How Writers Can Market to the Homeschooling Audience Most Effectively

by Karen Whiting @KarenHWhiting

I’ve had opportunities to speak and set up tables to sell books at homeschool markets a few times. This year I doubled my sales into hundreds of dollars. They are a unique and yet diverse audience, and it helps to understand their needs.

I homeschooled my youngest child for a while and have helped my daughters as they have homeschooled. It makes a difference if you have been involved with homeschoolers. You’ll discover they invest lots of money in books, but they look for the right books for their families, from authors who share their goals.

Think Outside the Book

by Martin Wiles @LinesFromGod

“I want to write a book.”

For ten years, I have taught grammar and writing to middle schoolers, and quite a few have shared their aspirations to pen a book. Although I commend them and assure them doing so is a worthy goal, I also tell them about the roadblocks, struggles, and rejections they can expect along their journey. 

Things for Writers to Remember When Others Cause You to Doubt

by Beth K. Vogt @BethVogt

Earlier this week, I was watching “American Ninja Warrior” (ANW), which is a Monday night tradition in the Vogt household. Yes, I know I may have mentioned my love of ANW in other posts. During the commercial breaks, I stared at a blank Word document and mulled over this blog post.

How Writers Can Effectively Fight the Issue of Story Stall

by MaryAnn Diorio @DrMaryAnnDiorio

If you've been writing fiction for any length of time, you have very likely experienced what I call "Story Stall." What is story stall? Besides being a tongue-twister :), story stall is a stop in the forward motion of your story while you are writing it. It is the point in your story where you get stuck and cannot move forward. Some people call this writer's block. In my opinion, story stall—like writer's block—is, at its root, nothing more than the symptom of a story problem. 

Why Writers Should Revisit Their College Years to Market Their Latest Book

by Julie Lavender @JLavenderWrites

Whether you moved the tassel a handful of years ago or a handful of decades ago, tapping into your alma mater is a great place to market a new release. It’s a little outside of the box – and don’t all universities encourage outside-of-the-box learning strategies while seeking that diploma? And one that will help you reach fresh audiences to get the word out about your newest book publication. 

Reasons a Writer Needs to Start Thinking about the Holidays Now

by Linda Gilden @LindaGilden

Even though it is just the end of the summer, it’s a great time to gather your holiday thoughts for your writing projects.

Most magazines begin several months ahead if not more. So this month would be a good time to make your list of possible article ideas for this year’s holiday season.

Discover What You Need to Write Dialect that Shines True

by Cindy Sproles @CindyDevoted

Everyone is known for something, and me—well, it's my mountain dialect. I learned years ago that when you hail from the mountains of East Tennessee, folks are going to rag you about your accent. I decided to roll with it. 

The dialect makes me who I am, which is not such a bad thing. For me to translate that dialect into viable dialogue took a little practice. There were some things I had to come to grips with, like the cultural differences across the country. It was wrong to simply assume everyone understood the concept of going "across the gap"—something so second nature to me in both doing and speaking became a stumbling block for those above the Mason-Dixon.

As much as I love my mountain heritage and dialect, in order for it to come across as both understandable and realistic, I had to put the brakes on from time to time. Learning to write the dialogue and dialect that you speak requires thought. Follow these tips to help you pen amazing dialect in your dialogue.