Social Book

  • Subscribe to our RSS feed.
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Facebook
  • Digg

Sunday, 10 June 2012

Hey, James Patterson Stole my Plot!

Posted on 10:25 by Unknown

Plot theft. It tends to be on the minds of a lot of new writers.

You were planning to write that book some day. You had this brilliant plot. Now that *#%! Patterson/Nora Roberts/Stephen King has written a bestseller with the exact same premise.

Or the story is eerily similar to the one you pitched to an agent at a writer’s conference.

Or you're sure your plot will be stolen if you talk about your book online or in critique groups.

What should you do?

Nothing.

Writers have a lot to be wary of these days—bogus agents, inexperienced editors, overpriced coders/designers, scam publishers, draconian contracts, trollish critiquers—but plot-purloiners should not be high on the list.

Consider the old saying: “There are no new stories, just new ways of telling them.”

Experts don’t agree on the exact number of narrative plots, but there aren’t many:

  • · In the 19th century, Georges Polti listed 36 Dramatic Situations.
  • · In 1993, Ronald Tobias counted 20 Master Plots.
  • · In 2005, Christopher Booker compressed the list to Seven Basic Plots.
  • · The legendary agent who used to blog as "Miss Snark” said there were six.
  • · I found a 2010 article in Author Magazine that listed only five.

The number seems to be shrinking, but everybody agrees it is finite.

So—no matter how original your story feels to you, somebody has probably told it before.

Maybe a bestselling novelist like James Patterson.

They didn’t steal it. They thought it up just the way you did.

It’s amazing how often an idea that sprouts in your brain from the seeds of your own imagination can take root in other people’s brains at the same time. Human minds often respond in similar ways to prevailing news stories, music, weather patterns or whatever—and end up generating similar thoughts.

Evolutionary biologists call this phenomenon a “meme.” The term—from the Greek mimema—meaning something imitated—was coined by biologist Richard Dawkins in his 1976 book, The Selfish Gene. He observed that certain stories, melodies, catch phrases and fashions can flash through a whole culture in a short amount of time, changing and mutating as they go. Darwin and Wallace simultaneously came up with the theory of evolution while on different sides of the world. Newton and Liebnitz simultaneously invented calculus.

This explains why we can’t copyright ideas. Everybody has them. Very often the same ones at the same time.

Unfortunately, new writers don’t always realize this, and we can embarrass ourselves with plot-theft paranoia. That’s why you never want to mention copyright in a query letter. It red-flags you as an amateur.

Of course, if you’re having severe anxiety about it, you can indeed copyright your magnum opus, although it’s not necessary under current copyright laws. And if you’re really sure nobody ever thought of mixing classic 19thcentury fiction with B-movie paranormal creatures, you can even copyright that logline for “Silas Marner meets Gremlins.”

 Just don’t mention this to industry professionals.

This is because delusions about the uniqueness of story ideas can get pretty off-the-wall.
Victoria Strauss at WriterBeware wrote last year about some guy who was trying to sell his plot idea on eBay for ten million dollars. He said, “It can be compared to stories like Star Wars, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Matrix, Indiana Jones…and will bring in endless fame and money to anyone who takes it.”

And he’s not the only starry-eyed doofus who’s combined delusions of grandeur with total cluelessness about the effort required to actually write a novel or screenplay.

In the thread of the same post at Writer Beware, children’s author Kathleen Duey said, “I have been approached so many times by people who want me to buy a story, or who are willing to share half the proceeds if I will just do the writing. I never know what to say. I am not rude, but...really? Try that split on any other kind of business person. ‘I think that a colony on Mars would be awesome and I am willing to give a 50% share of all eventual proceeds to anyone who can make it happen.’ I am always careful to walk away, if that's what it takes, to keep anyone from telling me the idea…just in case I ever write something similar by accident.”

I’ll bet a lot of writers have been approached in a similar way. I sure have.

I have a feeling this delusion is as old as writing itself. I imagine Virgil probably met a guy at the Emperor Augustus’s orgy who said, “You’re a writer? Hey, I’ve got this idea for a book about a guy who sails around the Mediterranean. Meets up with big storms. Monsters. Some hot nookie. You can write it down and we’ll split the proceeds 50-50.”

I hope Virgil had a good lawyer.

Kathleen Duey’s instinct to run is a good one. These people can get scary. (They’re more likely to resort to lawsuits than murder, but I used it as a plot device in my comic mystery set at a small publishing house: SHERWOOD, LTD.)

When somebody approaches me with this “proposition,” I say, “the going rate for ghostwriters is $50-$100 an hour. I don’t provide that service, but I can get you a referral.”

Thing is--most writers have plenty of story ideas of our own. Our biggest fear is not living long enough to write them all.

But what do you do when somebody big like Patterson does publish a book that’s similar to yours? Even if they didn’t literally “steal” it, you can feel kind of ripped off.

Don’t despair. Memes can work in your favor. If you’re writing the final draft of your version of your Silas Marner/Gremlins mash-up, and somebody else comes out with a Silas Marner/Poltergeist  mash-up, you’re now part of a trend.

