The past few weeks! In the books!
Want to start your own publishing company? Seems like as a good place to start as any, amirite?? There’s some really great advice in this guide at Writer Unboxed.
Speaking of which, there’s a great interview with Joanna Penn, who has been innovating on self-publishing for some time now.
That guy who said those things and had a book deal was defended by his agent. Then some people noticed that the guy had said some other things and the whole thing got canceled. So yeah. That all happened.
George Saunders, possibly the most prolific first time novelist ever, was interviewed by Electric Literature about all sorts of interesting things.
As someone who is occasionally completely addicted to the Civilization computer games, I could totally relate to this post by Barbara O’Neal about the Sims and how they just seem to trigger something in the novelist brain.
Author Jennifer Hubbard had a great take on the “why do you write” question. There are times when the question morphs into something else entirely, especially when the words aren’t flowing.
S.E. Hinton’s legendary, groundbreaking novel The Outsiders is turning fifty. Congrats!! I interviewed Ms. Hinton a few years back after having lunch in Tulsa.
Not to be outdone, HarperCollins is turning a hearty 200-years-old, and they launched a special website to showcase their history.
Airbnbs for book lovers! Reader I clicked. (via Book Riot)
In writing advice news, how do you know when to take the advice? It comes down to listening to your heart.
And speaking of editorial letters, Pub Crawl has a list of what goes into one.
So what does it mean to “raise the stakes?” And, like, not in poker. Writers Helping Writers has a breakdown.
Over at the Huffington Post, Kim Michele Richardson noticed someone breaking my 8th Commandment for Happy Writers and mused about her reaction. Writers, thou shalt not be jealous!
This article about the intersection of 4chan and Trumpism is long, but it’s totally indispensable reading. Don’t believe me? Maybe you’ll believe THE CREATOR OF HARRY POTTER.
Comment! of! the! week! goes to Mallory for her response on thinking less and doing more:
I am so guilty of this as well! As a fantasy writer I always have a map drawn, all my territories laid out, basic religious systems outlined for each culture, etc. before I get any real WORDS down on paper, which I don’t think is a bad thing. However, oftentimes I have so much fun building my world that I get stuck in brainstorming purgatory.
I think the trick for telling when it’s time to stop world/character/whatever-building and start actually writing is to be honest with yourself on one question: Am I just doing this because I’m scared to move forward? A new story idea is always a shining bubble of non-existent perfection. At some point brainstorming is just you putting layers of armor around that bubble – that’s the point when you have to actually put pen to paper, in my opinion.
And finally, if you’re looking to get lost for a while, I urge you to wander around this incredible map that puts dozens of novels into one city.
Have a great weekend!
Dammit! I have things to do, places to go, people to see, and then you dangle all these intriguing links in front of me and the evening is shot!
Congratulations on having your Ten Commandments for Happy Writers recognized by HuffPo. You are now officially a prophet. Forget Ipads and suchlike, STONE tablets are what you need, plus a long beard and cloak and staff. And if you're ever being chased by Egyptian soldiers, just part the East River.