers on Page One

Read Time: 4 minutes My pants malfunctioned in the bathroom. I blame Kenneth Cole, not user error. Because minutes before a business meeting, I flushed the toilet, started shutting my fly, but the zipper’s slider body derailed from one side of the tracks.  Cue panic...
An Open Letter from Your Villain

An Open Letter from Your Villain

Read Time: 1 minute To whom it should concern: I’m the devil you need but don’t want to exist. Don’t dare challenge that. Why else would you write an entire story trying to stop me? Hell, I’m lucky if I survive your story. Yet my purpose here is not to beg for...
11 Ways to Give Your Fiction Writing an Unfair Advantage

11 Ways to Give Your Fiction Writing an Unfair Advantage

Read Time: 3 minutes Want to write stories that make readers lose sleep? The kind of stories that earn you five-star reviews, book awards, and best-seller status? Well, I’ve got news for you. Because if you haven’t yet figured it out… writing fiction can be a...
4 Shameless Reasons Why You Should Write for the Money

4 Shameless Reasons Why You Should Write for the Money

Read Time: 4 minutes People preach that “you shouldn’t write for the money.” They proclaim you should strictly do it for the love of the craft. Or your audience. Or other honorable reasons. But those people have forsaken you. Because you should write...
Don’t Fail to Cast This Key Role in Your Story

Don’t Fail to Cast This Key Role in Your Story

Read Time: 3 minutes In 2018, I moved to a cabin in the woods. I was tired of busy weekends, heavy traffic, and waving neighbors. Plus I wanted more privacy and the chance to explore the unknown. So I convinced my wife and two kids to move from our California suburb...