Readers tend to be sheep. If the first book is popular, they’ll want another. And if yours is better, you’re way ahead. It’s not about being first.

You can be pretty sure you’re not.

I’ll bet some guy told Virgil when he first pitched the Aeneid, “a lost dude sails around the Mediterranean after the Trojan War having adventures? Sorry, that’s been done. Haven’t you heard of that Homer guy’s story, the Odyssey?”

Hey, Virgil stole Homer’s plot!

I suppose he did--in a way. But it doesn’t seem to have hurt sales for either of them for the last couple of millennia.

It’s the telling that makes each story unique. And that’s going to be true of your story, too. It’s not about the plot. It’s about the writing. Nobody can steal that.

You should be more worried that your plot has been overdone.

Unfortunately, memes have short life spans. So it's important to keep up with what's selling in your genre. You need to know when the reader-sheep have moved on to greener pastures..

I'm not telling anybody to abandon a WIP with an well-used plotline. But be aware you're going to have to work a little harder to make it stand out. I thought I'd never want to see another vampire movie, and then Dark Shadows came out. And I laughed my head off watching Vampires Suck last night. You can always take something tired and make it fresh with humor. Or Johnny Depp.

Here are some overdone plots I see agents and readers complain about:

1) The thinly disguised memoir/rant

  • The Health-Crisis Survivor: The protagonist has cancer, lost a loved one, or has a disabled child—and after much agony, learns what’s important about life. Heart-wrenching, but misery won’t sell books unless you’re Joyce Carol Oates.

  • My Terrible Childhood: Child abuse is tragic stuff, but after somebody has seen 1000 versions Bastard Out Of Carolina, she gets calluses on her eyeballs.

  • Days of Wine and Roses: Too many addicts have twelve-stepped before you. It’s hard to make a story of  “I was soooo f***ed up” sound fresh. Journal about it, and use your insights in other work.

  • The Government Sux: Most of what you’re ranting about will probably be old news by launch date, even if you self-publish. This is why we have blogs.

2) The wish-fulfillment road-trip fantasy

  • Me and Bobby McGee: Unappreciated husband leaves soul-stifling life for the freedom of the road. He picks up a sexy hitchhiker who teaches him what’s important about life and some nifty things to do in bed. Been there, read that.

  • Thelma and Louise: Unappreciated housewives leave soul-stifling lives for the freedom of the road. Sounds fun, but we all know how it ends.

  • Zen and the Art of… Same story, with motorcycle/sailboat/classic Corvette.

3) Obvious or copy-cat plot devices

  • Grail Quests: J. R. R. Tolkien provides some pretty stiff competition in the “searching for a magical object” category. If you saddle this old warhorse, make sure it takes you somewhere wildly original and/or funny.

  • Wardrobing to Narnia: I’ve seen a lot of agents kvetch about the proliferation of “portals” in SciFi/Fantasy queries. Pop your characters to fantasy worlds by magic toaster or something.

  • The Chosen Hero: the ordinary Harry Potter-type kid who doesn’t know he’s the anointed hero destined to fight the Evil One and save the school/civilization/planet. Old when young Arthur pulled the sword out of that stone. 

  • Improbable high school love fantasies: Dorky new kid in school attracts the most popular kid of opposite sex. Been done. With sparkles. Just once, we’d like to see dork meets dork.

  • Creatures of the Night: The curtain has fallen on werewolves and vampires.

  • The Da Vinci Homage: If your hero has found a secret code or artifact that holds the key to a shocking revision of ecclesiastical history, you’d better set it on Mars or reveal the fetid meatballs at the Pastafarian heart of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, or you’re going to have a hard time.

  • A writer writing a novel: We’re told to write what we know, which is probably why most writers try this one. But you’ll do better with a story about your day job at the laundromat.

On the other hand, oldies can be goodies in the right hands. Nothing was more tired than the English boarding school melodrama before J. K. Rowling put her spin on it.

The way to avoid this is to read books in your genre before you start. It’s essential to know what’s out there. You may think you’re the first person ever to think of mashing up B-movies with classics, and unless you look at your local bookstore shelves and see Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, you won’t know it’s been done, and you’ll think “Seth Grahame-Smith stole my plot!”
***

What about you, scriveners? Have you ever had your brilliant plot show up in somebody else’s book? Have you had somebody try to sell you a plot or use their plot and split the proceeds 50-50? What did you do? Have you tried to write a book with one of the overdone plots? (I sure have: writer writing a novel—still have it in a drawer.)

You can Still Sign up to Win a Signed First Edition of Catherine Ryan Hyde’s iconic novel PAY IT FORWARD

HOW TO BE A WRITER IN THE E-AGE, which I wrote with my mentor and favorite author, Catherine Ryan Hyde (author of the iconic PAY IT FORWARD, and 19 other published and forthcoming books) is coming out very soon! 

This is not another book on self-publishing or a how-to-write book. It’s about how to be a writer: navigating the perils of the industry and keeping up with the latest information to save you time and money.

