Accepting Criticism

Don’t tune out others’ critiques.

For decades, I attended writers conferences and reviewed people’s writing. Only once did I ever find a story without places I thought the writer could improve.

Fortunately, I offered these critiques in a teaching environment. In theory, people had come to learn how to make their writing better.

But human nature also played a part. What they hoped to … Continue reading

Novel Structure Secrets

Bestselling pros offer great advice.

Some offers are too good to be true. But some only seem that way. Like this one I found Monday.

For novelists uncertain how to shape their story came free guidance from an author of nearly 200 books, 21 of them New York Times bestsellers, with sales of 71 million copies.

While Jerry B. Jenkins offers paid writing instruction, he … Continue reading

Ask for Help

No one’s an expert at everything.

This past Saturday, while working on a home improvement project, I faced a choice: I could risk injury—or I could ask my wife’s help.

I needed to trim several inches from the end of an eight-foot board. My table saw was ready. But without a third hand, I couldn’t support the board to make the cut.

I could have tried to jury-rig some kind of … Continue reading