» A Guest Author

How Six Scribes Made Me a Better Writer

By Alice J. Wisler Even though I was happy to see the notice on the library bulletin board, I didn’t realize how much it would contribute to my writing success. Someone wanted to know if others in our area were interested in forming a writers’ group. I jotted down the number to call. Weeks later,…

Issue Six Hundred Twenty Two Special Feature

Writing Effective Flashbacks: Seamlessly Integrating Backstory

By Sabyasachi Roy Flashbacks can be one of the greatest storytelling tools. But there is a catch (there always is, isn’t there). A flashback, as a misused literary tool, is one of the easiest ways to completely wreck a narrative. See, you have to use it well to add depth, emotion, and intrigue. If you…

Issue Six Hundred Twenty One Special Feature

Lessons From a Writer and Her Rejections

By Melissa Witcher With over 100 literary magazine rejections in the past two years, I am quite familiar with being not quite the right fit. I’ve always been a misfit so it makes sense that my writing career would follow suit. Many famous people, quite successful, have written about rejection in poetic and useful ways….

Issue Six Hundred Twenty Special Feature

How to Play The Subtext Game with Your Dialogue

By Sabyasachi Roy Writing dialogue can feel like a balancing act. If you use too much, you run the risk of overloading the reader. Too little leaves them perplexed. Finding the sweet spot where something magical occurs is difficult, and frequently it all comes down to what you choose not to say. Subtext—those delicious layers…

Issue Six Hundred Nineteen Special Feature

No-Fee Contests for Published Books (So You Can Become an Award Winning Author)

If you’ve recently published a book, you can leverage no-fee contests to get more visibility for your work. Even writers who forego the traditional publication route are not always disqualified from entering their books into these contests. Fee-free contests can offer everything from extra promotion and notoriety to monetary awards or invitations to read at…

Issue Six Hundred Eighteen

The Key to a Realistic Writing Plan

By Abdulraheem Jameel Ango A good writing plan can transform your writing life. However, many authors emphasize the importance of not skipping a single writing session. Despite how useful this may sound, and regardless of how flawless our writing plan may look, this is not always possible. There are days when life happens, days when…

Issue Six Hundred Seventeen

Build Your Writing Career and Platform with Snap, Dash and Flash

By Lynne Curry When I fell in love with flash fiction, seduced by the six-word story attributed to Hemingway: “For sale: baby, shoes, never worn,” I never dreamed flash would love me back. It did, reshaping how I write and how my stories connect with readers. If you experiment with flash fiction— storytelling that delivers…

Issue Six Hundred Sixteen

Lessons from My Most Prolific Year of Writing and Getting Published

Ratika Deshpande I got 33 acceptances and published 194 blog posts in 2024, making it the most prolific year of my writing life. I took more chances; I experimented with writing different stuff. I applied to writing jobs and grants, submitted flash fiction, participated in contests, and wrote articles and essays I’m very proud of….

Special Issue

Brewing the First Line of a Poem: Starting Strong with Memorable Openings

By Sabyasachi Roy Brewing the first line of a poem is like pouring the perfect pint—too flat, and no one sticks around; too much foam, and it’s all fluff. But nail it? A friend of mine was called the Yeats of happy hour, for he could pour the perfect pint. The same goes for making…

Issue Six Hundred Fifteen Special Feature

3 Simple Ways to Increase Your Word Count and Finish Your Book

By Delaney Diamond I’m a full-time romance author, and I can tell you that writing full-time means I regularly generate story ideas. So many ideas, in fact, that I have a file where I list them and drop notes for future books. Though I’m excited by many of those stories and can usually get started…

Issue Six Hundred Fourteen Special Feature

Navigating Revision and Editing Without Losing Your Voice

By Sabyasachi Roy Imagine you are writing a draft. Putting your thoughts out into the world. Raw and unfiltered—a little messy, slightly little chaotic, but undeniably yours. Now comes editing, and this is where the real magic happens. Or, let’s be honest, this is where your manuscript risks turning into a lifeless, over-polished chore. How…

Issue Six Hundred Thirteen Special Feature

Building a Writing Career from Small Wins

By Sabyasachi Roy Writing careers are not made overnight. Almost no one starts by landing a book deal with Random House or, for that matter, scoring a column in The New York Times. It is about piecing together a mosaic of small wins. Most successful writers had to follow this labored path — tiny, unimpressive…

Issue Six Hundred Eleven Special Feature

Writing in the Age of Short Attention Spans: Crafting Stories that Stick

By Sabyasachi Roy Let’s start with the elephant in the room, a.k.a. to the point: people don’t have the patience for long-winded setups anymore. Like it or not, we are in the middle of a world of endless swipes, dings, and dopamine hits. This presents a high-stakes challenge, especially for writers, how do you keep…

Issue Five Hundred Sixty Nine Issue Six Hundred Nine Special Feature

Writing Without an Audience in Mind: Embracing the Journey of Self-Expression

By Sabyasachi Roy Most writers, if not all, start their journey with aspirations of getting published. This includes the dream of gaining recognition or connecting with a wide audience. There is, however, a frequently neglected element of writing. It possesses a transformative potential, and that is creating solely for oneself. We live, whether we like…

Issue Six Hundred Eight

RESEARCH: What To Look for and Where to Find It

Nancy Burkhalter, PhD Whether you write fiction or nonfiction, regardless of genre or topic, research will probably be on your agenda; for historical novelists, it is de rigueur. So, where to start? The acronym PERSIA may help. Each letter stands for a category of analysis: Political, Economic, Religious, Social, Intellectual, and Artistic. Facts drawn from…

Issue Six Hundred Seven

Articles by A Guest Author