If you want be eligible to win a signed FIRST EDITION of Catherine’s iconic novel, PAY IT FORWARD, all you have to do is leave your email address in the comments or send me an email.  You can write it like this to avoid spam annerallen (dot) allen (at) gmail (dot) com. Or send it to me at annerallen.allen@gmail.com  

The official book launch and drawing will be on July 14thin San Luis Obispo, at a Digital E-Authors seminar Catherine and I are teaching with radio personality Dave Congalton and his group of very knowledgeable tech and writing professionals. 

The one-day seminar will be held Saturday, July 14, 2012 at the Sands Inn & Suites, in San Luis Obispo, CA “the happiest town on earth” (according to Oprah.) So if you live in the area, or you’re planning a vacation on the Central Coast, Register at: Digital Age E-Authors. (But you don’t have to be there to win the first edition.)


Email ThisBlogThis!Share to XShare to Facebook
Posted in 20 Master Plots, 7 Basic Plots., Anne R. Allen, Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, copyright your plot, Kathleen Duey, logline, Meme, Miss Snark, overdone plots, Richard Dawkins, Seth Grahame-Smith | No comments
Newer Post Older Post Home

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Popular Posts

  • The Ebook Market No Author Should Ignore: Think Globally!
    One of the biggest changes the e-reader has brought to the publishing industry doesn't get much cyberink in the online book community. I...
  • The Rules of Writing...and Why Not To Follow Them
    Somerset Maugham famously said, "There are three rules for writing. Unfortunately, nobody knows what they are." But pretty much ev...
  • Should You Eliminate "Was" From Your Writing? Why Sometimes "the Rules" are Wrong.
    No matter how much time and energy we put into querying agents and editors--or learning the ins and outs of self-publishing--it's all wa...
  • The Laws of the (Amazon) Jungle—Eight Rules Authors Need to Know to Stay Safe
    Update: This is probably now the longest blogpost in history, so I apologize. But I've had important updates from commenters that I'...
  • Self-Publishing or Traditional Publishing? Which is the Right First Step for YOU? Win a Free Book to Help You Decide
    T he list of million-seller "indie" authors is growing every day. Self-publishing has not only become mainstream—it's edgy and...
  • WORD COUNT GUIDELINES UPDATED FOR THE NEW DECADE
    How Long Should A Novel Be? A lot of agents have been complaining about queries with inappropriate word counts recently. If you're getti...
  • The Big "O" for Writers—Organization: The Writer's Toolbox #3
    This is Ruth Harris's third installment in her Writer's Toolbox series. You can read Writer's Toolbox #2 here and Writers Toolb...
  • The Writer's Toolbox #2: More Must-Have Tools for Writers
    This week Ruth Harris gives us more must-have tools for writers in the second installment of her " Writer's Toolbox " Series. ...
  • Author Collectives: The "Third Path" to Publication. Is it Right for You?
    Liza Perrat contacted me a few months ago, asking for permission to quote me in a book about her author collective, Triskele Books. I've...

