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Threads and BlueSky: New Social Media Options for Writers
Writers are told we need to “build platform”–have websites, grow our email lists, and build community on social media. Many of us have invested many hours over several years to grow a following on the Site Formerly Known as Twitter, only to watch one egomaniacal billionaire destroy that site piece by poorly-redesigned piece. I’m still on there (for now; follow me @ja_alcorn), but I’m engaging less and less as the most interesting people leave the platform and the bigots and haters take over. Instead, I’m trying out Threads and BlueSky, two new social media options for writers. I’ll share my experiences with both platforms in a minute, but first: The…
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Books to Help You Write Better: A Writer’s Reading List
Want to learn to write fiction? Want to learn to write better fiction? You’re in the right place. The Writer’s Reading List: Books to Help You Write Better will point you to the very best books about the craft of writing (well, the best in my not-so-humble opinion). The books on this list focus on practical skills so you can make the most of your limited learning time. And speaking of learning: Writing is a talent, yes, but also a craft, and crafts can be learned (I wrote a whole blog post about that once). You wouldn’t expect to build a perfect cabinet the first time you picked up a…
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Pics of the Las Vegas Sphere – and books
I bailed on blogging again last week, and it wasn’t even for a boring reason like work or a writing deadline. I went to Vegas! And you know what that means: I’m so broke I have to sell my plasma to survive. I have new photos to fill space on my blog! This week we’ll visit Sphere, the newest Las Vegas attraction and my latest obsession. But first: it’s the 3rd Friday of the month, which means it’s time for the What’s On Your Bookshelf Challenge, hosted by Sue, Donna, Jo and Deb. I’ve been getting back into a regular reading groove and finished a nice mix of books since my last book post…
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Successful pitch session and more writing news
I’m happy to report I survived my pitch session at the WriteNow conference! As a result of that session, I disappeared from the face of the earth–and this blog–for about 3 weeks. Details below. But first: welcome to the Weekend Coffee Share, hosted by Natalie the Explorer. Grab a treat, have a seat, and let’s get this party started. Writing News How my pitch session went In my last post, I mentioned I’d signed up for the WriteNow conference, including submitting the first 30 pages of my suspense novel in progress, Delta Dawn, for professional editing and pitching my time travel romance, Vanishing, Inc., to an agent. I should get…
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Celebrating 4 years in the IWSG
Today the IWSG celebrates its 12th birthday, and Monday was the 4th anniversary of my first-ever IWSG post. How cool is that? Anniversaries give us a reason to look back, to see how we’ve grown and changed over the years and to celebrate the person–or in this case, people–who have accompanied us on that journey. But first: In case you’re new here, the first Wednesday of every month is Insecure Writers Support Group day, on which we insecure writers share our doubts, fears, struggles, and triumphs. Our awesome co-hosts this month are Sonia Dogra, J Lenni Dorner, Pat Garcia, Sarah – The Faux Fountain Pen, and Meka James. Stop by and give them some comment love. We…
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Finding balance as an author
In this month’s post for the IWSG, let’s talk about finding balance as an author. How do we choose how best to spend our limited time and energy when there are approximately 40 gazillion author-related tasks clamoring for our attention? But first: In case you’re new here, the first Wednesday of every month is Insecure Writers Support Group day, on which we insecure writers share our doubts, fears, struggles, and triumphs. Our awesome co-hosts this month are Kate Larkindale, Diane Burton, Shannon Lawrence–and me! This will be my third time co-hosting the monthly IWSG blog hop, and it’s always a blast. Come on in and join the party! We IWSG-ers are…
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Where do I get my writing ideas?
Where do you get your ideas? People ask writers that question so often it’s become a cliché, yet it usually elicits interesting answers. So I thought I’d share a little about how I get my weird and wacky story ideas. But first: In case you’re new here, the first Wednesday of every month is Insecure Writers Support Group day, on which we insecure writers share our doubts, fears, struggles, and triumphs. Our awesome co-hosts this month are PJ Colando, Kim Lajevardi, Gwen Gardner, Pat Garcia, and Natalie Aguirre. We’re also given an optional question we can answer in our posts. This month’s question is: Where do your writing ideas predominantly come from? The origin stories…
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Catch me on the Big Blend Radio podcast
Catch me on the Big Blend Radio podcast, available free on their website and on YouTube. Host Lisa D. Smith interviewed 8 authors with stories in the Trouble in Tucson anthology plus the anthology cover designer. Here’s the lineup: Tune in to learn more about my short story, “Adam Carmona and the Case of the Saguaro Ripper,” as well as a little about my take on short story writing. A huge thank you to Lisa for a great interview! I encourage you to pay a visit to the Blend Radio & TV Magazine site and check out all the cool stuff Lisa and crew have on offer. They cover music…
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What if I stopped writing?
If I stopped writing, would I still be a writer? A former writer? A not-writing-right-now-but-plan-to-write-in-the-future writer? A too-busy-with-other-stuff writer? A burned-out writer? These aren’t just rhetorical questions. My current state of non-writing As of the time I’m drafting this post (late May) I haven’t written much this year other than blog posts, and I haven’t written anything other than (very occasional) blog posts in the last month. This is my longest dry spell since I started writing fiction back in 2014, and I’m afraid I’m allowing it to become more than a dry spell. I’m afraid I’m allowing it to become my new normal. I appreciate this month’s optional question…
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On inspiration and perspiration
I only write when I am inspired. Fortunately I am inspired at 9 o’clock every morning. Attributed to William Faulkner People who aren’t writers (a/k/a normal people) like to talk about inspiration. Where do you get your ideas? What inspired that story? A few will ask about writing routines, and I figure they’re aspiring writers looking for some magic formula for finishing the Great American Novel. I’ve been writing fiction for only about 9 years, but already I’ve figured out there’s no magic formula, no combination of creativity exercises + daily routines that will magically put words in a document and turn them into a good story. What does put…
Janet Alcorn
Suspense | Horror | Romance
