We all want our novels to be the absolute best they can be before we send them out into the world. But perfect is the enemy of good— and perfectionism can be an excuse to procrastinate.

So what’s a writer supposed to do? How do we know when our perfectionism is really just our ...

Completing a full draft of a novel is no small feat. Neither is going on to complete rounds of developmental (or "story level") revisions until your plot, character arcs, setting, and worldbuilding are in tip-top shape.

However, now comes the next phase of your writing journey:...

The books we write reflect the world around us, whether they’re contemporary, fantasy, or even futuristic. It only makes sense that our stories should also represent the diversity of the people around us! Doing so enrichens our books and allows more readers—across all...

Congratulations! You’ve finished the first, or “draft zero” of your novel! Where do you go from here? How do you even begin to wrap your mind around the process of taking your thousands of words from a messy draft to a polished novel?  

We've got you covered!...

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...