Categories

  • 'textr
  • #QueryFail
  • #zombiefail
  • $13 e-reader
  • 10 thousand-hour rule
  • 20 Master Plots
  • 20th Century Woman
  • 21st Century prose
  • 21st Century writing
  • 3:17 AM
  • 7 Basic Plots.
  • 99 cent book bubble
  • 99-cent e-books
  • A Christmas Carol
  • A Midsummer Night's Dream
  • A.J. Sykes
  • AbFab
  • Absolute Write
  • Academic Body
  • Achieving your writing goals
  • Adele McAlear
  • Adventures in Children's Publishing
  • advice for nonfiction writers
  • advice for writers
  • advice on craft
  • Advice to writers
  • agent
  • agent blogs
  • Agent Jenny Bent
  • Agent Laurie McLean
  • agent Meredith Barnes
  • Agent rejection
  • Agent Sara Megibow
  • Agent Savant
  • agent scam
  • AgentQuery
  • AgentQuery Connect
  • AgentQueryConnect
  • Aisha Iqbal
  • Alan Rinzler
  • Alex J. Cavanaugh
  • Alexa Ratings
  • algorithms
  • Alice Walker
  • Alicia Street
  • Alison Tait
  • All Fall Down
  • Amanda Hocking
  • Amanda Katz
  • Amanda McKittrick Ros
  • Amazon
  • Amazon Book of the Month
  • Amazon buy page
  • Amazon categories
  • Amazon monopoly
  • Amazon publishing imprints
  • Amazon Review Guidelines
  • Amazon review removal
  • Amazon reviews
  • Amazon rules
  • Amazon Singles
  • Amy Riley
  • Andrea Brown
  • Andrew Loog Oldham
  • AndWeWereHungry
  • Ann Best
  • Ann Carbine Best
  • Ann Lamott
  • Ann Patchett
  • Anne Gallagher
  • Anne R. Allen
  • Anne R. Allen. SLO Nightwriters
  • Anne Rice review
  • Anne Schroeder
  • Anonymice
  • Antagonist
  • Anthologies
  • Apple Store
  • Author abuse
  • Author bio
  • author branding
  • Author Collectives
  • Author Platform
  • Author power
  • Author scams
  • author websites
  • Author's Guild
  • Awesome Screenshot
  • Back Matter
  • bad reviews
  • Bantam
  • Barbara Rogan
  • Bargain Ebook Newsletters
  • Barnes and Noble
  • Barry Eisler
  • Bear State Books
  • Beating the Breakdown
  • Beginning Novelist
  • being yourself on purpose
  • Beniot Lelievre
  • Benoit LeLievere
  • Benoit Lelievre
  • Berkley Heat
  • Best Damn Creative Blog
  • Best Damn Creative Writing Blog
  • Best links for writers
  • bestseller lists
  • beta readers
  • Betty Jo Stevenson Rides Again
  • Big 6 editor
  • Big 6 publishers
  • Big 6-5-4
  • Big Boss Troublemaker
  • Big Publishing
  • Big Six
  • Big Six editors
  • Big Six publishers
  • Big Six publishing
  • Big Six rules
  • Bing
  • Bit.ly
  • Black Balloon Publishing
  • Blake Morrison
  • Blame the Writer
  • Blog a book
  • Blog community.
  • blog followers
  • Blog hop
  • blog kudos Kittie Howard
  • blog of the week
  • Blog tour
  • Blogfests
  • Blogger having technical problems
  • Blogger sux
  • Blogging
  • blogging awards
  • blogging for authors
  • blogging pitfalls
  • blogging rules
  • blogging tips
  • Blogging tips for writers
  • Bloghops
  • blogs
  • Blurbs
  • Bob Mayer
  • bogus agents
  • bogus writing contests
  • Book Blogger
  • book bloggers
  • book doctors
  • book editing
  • book launch party
  • Book Luvin’ Babes
  • Book Marketing
  • Book review blogs
  • book reviewers
  • Book Reviews
  • Bookalicious Pam
  • BookBaby
  • BookBub
  • BookCountry.com
  • Bookends LLC
  • BookTour.com
  • Boomer Lit
  • BoomerLit
  • Boomers
  • Borders
  • Brainwashed
  • Brave New Trail Conference
  • building platform
  • Bullying
  • Burnout
  • Burt Reynolds
  • Butterfly Syndrome
  • C. Hope Clark
  • C. S. Perryess
  • Calibre
  • Camilla Randall mysteries
  • Camille LeGuire
  • Can You Use Song Lyrics in Novels
  • Canadian comedians
  • CAPTCHA
  • Careful or You'll End Up in My Novel T-shirts
  • Casey McCormack
  • Casey McCormick
  • Castle
  • Cathe Olson
  • Catherine Ryan Hyde
  • CC Coast Writers Conference
  • Censorship
  • Central Coast Sisters in Crime
  • Central Coast Writer’s Conference
  • Central Coast Writers Conference
  • Chanel and Gatsby
  • Charity Anthologies
  • cheap ebooks
  • Cheryl Shireman
  • Chick Lit is Not Dead
  • Chick Lit News and Reviews
  • Chocolate
  • Chris Baty
  • Christine Ahern
  • Christmas books
  • Christopher Moore
  • Chuck Wendig
  • Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster
  • Clarissa Draper
  • Claude Nougat
  • Colleen Lindsay
  • Colonel Baker's Field
  • Colorado Tragedy
  • Columbia College Chicago
  • comedy-mystery
  • comic thriller
  • Compose magazine
  • Connie Brockway
  • Consuelo Saah Baehr
  • Consuelo Saah Baer
  • coping with rejection
  • Copyright
  • Copyright laws
  • copyright your plot
  • Courtnee Howard
  • cozy mysteries
  • Crash into You
  • Crazy-Makers
  • Creating memorable characters
  • creative writing courses
  • creativity
  • Crime Writers of Canada
  • critique groups
  • critique groups and criticism
  • critiquecircle.com
  • Cyber-bullying
  • cyberbullies
  • Cyberbullying
  • Cybermen
  • D. G. Sandru
  • D.D. Scott
  • Dallas Morning News
  • Dani Amore
  • Danielle Smith
  • Dave Congalton
  • David Fagin
  • David Gaughran
  • David Streitfeld
  • David Whiting
  • DC Stanfa
  • DD Scott
  • Dean Wesley Smith
  • Death and Digital Legacy
  • Death of the American Author
