Liana Brooks – Page 30

Articles posted by Liana Brooks (Page 30)

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 4: The Protagonist

What makes a hero a HERO? Some people like to think a hero is born special, a Chosen One with a destiny written in the stars. Some people think the hero is simply the right person, in the right place, at the right time. Maybe they’re both right. Either way,…

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 3: The Antagonist

Oh, the antagonist. There are people who say the hero (or protagonist) defines the book. It’s certainly the hero that people remember. Frodo will not be forgotten. Han Solo and Luke Skywalker were role models for a generation. Harry Potter? He was such a famous protagonist they didn’t even need…

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 2: Plotting

Got a plot? If you’ve completed the exercises from Day 1 of NaNo boot camp (and you may not have because some of them are multi-day projects – don’t stress it) then you know how you write. Step two for planning a successful NaNoWriMo is finding a plot. NaNoWriMo attracts…

NaNoWriMo Boot Camp Day 1: Establish a Base Line

The best way to fail is to not prepare. You think you’re going to start NaNoWriMo November 1st with no preparation, no practice, and no prior thought? Well, honey, that’s just setting yourself up for failure. No worries, though. I am a certified* NaNoWriMo Boot Camp instructor. Every Tuesday and…

The Secret Handshake Of Publishing (a reprint)

Originally Posted On 10/15/14 Since the invention of the printing press there’s been a rumor that you need to know some secret to get your book published. There’s always this idea that it’s who you know, or that some magical phrase in your query letter will get your book a…

Editing

“Editing can’t be that hard,” said a well-meaning friend as I politely declined an invite to a weekend camping trip. I couldn’t go, I needed to finish the edits for DECOHERENCE. And editing isn’t easy. See all that red? That’s the opening chapters of DECOHERENCE during the first round of…

What Do You Do With Rejection Letters (a reprint)

Originally Posted On 6/10/14 Liana, I sent my first story out in February and now I have my first rejection. What am I supposed to do with it? – Rejected and Confused Dear Confused, First, congratulations on sending your story out! That’s a big, scary, terrifying, and exhilarating thing to…

There are No Great Writers…

… only great re-writers. The sooner you accept that your first drafts will be steaming piles of squishy word vomit, the sooner you will be able to write the story you want to write. First drafts are nasty. They are disgusting. They make you want to curl up in a…

Get Your Packet Together

Originally Posted 6/30/14 Listen, sometimes lightning strikes and you have a window of opportunity that’s never going to open again. Once time it was a phone call for a job. Whomever called back first got the position. Once it was a promotional opportunity, a reviewer’s guest blogger fell through and…

Impulse Buy Book of the Week: SHADOW by Christi J. Whitney

The second volume in this incredible YA trilogy. When stone hearts break they shatter. Sebastian Grey used to be a normal teenager. Now he’s a creature whose sole purpose is to be a guardian for secretive gypsy clans. When the Romany gypsies need his help, Sebastian is given a second…