People Usually Pay Me for This!
Brutal but helpful writing advice plus TONS of writing links and resources
*For writing links and resources, scroll down.*
I’m swamped!
Like most writers trying to make writing their full-time job, I have cobbled together a collection of freelance gigs:
I’m an instructor at the Writer’s Center.
I teach workshops at in-person and online writing conferences.
I write this newsletter, for which I make a small amount of money from my (lovely, wonderful) paid subscribers.
I plan to start a podcast (and maybe a Youtube channel?) this year, with the goal of making money from that.
I offer accountability coaching, query review services, and beta reader feedback.
HOWEVER, I’m not taking on any more beta reader clients right now (so please don’t ask because I have a really hard time saying no!). I simply don’t have the time, especially if I want to make time for my own projects (which I do).
But, check this out: I read over some feedback I gave to a writer recently, and I think it might be helpful, even if I haven’t read your manuscript. See if any of this advice resonates with you…
People Usually Pay Me for This Advice:
Here is some advice I recently gave to a client after reading their novel. I think it can apply to many manuscripts, maybe even yours!
1. Go through the whole manuscript and cut as many adjectives and adverbs as you can.
Too many adverbs and adjectives can clutter your prose and slow down the pacing. Trust that a reader will understand how something is said by what is being said.
Remember: a strong verb is always better than a weak verb paired with an adverb, and a specific noun is always better than a less-precise noun paired with an adjective.
As for multiple adjectives describing the same noun? Choose the best and cut the rest. See my post on Line Editing at the Sentence Level for more on how to prune and polish on the line level.
A strong verb is always better than a weak verb paired with an adverb, and a specific noun is always better than a less-precise noun paired with an adjective.
2. Look for repetition.
Look for places where you have given the same or similar information more than once. Trust that your readers will get it the first time. Trust that the themes will emerge through your storytelling alone. Readers can pick up on themes without you telling them directly.
3. Cut back on telling by doing more showing.
Instead of telling us the woman is elegantly dressed, give us a more specific description of her hair, jewelry, clothing.
Instead of telling us the place is beautiful, show us with specific sensory descriptions.
Instead of telling us there was a “scent of desperation” clinging to the woman, show us her desperation through her dialogue and actions. Maybe she’s got a smile pasted onto her face but her left eye keeps twitching, or her hands are clenched into fists.
4. Cut unnecessary backstory and flashbacks.
I question the necessity of all this backstory. It gets tedious because it doesn’t seem to have anything to do with THIS story. And it drags down the pacing.
I don’t think it’s bad that YOU know the backstory for all your characters – in fact, I think it’s good. Sometimes, as writers, we need to figure out the backstory for each character so we understand them: their relationships, their motivations, etc. But then we have to ask ourselves if the reader needs to know the backstory. (And if the reader will CARE about the backstory.) Maybe the backstory informs the character’s personality and actions, but the reader doesn’t need to know about it. Similar to how an actor creates a backstory to inform how they play a role, but it doesn’t change the actual lines they say.
My recommendation is to cut much of the backstory. If there is backstory the reader really does need to know, find a way to dribble it in, or give it in a very short flashback, making sure to transition in and out of the flashback using cueing phrases such as “back then,” and “now.”
Be mindful about the overuse of flashbacks. I find flashbacks sometimes attempt to explain a character’s personality, motivations, and relationships when the writer could instead show these things through the character’s words, actions, and interiority in the current scene — no need to take us back in time.
Maybe the backstory informs the character’s personality and actions, but the reader doesn’t need to know about it. Similar to how an actor creates a backstory to inform how they play a role, but it doesn’t change the actual lines they say.
5. Cut unnecessary dialogue, scenes, and even chapters.
I hate to say this, but a lot of these scenes, even though they are well-written, do not seem necessary to the story. Go through and ask yourself what work the scene is doing to move along the plot and/or reveal character motivation. If you removed the scene completely, would readers be confused? If the answer is no, consider cutting.
What do you think? Helpful? Harsh? Okay, yes, sometimes my feedback is brutally honest, but it comes from a place of love and a desire to make your book the best it can be.
Writing News & Resources:
For All Writers:
Must read: The Key Publishing Paths 2025-2026 from publishing guru
.I love this post from
on writing great first pages, and be sure to read all the way to the bottom where she lists some interesting trends she’s noticed recently in publishing.Join the immersive FREE 52 Weeks of Creativity Course, available for both fiction and memoir writers from Mary Kole & Good Story Company
Have you joined Blue Sky yet? Consider participating in the #BluePit Writer Hype Event on January 13. Unlike other similar events in which you have to have a finished manuscript, this one is open to writers at any stage: drafting, editing, querying, on submission, or published. The idea is to help writers start building an online audience, finding and supporting other writers, and connecting with publishing professionals. Helpful when you’re starting from scratch on a new social media platform!