  • Death of the Big 6
  • Decades
  • Delilah S. Dawson
  • Depression and Writers
  • Derek Haines
  • Derico Photography
  • developing your writing style
  • DGLM
  • Digital Age Authors
  • Digital Age E-Authors
  • digital paper
  • Do authors need to blog
  • Do I need an agent? platform
  • do’s and don’ts for writing a memoir
  • Does my writing suck? Anne R. Allen
  • DoJ lawsuit
  • Don't Let Me Go
  • Donelle Lacy
  • Donna Fasano
  • Donna Hole
  • Dorothy Parker
  • Double Feature
  • Douglas Rushkoff
  • Dr. Martha Stout
  • Dr. Who
  • Dream-smashers
  • Dreams do Come True
  • Dreams vs. goals
  • Duolit
  • E-Book Revolution
  • e-readers
  • E. M. Forster
  • Ebook Marketing
  • eBook pricing
  • Ebook revolution
  • ebookbargainsuk
  • EBUK
  • ECollegeFinder Top Writing Blog
  • Edit Ink scam
  • Editing
  • Editor David Blum
  • editor Jamie Chavez
  • Elaine Raco Chase
  • Elisa Lorello
  • Elizabeth Ann West
  • Elizabeth Joss
  • Elizabeth S. Craig
  • Elizabeth Spann Craig
  • Emily Cross
  • English major
  • English speakers in India
  • episodic storytelling
  • Eric Feldon
  • Erica Jong
  • Erotica
  • Escargot Books
  • Evernote
  • Facebook
  • Facebook Other Folder
  • Fair Use
  • Fall into You
  • Feedburner
  • Fiction Groupie
  • Fiction writers
  • Fight Depression
  • Finger Lickin’ Dead
  • firing an agent
  • first chapters
  • First Rights
  • fixes for a stalled novel
  • Flipboard
  • Food of Love
  • Foreword Literary
  • Frazzled
  • free books
  • free ebook give-away
  • Free Elements of Style
  • free online resources for writers
  • Freelance book editors
  • Front Matter
  • Funds for Writers
  • Fussy Librarian
  • Future of bookstores
  • Future of publishing
  • Gabriele Lessa
  • GalleyCat
  • Gary Canie
  • Gary Trudeau
  • Gatekeepers
  • Geek-chic
  • Gerry McCullough
  • getting out of your own way
  • Ghostwriters in the Sky
  • GIFs
  • Ginger Clark
  • Glimmer Train
  • Golden Age of Publishing
  • Goodbye Emily
  • Goodreads
  • Google Authorship
  • Google+
  • GooglePlay
  • Gordon Wornock
  • grammar lessons
  • Grammar nerds
  • Gravatar.com
  • Groupthink
  • Guest blogging
  • Hate Facebook
  • Hire an Editor
  • history of the novel
  • Hive Mind
  • holiday gifts for Grandma
  • Holli Moncrieff
  • Hollywood scandal
  • Homer
  • Hooked
  • Hope Clark
  • How to be a Writer in the E-Age
  • How Do I Know I'm a Writer?
  • how much should you pay a book editor
  • how not to blog
  • how not to pitch to agents video
  • how not to publish
  • How not to spam
  • How Not to Start a Novel
  • How to barf a book
  • How to be a good blog guest
  • how to be a successful author
  • How to be a Writer
  • How to Be a Writer in the E-Age
  • How to be Googleable
  • how to blog
  • how to deal with negative reviews
  • How to deal with rejection
  • How to edit your own work
  • How to find a publisher
  • How to find plot ideas
  • How to get a book published
  • How to get an agent
  • How to get your book rejected
  • how to get your book reviewed
  • how to pitch a book
  • How to prepare a manuscript
  • how to publish a memoir
  • How to publish a novel
  • How to Query
  • How to Query a Blogger
  • How to query a book blogger
  • how to query a book reviewer
  • how to sell on Amazon
  • How to sign up for Google+
  • how to start a blog
  • how to start a novel
  • How to stay safe online
  • How to Tweet
  • how to write
  • How to write a bestselling novel
  • how to write a blurb
  • how to write a book product description
  • How to Write a Damn Good Novel
  • how to write a memoir
  • how to write a novel
  • how to write a novel based on real life
  • how to write a synopsis
  • How to write an Amazon review. Amazon star ratings. Jeff Bezos
  • How to Write Better
  • how to write blog headers
  • how to write funny
  • how to write memoir
  • How to write memorable fiction
  • Hugh Howey
  • humor
  • humor writing
  • humorous mystery
  • Husbands and Lovers
  • I Hate Trends
  • IBBA Awards Finalist
  • Imagine: How Creativity Works
  • inciting incident
  • independent bookstores
  • India Drummond
  • indie authors
  • Indie bookstores
  • Indie Chicks Anthology
  • Indie or Traditional Publishing?
  • indie publishing
  • Indies Unlimited 10 Best Blogs for Indie Authors
  • Indiestructible
  • Insecure Writers Support Group
  • Insult Ferrets
  • International Ebook Markets
  • Internet bullying
  • Internet trolls
  • iPad
  • ISBN
  • J. A. Konrath
  • J. K. Rowling
  • J.K. Rowling
  • Jack King
  • Jacqueline Susann
  • James Frey
  • James N. Frey
  • James Patterson
  • Jami Gold
  • Jane Friedman
  • Janet Reid
  • Janice Hardy
  • Jaron Lanier
  • Jason Kong
  • Jeff Carlson
  • Jenna Glatzer
  • Jennifer Weiner
  • Jenny Bent
  • Jeremy Duns
  • Jess Walter
  • Jesse Stone
  • Jessica Bell
  • Jill Corcoran.
  • Jill Metcalf
  • Jim McCarthy
  • Joanna Harris
  • Joanna Penn
  • Joanne Tombrakos
  • Joe Konrath
  • Joel Friedlander
  • John Allen
  • John Green
  • John Locke
  • John Updike
  • Johnny Base
  • Jon Morrow
  • Jonah Lehrer
  • Josh Swiller
