Monthly Archives: December 2016

Though the table of contents is one of the first pages readers will see, it’s one of the last you’ll actually complete. Because it must perfectly match the names of your various sections and chapters, as well as have the correct page numbers (if doing a print book anyway), it is always in flux as youContinue reading “How to Create Your Book’s Table of Contents”

One punctuation matter that might keep you up at night is where to place a comma when appearing with quotation marks. Well, you can quote me on this: Commas appear inside quotation marks, according to the book “Use the Right Word,” and other sources. The British, however, place the comma outside of the quotation mark. ButContinue reading “Place commas inside quotation marks”

“I was reading the dictionary. I thought it was a poem about everything.” – Steven Wright “Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words.” – Robert Frost “Being a poet is one of the unhealthier jobs – no regular hours, so many temptations!” – Elizabeth Bishop “Poets are interested mostly inContinue reading “Five More Great Quotations about Poetry”

The biggest question facing any writer is what to blog about. You’ve got lots of options:• Future appearances – Upcoming book signings/readings, guest speaking appearances, and appearances on radio and TV broadcasts all can be promoted on your blog. After the events are held, be sure to blog about them as well, giving pictures from the event ifContinue reading “Writers can blog about variety of topics”

Suffering from writer’s block or need to add some spunk to your writing? The problem may be that you need to change up your routine. To that end, try this tip: Open a dictionary or a thesaurus to any page and select a random word. Do this four more times, and carry the list of wordsContinue reading “Writing Prompt: Random words”

Another page you’ll want on a website promoting your book is an “About the Author.” Readers love to learn more about the author of a book they’re reading. If writing a nonfiction book, the author’s bio helps establish you as a qualified expert to write about your book’s topic, encouraging potential readers to purchase your writing.Continue reading “How to write an author’s bio”

“The writer’s genetic inheritance and her or his experiences shape the writer into a unique individual, and it is this uniqueness that is the writer’s only stuff for sale.” – James Gunn “When we see a natural style we are quite amazed and delighted, because we expected to see an author and find a man.” – Blaise PascalContinue reading “Five Great Quotations about Originality”

“There is no need for the writer to eat a whole sheep to be able to tell what mutton tastes like.” – W. Somerset Maugham “My writing is full of lives I might have led. A writer imagines what could have happened, not what really happened.” – Joyce Carol Oates “How vain it is toContinue reading “5 Great Quotations about Write What You Know”