If you live in the DC area, register for my 3-week workshop, Fabulous First Pages at The Writer’s Center in Bethesda, starting Feb. 1, 2025. Learn what makes a great start to a novel and get your first pages critiqued by your peers! (Use the coupon code NEWYEAR25 by Jan. 5 to receive $15 off.)
In fact, use the coupon code NEWYEAR25 by Jan. 5 to receive $15 off ANY workshop or class at The Writer’s Center!
The Writers Center website is a GREAT resource for finding grants, fellowships, residencies & retreats, publishers (who publish non-agented authors), and literary journal opportunities.
Writing Workshops offers lots of online classes in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, picture books, and the business of writing.
Check out the meet-up group called Shut Up & Write. There are in-person chapters all over the country, as well online events.
Looking for places to submit your writing? Check out NewPages and Sub Club.
For KidLit Writers:
A list of places that publish stories for children from The Write Life.
Literary Rambles has information on kidlit agents and agent interviews.
Submit your children’s book to these publishers: no agent required!
Here’s an incredible list of upcoming events for KidLit writers!
Check out SCBWI (The Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) for events, conferences, critique partners and more. (Picture book through YA.)
For Querying Writers:
Free All Things Lit Agent Live Webinar with Q&A from agent
. Sign up deadline Jan. 5 at 11pm Eastern. Other great posts from Renee: Know Your Subrights and Author Marketing for Introverts.List and description of new publishers and agents in 2024 from
.Get ready for #SmallPitch, January 27-28, 2025, an event where authors can pitch their work to small/indie publishers. Pitches will be submitted through a Google form, so you don’t even have to go on social media to participate. Woohoo!
You’re using Manuscript Wishlist to research agents, right? Okay, good, just checking. (P.S. MSWL is on Blue Sky now!)
Here’s a list of small publishers, most of which do not require agents.
Andrea Bartz has a list of successful query letters (many of them thrillers).
I occasionally choose a subscriber for a FREE submission package critique. Send me your query and first two pages, and, if I chose your submission, I will send you feedback on both. Fill out the form here.
Writing Conferences & Events:
The Orange County Library is hosting their annual Writers Conference on January 11 & 12, which is virtual and free to everyone. This conference is focused on the craft of novel-writing, with two sessions about agents & querying. The library card field can be left blank.
The Shit No One Tells You About Writing’s Deep Dive Virtual Conference will be held February 1-2. I also highly recommend listening to their podcast of the same name!
The San Miguel Writers’ Conference and Literary Festival is happening February 12-16 in beautiful/historic San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. I’ve spent a lot of time in San Miguel, and it’s a great place to visit, especially in the winter season.
Recently two separate people recommended this online writing conference to me: Women in Publishing Summit, happening March 5-8, 2025.
The enormous AWP conference (Association of Writers and Writing Programs) will be held in Los Angeles this year, March 26-29.
If you live in the DC area, this comprehensive Calendar of Local Literary Events, compiled by Washington Independent Review of Books is overwhelming and awesome.
Live in the mid-Atlantic region and looking for a writing retreat get-away? The Writer’s Retreat at Good Contrivance Farm north of Baltimore is open year-round. The only requirement for this peaceful retreat is that you use the time to work on your writing. Spaces normally book about two months in advance.
Thinking about going to a conference or applying for a residency? Check out the free searchable database on Poets & Writers.
The Annapolis Book Festival will be held on Saturday, May 3, 2025.
The Writing Day Workshop “How to Get Published” Conferences are affordable and helpful. Plus, sign up for pitch sessions with agents for $29 a piece. For online conferences, attend from anywhere in the world! Check out the upcoming conferences:
Writers Digest offers loads of virtual conferences on a variety of publishing and writing craft topics.
For more writing conferences, check out this list or the free searchable database on Poets & Writers.
Sooooo helpful. Thank you
"Cut...cut...cut... ." I write very spare prose. My first novels were around 55,000 words. Too short for a debut, by the common wisdom. But longer will not be better.
Many recently published novels seem 25 pages too long to me. Your great advice is undercut by the publishing industry.
I'm gonna write how I please. Thanks for letting me rant.