  • Judy Salamacha
  • Julia Cameron
  • Julie Luek
  • Jumpstart the World
  • Justin Cronin
  • Jutoh
  • Karen McQuestion
  • Karin Cox
  • Katheryn Smith
  • Kathleen Duey
  • Kathleen Valentine
  • Kathryn Rusch
  • Kathy Carmichael's pitch generator
  • Katie the book-eating dog
  • KDP Select
  • Keeping your sanity
  • Keith Blount
  • Kevin Spacey
  • Kiana Davenport
  • Kick-ass heroines
  • Kill Your Darlings
  • Kill your television
  • Killing Cupid
  • Killing the Blues
  • Kim Wright
  • Kindle
  • Kindle authors
  • Kindle bestseller
  • Kindle books
  • Kindle ebooks
  • Kindle Millionaires
  • Kindle Nation
  • Kindle publishing
  • Kindle Serials
  • Kindle Singles
  • Kindlegen
  • Kindlegraph
  • Kirkus
  • Klout
  • know your genre
  • Kobo
  • Konrath
  • Kris Rusch
  • Kristen Lamb
  • Kristen McLean
  • Kristin Lamb
  • Kristin Nelson
  • kudos
  • L.B. Gschwandtner
  • L.L Barkat
  • Landing a Book Contract
  • landing an agent
  • Larsen-Pomada Agency
  • Laura Morrigan
  • Laurie McLean
  • Lawrence Block
  • Learn to be a ghostwriter
  • learning to fail
  • Lee Goldberg
  • Leslie Kaufman
  • Lexi Revellian
  • Lila Moore
  • Liliana Hart
  • Lindsay Lohan
  • Lisa Perrat
  • Lisbeth Salander
  • Listening to your heart
  • Literary agents
  • Literary genres
  • literary journals
  • Literary Lab
  • Literary Rambles
  • logline
  • loglines
  • long tail marketing
  • Louise Voss
  • Love and Money
  • Love in Mid Air
  • LR Richardson
  • Luddite
  • Lydia Sharp
  • Mac Tonnies
  • Mad Men
  • Mainak Dhar
  • Malcolm Gladwell
  • Man in the Cinder Clouds
  • Marcia Richards
  • Mariano Rivera
  • Marissa Meyer
  • Mark Billingham
  • Mark Chisnell
  • Mark Coker
  • Mark Edwards
  • Mark Williams
  • Mark Williams International
  • Mark Williams international Digital Publishing
  • Mark Zuckerberg
  • Marketing
  • Martini Madness
  • Mary Sisson
  • Mary Sues
  • Mary W. Walters
  • Matthew Scudder mysteries
  • Mean Girls
  • Meghan Derico
  • Meghan Ward
  • Melodie Campbell
  • Meme
  • memes
  • memoir or fiction
  • memoir writing
  • Mental toughness
  • Meredith Barnes
  • Metadata
  • Michael Brandman
  • Michael Chabon
  • Michael Harris
  • Michael Murphy
  • Michael Ventura
  • Michelle Davidson Argyle
  • Micropresses
  • Mid-Sized Publishers
  • Miss Snark
  • missing Amazon reviews
  • Modern Women
  • Monarch
  • Monetize your blog
  • Montlake Romance
  • Morgen Bailey
  • mss.
  • MWiDP
  • My WANA
  • mystery meat navigation
  • Mystery Writing is Murder
  • Nancy Andreasen
  • NaNoWriMo
  • nasty book reviews
  • Natalie Whipple
  • Nathan Bransford
  • Nathan Fillion
  • National Novel Writing Month
  • Neil Vogler
  • New York Review of Books
  • New York Times bestseller
  • New York Times Book Review
  • newbie advice
  • news
  • Newsetters
  • Nick Hornby
  • Night of the Living Dead
  • Nina Amir
  • Nina Badzin
  • Nisus
  • no new stories
  • No Place Like Home
  • Nook
  • Nora Roberts
  • Notes from Underground
  • Novel structure
  • Nuclear testing
  • NYT Book Reviews
  • Office of Letters and Light
  • Olivia Lewis
  • On the Island
  • Open Education Database
  • opportunities for writers
  • Oprah's Happiest Town
  • Orna Ross
  • overdone plots
  • Overrride: a Thriller
  • paid reviews
  • Pam Van Hylckama Vleig
  • Pam van Hylckama Vlieg
  • pantser vs. planner
  • Park Avenue Series
  • Passive Guy
  • Passive voice
  • Passive writing
  • Past perfect tense
  • Path to Publication
  • Paul Fahey
  • Paul Laity
  • Pay it Forward
  • Paying it Forward
  • PeerIndex
  • Penguin House
  • Peter Ginna
  • Pippa Middleton’s Pilates Coach
  • Plantagenet Smith
  • Plato
  • plot boards
  • Poets and Writers
  • Popcorn Press
  • PopularSoda.com
  • Porter Anderson
  • Posthuman Blues
  • Pottermore
  • Preditors and Editors
  • Prentiss Ingraham
  • Press 53
  • procrastination
  • Product Description
  • professional writers
  • prologues
  • proofreading
  • Protagonist
  • Prue Batten
  • pseudonym
  • pseudonyms
  • psychology for writers
  • Public Domain
  • Public Query Slushpile
  • PublishAmerica
  • Publisher rejections
  • Publisher's Lunch
  • Publisher's Weekly
  • publishing
  • Publishing alternatives
  • publishing business
  • publishing in 2013
  • Publishing Industry
  • publishing news
  • publishing rules
  • Publishing scams
  • publishing trends
  • query
  • query hell
  • query letter
  • Query Shark
  • Query Tracker
  • QueryTracker
  • Quotes4Writers
  • Rachel Thompson
  • Rachelle Gardener
  • Rachelle Gardner
  • Rare Stamps
  • Readwave
  • Reddit
  • RedRoom
  • rejection
  • Reviews
  • Rex Pickett
  • RG2E
  • Rhemalda
  • rhinos
  • Richard Castle
  • Richard Dawkins
  • Richard LaPlante
  • Richard North Patterson
  • Rick Daley
  • Riley Adams
  • Robert B. Parker
  • Robert Lee Brewer
  • Robert M. Caruso
  • Roberta Trahan
  • Robin LaFevers
  • Robin Sullivan
  • Robinson Crusoe openings
  • Robynne Rand
  • Roland Yeomans
  • romantic comedy
  • Roni Loren
  • Rotten Tomatoes Reviews
  • Roxanna Britton
  • Roy and Alicia Street
  • Roz Morris
  • Ruth Ann Nordin
