By DiAnn Mills @DiAnnMills A metaphor is a word or phrase that compares something tangible with something intangible that has a psychological meaning. In fiction, the writer crafts a metaphor according to a character’s personality and life experiences. This eliminates clichés that are dull and boring and instead introduces something…

by: Shannon Redmon @shannon_redmon As an author, I’m always striving to give depth to my story’s heroine. The last thing a writer wants is to create a flat, boring character. I learned this lesson after an editor commented about the shallowness of my protagonist. Ouch. The truth hurts sometimes. So,…

By Darlene L. Turner @darlenelturner Voice and style can make or break an author’s novel, so how can we make it stand out from all the rest? Style is the technical aspect of the story while voice relies on character, point of view, and attitude (can be referred to as tone).…

by Katherine Hutchinson-Hayes, Ed.D. @khutch0767 Whether established authors or aspiring ones, we understand that creating our masterpieces requires a team. Without editors, graphic artists, and technological support, we'd never produce quality books. However, we may need a new type of expert to hire who’ll help us develop excellent manuscripts—a sensitivity reader.…

by: Shannon Redmon @shannon_redmon With buttered popcorn in one hand and a coke in the other, we search out the best spot to recline back and watch a good movie on the big screen. Some of us do this at home while others still go to a theatre. No matter…

by Katherine Hutchinson-Hayes, Ed.D. @khutch0767 Daily we write even when it's unaffiliated with our author careers. We write emails, texts, school notes, social media posts, and work documents. When we sit down to write professionally, we tend to believe our work here is what counts. But suppose we took all our…