Columns

The Long & Winding Road: Part IV – Editing With Agents

June 18th, 2012

Recap: The Long & Winding Road is a multi-part essay about my endeavors to get an agent and publish my first novel. Part I discussed writing my first novel and seeking representation, Part II discussed "revision hell", and Part III discussed talking to and landing an agent.

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Book Readings: Bar vs. Bookstore

June 15th, 2012

The experiment takes place over Memorial Day weekend, a converged idea of four different authors in various stages of their careers. It’s at the behest of Phil Jourdan, founder of Perfect Edge Books and touring author of the recently released Praise of Motherhood, that the remaining trio of us (Brandon Tietz, Caleb J.

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The Next Big Thing In YA

June 15th, 2012

Every time I walk into the YA section of a book store and see a shelf labeled "Paranormal Romance," I cringe. That's not to say that I don't enjoy books with paranormal elements, and obviously I love me some swoon. But this genre has overwhelmed young adult literature with a glut of mediocre novels featuring weak heroines and even weaker writing, and I've been praying for a new trend to kick paranormal romance to the curb.

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The Prometheus Effect: Examining The Film's Literary Ancestry

June 14th, 2012

[Fair Warning: This whole column pretty much acts as one, long spoiler. If you're still hoping to see the film with your innocence intact, you might want to wait on reading it.]

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The Escaping Character

June 13th, 2012

Ever wonder what it means when a writer says they created a character that “ran away with the story?” Or how some writers claim they let their characters “dictate the terms” of the narrative?

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Book vs. Book: Invisible Monsters vs. Invisible Monsters Remix

June 13th, 2012

This is it, fans of transgressive transgender madness, the moment you've all been waiting for. The debauched gods of literature have heard your prayers and your RLE (Remix-Less Existence) is about to come to an end. That's because this month sees the release of a radically refashioned 'director's cut' of one of your favorite Chuck Palahniuk novels. I'm sure most of you know the backstory, but for those who don't, I'll be cribbing from my own biography of the man.

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Seriously Though, Do I Really Need An MFA?

June 12th, 2012

Master of Fine Arts. Has quite a ring to it, right? To be a master of anything sounds like a nice deal. To many a writer, an MFA program is the Shangri-La of instruction: A place to spend two years with nothing but an intense, laser-like focus on the craft of writing.  But is a graduate degree really the ultimate end of all writerly pursuits? It's not like you can't be a writer unless you have an MFA, right? Hemingway didn't even go to college. 

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Five Fabulous Female Fantasy Forces

June 12th, 2012

I was a bit dismayed after I wrote my column on non-traditional fantasy settings to realize, looking back at it, that there were no women on the list. To be honest, I was thinking of worlds rather than writers, but I don’t want to contribute to any notion that it’s because there aren’t enough women fantasy writers hitting it out of the park. So I thought that I would turn the spotlight onto just that - women fantasy writers who are writing amazing work.

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Don't Write Comics: How To Write Comics Part 1

June 11th, 2012

Don't Write Comics is a multi-part essay about writing comics, understanding what your options are, finding the right artist, and everything you need to do to get a strong comic book pitch package together.

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Ask The Lit Coach: The Difference Between Brand and Platform and Why Every Author Needs Both

June 11th, 2012

PLATFORM: All the ways in which you are visible to and communicate with your target audience.  AUTHOR BRAND: An author's perceived image and identity.   Rather than the typical Q&A we normally do on 'Ask the Lit Coach,' we're going to focus on THE two things, aside from actual talent, that will make you, the author, appealing to agents, editors, publishers, and most importantly, your readers - Platform and Brand.

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