  • Ruth Harris
  • Ruth Harris’s Blog
  • Saffi Desforges
  • Saffina Desforges
  • Saffinia Desforges
  • Samuel Park
  • San Francisco Writers Conference
  • San Luis Obispo
  • Santa Claus stories
  • Santa Ynez CA
  • Sara LaPolla
  • Sarah Miles
  • Sarah Weinman
  • Sarah Woodbury
  • Say Yes to Gay YA
  • scams
  • Schmoozing on Twitter
  • Scholastic's trend report
  • Scott Nicholson
  • Scott Turow
  • Scrivener
  • Secret writing rule book
  • Self e-publishing
  • Self-Editing
  • self-published e-book
  • Self-published ebooks
  • self-publishing
  • self-publishing expenses
  • Self-publishing on Kindle
  • Selling Short Stories on Amazon
  • Semantic Search
  • SEO
  • Seth Grahame-Smith
  • Sex scenes
  • Shaun of the Dead
  • Shaw Guides
  • She Writes
  • Shelly Jump
  • Shelly Thacker
  • Sherrie Petersen
  • Sherwood Ltd.
  • SheWrites
  • Shindig
  • Shirley S. Allen
  • short stories
  • Short stories made into films
  • show don't tell
  • Sibel Hodge
  • Sierra Godfrey
  • Sigil
  • Simon and Schuster
  • Sisters in Crime
  • SLO Nightwriters
  • Slow Blog Manifesto
  • slow blogging
  • Slush pile
  • Small Presses
  • Small Publishers
  • Smashwords
  • Smashwords Mark Coker
  • Snooki
  • Snookibooks
  • Social Lasers of Cruelty
  • Social Media
  • social media etiquette
  • social media for authors
  • Social Media Marketing
  • Social Networking
  • Sociopath
  • sock puppet reviews. Elisa Lorello
  • Sock Puppets
  • software for self-publishers
  • Solstice Celebrations
  • Somerset Maugham's rules of writing
  • Sony
  • Spirit of Lost Angels
  • Spywriter
  • squirrels
  • Stamp Album
  • Stand up to bullies
  • Star Trek IV
  • steal your plot
  • Stephen Leather
  • Stephen Marche
  • stepping in dogma
  • Steve Martin
  • Steve Wilhite
  • Story arc
  • Style Guide
  • Style Sheet
  • Stylish blogger award
  • sucky first drafts
  • Sugar and Spice
  • Sunny Frazier
  • Susan G. Komen Foundation
  • Susan Kaye Quinn
  • Suzanne Collins
  • Sylvia Plath
  • Talli Roland
  • Tawna Fenske
  • Tech woes
  • Tech-Savvy Author winners
  • Tech-Savvy authors
  • Temple Grandin
  • ten most notorious hollywood sex scandals of all time
  • Terence Stamp
  • Terry Pratchett
  • The Atomic Times
  • The Beginning Writers Rule Book
  • The Best Revenge
  • The Chanel Caper
  • The Colbert Book Club
  • The Daily Show
  • The Dark Knight Rises
  • the Digital Beyond
  • The Ebook is the new Query
  • The Fault in Our Stars
  • the fearless writer
  • The Frozen Sky
  • The Gatsby Game
  • The Goddaughter's Revenge
  • the Hays Code
  • The importance of detail in fiction
  • The Lady of the Lakewood Diner
  • The Liar's Bible
  • The Literary Lab
  • the most interesting man in the world.
  • The New Yorker
  • The Night and the Music
  • The Organized Writer
  • The Passive Voice
  • The Plague Year
  • the publishing biz
  • The secret rule book
  • the secret to becoming a successful writer
  • the skinny on agents
  • The Slow Blog Manifesto
  • The Sociopath Next Door
  • The Street-Smart Writer
  • The Tech-Savvy Author
  • The Triskele Trail
  • The Virus that Will Not Die
  • The Wizard of Oz
  • the writing life
  • There's a Book
  • There’s a Book
  • This Burns My Heart
  • Thomas and Mercer
  • Thrillerfest
  • Todd Sieling
  • Tom Johnson
  • Tom Selleck
  • Tom Simon
  • Tony Piazza
  • Top 50 Blogs for Authors
  • Topsy.com
  • Tracy Garvis Graves
  • Trafalmadore
  • TribalMessengerDaily
  • Triskele Books
  • trollosphere
  • Trolls
  • Tsunami of Crap
  • Tweepi
  • Twitchforks
  • Twitter
  • Twitter for Shy Persons
  • twitter handles
  • uses for dryer lint
  • using a pen name
  • V.K. Sykes
  • vanity press
  • Vanity Publishing
  • Victoria Mixon
  • Victoria Strauss
  • VidCon
  • Virgil
  • Walk Me Home
  • Wall Street Journal
  • Walter's Purple Heart
  • web design
  • websites that suck
  • Weebly
  • Wendy Lawton
  • Wendy Sparrow
  • WG2E
  • What rejection means
  • What to blog about
  • When I Found You
  • Where We Belong
  • White Queen
  • Why choose traditional publishing
  • Why You Get Rejected
  • Why You Should Write Short Fiction
  • why your manuscript got rejected
  • William Faulkner
  • WIX
  • Woodstock
  • Wool
  • Wordmonger
  • words to eliminate from your writing
  • Write every day
  • Write for your Life
  • Write it Sideways
  • Write it Sideways 101 best tips for writers
  • Writer Beware
  • Writer burnout
  • Writer Masochism
  • Writer Unboxed
  • Writer's block
  • Writer’s Block
  • Writer’s Emotional Health
  • Writer's Toolkit
  • Writers Cafe
  • writers conferences
  • Writers Digest Best 101 Sites for Writers
  • Writers Toolbox
  • writers’ conference
  • Writers' Conferences
  • Writers’ Conferences
  • writing
  • Writing and Depression
  • writing dos and don'ts
  • writing habits
  • writing humor
  • Writing ideas
  • Writing myths
  • Writing prompts
  • writing rules
  • Writing scams
  • Writing tips
  • Writing to Trends
  • Writing Workshop
  • Your Digital Afterlife
  • your name is your brand
  • YourMemoir.co.uk
  • Zoe Winters
  • Zuri
  • Zuri a love story

