When you're trying to get traditionally published, snagging a literary agent seems like the ultimate goalpost. You may know in theory that a majority of your career happens afterward, but when you're just starting out, it's easy to believe that once you’ve signed with an agent, it...

Editors make your work better. They bring a fresh set of eyes to your writing, not only to catch typos and grammar errors but to work with you to bring your vision to the next level. A good editor is as invested in making your book the best it can be as you are.

The process for finding an...

Research is vital when it comes to storytelling. It doesn’t matter if you’re writing a historical romance, a contemporary YA thriller, or an epic fantasy set in a world borne solely of your imagination. There’s going to be at least one detail—whether it is a type of food,...

How does a #1 New York Times bestselling author add conflict to her scenes? Find out in this exclusive Writing Mastery interview!

From the moment Marissa Meyer hit the young adult fiction scene back in 2012, she's been on a skyrocket ride to the top. Her first novel, Cinder, (the first...

You’ve heard it a million times: “Show, don't tell.” But what does "show, don’t tell" really mean? How do we spot telling in our own writing? And is showing always the better choice, or are there instances where telling might be better? We have answers to help...

Working with critique partners may require some vulnerability from each writer involved, but the benefits of such a relationship are numerous.

In addition to getting feedback that can make your work the best it can be, learning how to give constructive feedback to others can also help...

Action scenes are an absolute treat when they’re done well. They can speed up pacing, provide huge advances in the plot, and push characters to their physical and emotional limits.

When action scenes are not done well, however, they can actually make the story drag, causing the reader to...

When crafting a story, we usually focus on our characters and how they evolve as they grow and change throughout our carefully crafted plots. The setting can be overlooked (with no sense of the story's world) or overcooked (when it feels like you’re reading a travel guide instead of a...