An Act of Kindness
The first time I saw her was in the spring when she tried to sell me a white tulip in front of the theater. “It will bring you love,” she said. The grime under her fingernails matched the brown edges of the tulip’s petals. “You dare to suggest I have no family to love?” My…
Transitions
The orange hand approaches the forty-minute mark, and the green hand peeks out from behind it. In fifteen minutes, the first school bell of the morning will ring half a mile away. But you are still wearing your favorite flower PJs, and your outer space comforter blankets you in planets and stars. I hold my…
Standing on the Shoulders of Luck
A personal essay on loss, parenting, and finding beauty in the day-to-day My grandpa always said that he had a lucky gene. He was a molecular biologist, so I have a tendency to believe him. From his modest beginnings, he lived a life built on curiosity and tenacity, which earned him many recognitions in his…
5 Things to Consider When Looking for an Editor
There are plenty of good editors out there, but you might be thinking “how can I find one that’s also a good fit?” Once you’ve determined that your draft is ready for an editor (and this is an important step!), these are some questions to think about as you narrow down your list. Good luck…
What’s the Theme of Your Book?
Finding the theme of your book requires diving into why you are writing it. What motivated you to start writing it? If you didn’t have a motivation from the beginning, what patterns do you find yourself returning to with the internal and external stories?
The theme is not the log line (what the story…
What to Consider When Writing Your Fantasy Novel: Tropes
It’s probably impossible to avoid a trope of some kind—all stories fall into some kind of trope—and this is fine! What makes your story stand out is the writing, characters, setting, and the change your protagonist goes through.
What to Consider When Writing Your Fantasy Novel: Subgenres
This is part two in a four-part series on the elements of fantasy writing. As a refresher, the first part covered the basic elements of a fantasy novel. This second part focuses on subgenres. First, let’s talk about what I mean when I say fantasy fiction . . . What separates fantasy from science fiction…
What to Consider When Writing Your Fantasy Novel: Essential Elements
What are the essential elements of a fantasy novel? Do you have a killer magic system? Personal stakes? A character you love sharing with the world?
Recommended Books on How to Write Good Fiction
These three writing and editing books have helped me the most in my writing and editing journey.
Authorial Style, Tone, and Voice—What Are the Differences Anyway?
What do you think of when you hear someone say, “I really like that author’s style?” What about when they say, “they write with such a strong voice?” How are those two things different from the author’s tone? Is there any overlap between these three terms? The simple answer is yes, they are different, but…
Four Reasons Why You Need an Editor
You’ve spent hours—if not days, weeks, or years—putting more than just words on a page. You’ve scrutinized sentences, nitpicked through paragraphs, and rearranged entire sections until you’ve finally perfected that work of art: your writing. Why on Earth would you want to hand it over to someone else to pry it apart or—dare I say—revise…
Leah Boyer 