Blog Archive

  • ►  2013 (52)
    • ►  December (4)
    • ►  November (4)
    • ►  October (4)
    • ►  September (5)
    • ►  August (4)
    • ►  July (5)
    • ►  June (5)
    • ►  May (4)
    • ►  April (4)
    • ►  March (5)
    • ►  February (4)
    • ►  January (4)
  • ▼  2012 (53)
    • ►  December (5)
    • ►  November (4)
    • ►  October (4)
    • ►  September (5)
    • ►  August (4)
    • ►  July (5)
    • ▼  June (4)
      • 11 REASONS WRITERS GET REJECTED—AND WHY ONLY 3 OF ...
      • Hello Darkness, My Old Friend: New Research Helps ...
      • Hey, James Patterson Stole my Plot!
      • The Slow Blog Manifesto...and 8 Reasons Why Slow B...
    • ►  May (4)
    • ►  April (5)
    • ►  March (4)
    • ►  February (4)
    • ►  January (5)
  • ►  2011 (66)
    • ►  December (5)
    • ►  November (5)
    • ►  October (6)
    • ►  September (6)
    • ►  August (4)
    • ►  July (7)
    • ►  June (4)
    • ►  May (6)
    • ►  April (4)
    • ►  March (6)
    • ►  February (5)
    • ►  January (8)
  • ►  2010 (80)
    • ►  December (7)
    • ►  November (6)
    • ►  October (7)
    • ►  September (4)
    • ►  August (7)
    • ►  July (8)
    • ►  June (10)
    • ►  May (7)
    • ►  April (5)
    • ►  March (6)
    • ►  February (6)
    • ►  January (7)
  • ►  2009 (44)
    • ►  December (7)
    • ►  November (11)
    • ►  October (11)
    • ►  September (5)
    • ►  August (3)
    • ►  July (4)
    • ►  June (2)
    • ►  March (1)
Powered by Blogger.

About Me

Unknown
View my complete profile