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Welcome to my blog!

My blog has everything you need to know to write, edit, and publish a book. Can't find what you need or want personalized help? Check out my editing and coaching services.

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Check out a few of my most popular posts:

How to write a query letter

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How to write a query letter

April 4, 2018

In order to have a book published by a traditional publisher, you will likely need to know how to write a query letter to find a literary agent. A query letter is part business letter, part creative writing exercise, part introduction, part death defying leap through a flaming hoop. (Don't worry, you won't catch fire and die during the query…

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The publishing process in GIF form

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The publishing process in GIF form

August 27, 2012

At first you're thinking of writing a novel and you're all... But then you have an idea! And you go... But then you hit page 50 and you're all.... And then you hit page 75 and you're all... But you power through!!   And then you're finished!!! You have finished a novel!! Only then find out you have to start…

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How to write a novel

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How to write a novel

June 21, 2019

Let me preface this article on how to write a novel by saying that my book on the topic has all the best advice I know: How to Write a Novel: 49 Rules for Writing a Stupendously Awesome Novel That You Will Love Forever. And if you need personalized help: Reach out for coaching or editing! How to write a novel.…

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Third person omniscient vs. limited vs. head jumping

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Third person omniscient vs. limited vs. head jumping

August 24, 2020

If a writing fairy popped out of an old typewriter and granted me the ability to fix one craft problem in all the unpublished manuscripts across the realm I would probably terrify it by how quickly I'd shout, "PERSPECTIVES! For the love of Melville fix the broken perspectives!!" You probably know there are three main perspectives to choose from in…

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Everything writers need to know about pitching their book

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Everything writers need to know about pitching their book

May 7, 2018

Like it or not, pitching your book is one of the most important things you'll do as an author. If you're trying to find a literary agent, you'll need to write a query letter. If you're self-publishing, you'll need to write good jacket copy (or at least know what good jacket copy looks like). When you're telling acquaintances what your…

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How to find a literary agent

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How to find a literary agent

March 20, 2018

If you want to have your book published by a publisher, chances are you are going to need an agent. Here's how to find a literary agent. Welcome to publishing, the land of books, writing, and agonizingly long waits. Pour yourself a drink. You're going to need it. In this post I'm going to give you an overview of how…

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Everything you need to know about novel word counts

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Everything you need to know about novel word counts

April 23, 2018

Ah, word count. Few elements of the book-writing process inspire such hand-wringing and teeth-gnashing as trying to constrain your novel within certain seemingly arbitrary bounds. In this post I'm going to tell you: Why word count matters for novelsStandard word count ranges for various genresThe word counts of some famous novels for comparison But before I do that, let me…

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Most recent posts:

Drew Barrymore finds a resolve for her scab controversy (This week in books)

September 22, 2023 by Nathan Bransford 2 Comments

This week! Books! After first releasing a now-deleted defense of bringing her eponymous show back despite an ongoing writers strike, Drew Barrymore summoned every bit of astute humility she possessed and found the hoped for resolve by pausing her talk show until the strike is over. And about that strike: WGA and the studios have […]

Filed Under: This Week in Books Tagged With: Alex Ross, Amazon, Anne R. Allen, Ashley Fetters Maloy, Authors Guild, Bookshop.org, Censorship, Drew Barrymore, Franz Liszt, Gay Talese, Katy Hershberg, KKR, OpenAI, Simon & Schuster, WGA

Playing “neener neener” with the reader (page critique)

September 21, 2023 by Nathan Bransford Leave a Comment

If you’d like to nominate your own page or query for a public critique, kindly post them here in our discussion forums: Also: I’M LOW ON QUERIES TO EDIT. If you post your query in the query critique forum, there’s a good chance I’ll edit it in the coming weeks. If you’d like to test your editing chops, […]

Filed Under: Critiques

Beware summarizing across scenes

September 18, 2023 by Nathan Bransford Leave a Comment

Learning to effectively manipulate time is one of the important skills novelists and memoirists must master. You can brush past centuries or linger for pages on a split second depending on what the story requires. Crafting effective connective tissue and making sure you have the correct events dramatized on the page are super important elements […]

Filed Under: Writing Advice

Drew Barrymore disinvited from National Book Awards (This week in books)

September 15, 2023 by Nathan Bransford 3 Comments

This week! Books! Actress and (as I only learned this week) talk show host Drew Barrymore sparked an immense amount of controversy this week as she announced the return of her show The Drew Barrymore Show without union writers, who are on an ongoing months-long strike. Writers including Colson Whitehead noted the irony that Barrymore […]

Filed Under: This Week in Books Tagged With: Andrew Park, Carter Dougherty, Colson Whitehead, Drew Barrymore, Jami Gold, Lincoln Michel, Merve Emre, National Book Awards, Pulitzer Prize, Simon & Schuster, Spotifiy, V.M. Braganza

Stay grounded in the story (query critique)

September 14, 2023 by Nathan Bransford 3 Comments

If you’d like to nominate your own page or query for a public critique, kindly post them here in the discussion forums: Also, if you’d like to test your editing chops, keep your eye on this area or this area! I’ll post the pages and queries a few days before a critique so you can see how your […]

Filed Under: Critiques Tagged With: query critiques

Training scenes work in movies. They (usually) suck in novels

September 11, 2023 by Nathan Bransford 6 Comments

Some of the most beloved scenes in movie history involve training for combat. Obi-Wan Kenobi making Luke put the blast shield down so he can train blind with his lightsaber in Star Wars: A New Hope. Morpheus and Neo fighting an epic, beautiful, mesmerizing joust after Neo learns kung fu in The Matrix. Take your […]

Filed Under: Writing Advice

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About Nathan

Hi, I’m Nathan. I’m the author of How to Write a Novel and the Jacob Wonderbar series, which was published by Penguin. I used to be a literary agent at Curtis Brown Ltd. and I’m dedicated to helping authors achieve their dreams. Let me help you with your book!

My blog has everything you need to know to write, edit, and publish a book. Can’t find what you need or want personalized help? Reach out.

Learn more about me

Need Editing?

I'm available for consultations, edits, query critiques, brainstorming, and more.
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My Books

How to Write A Novel
Cover of How to Publish a Book by Nathan Bransford
Jacob Wonderbar and the Cosmic Space Kapo
Jacob Wonderbar for President of the Universe
Jacob Wonderbar and the Interstellar Time Warp

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