Story Planning: Three Ways to Get Started

/
Story Planning: Three Ways to Get Started

A few years ago I wrote a series of 12 blog posts about story planning. They were quite detailed and seemed to get a lot of views on Pinterest, so I ended up combining them into what I called “The Ultimate Guide to Planning a Novel.” I had written the posts over 12 days with each day focusing on a different step in the story planning process.

These days, I tend to want to plan my novels a little quicker than 12 days, so I thought I’d write a follow-up post and share some of the strategies I use now.

Read More

How to Have a Prosperous 2020

/
How to Have a Prosperous 2020

Did you know that New Year's resolutions regarding personal finances are some of the most common resolutions people make? Not only that, but by this point in the year many people have already given up on their resolutions.

It’s never too late to try again! You don’t need a new year to try something new. Here are a few things I did in 2019 that made a big difference in my personal finances.

Read More

Help Me Choose the Cover for My First Planner!

/
Help Me Choose the Cover for My First Planner!

So, I may have gone a little overboard creating covers for my first planner. I’d love it if you would share your opinions in the comments below. Don’t worry, I have some larger pictures coming right up. But first, a little about this book . . .

This is a planner first and foremost, so while I was creating these covers, I kept that in mind. Most planners don’t include the authors name or a sub-title. However, there is going to be a bit of a self-help element to the book as well. I will be sharing my story with debt and my “TREE” method for keeping it under control and managing my finances.

Read More

Writing Tips from Author K. Kris Loomis

/
Writing Tips from Author K. Kris Loomis

K. Kris Loomis was one of the first authors I virtually met in a Facebook group when I was just getting started on my self-publishing journey. I read How to Sneak More Yoga Into Your Life some of her short story collections and instantly fell in love with her writing style and sense of humour.

I’ve enjoyed watching Kris’s progress as a self-published author since meeting her in 2016. In the past year alone, Kris wrote and publish two novels and the non-fiction book, Surviving Revision. Kris’s guest posts are some of the most popular on my site, so I knew I had to interview her and share her tips!

Read More

12 Days of Planning Your Novel: Story Inspiration

/
12 Days of Planning Your Novel: Story Inspiration

At this point in my series, 12 Days of Planning Your Novel, you probably have a pretty good outline but you might be wondering if you have enough ideas to write a full length novel. Don’t worry! The next few posts in this series will provide you with a few more ways you can add scenes to your outline, so when it comes time to write your novel, you’ll have plenty to work from.

Read More

12 Days of Planning Your Novel: Start Your Outline

/
12 Days of Planning Your Novel: Start Your Outline

The next step in planning your novel involves mapping out the major scenes in your novel. In my last post, I talked about the difference between story and plot, and in today’s post we are going to be moving on from your story and starting to work more on your plot.

In the post about conducting research for your novel, I mentioned how genre stories have obligatory scenes. We are going to be working with those obligatory scenes today so if you haven’t finished researching the kinds of scenes you need for your novel, this is a great place to start.

Read More

12 Days of Planning Your Novel: Character Development

/
12 Days of Planning Your Novel: Character Development

Welcome to post number three in my 12-post series about planning a novel. 12 Days of Planning Your Novel is a fun tribute to the 12 Days of Christmas with the goal of being ready start writing your novel during the actual twelve days of Christmas (December 25 - January 5). Here’s where you can find the first two posts.

Step 1: Brainstorm

Step 2: Research

Read More

12 Days of Planning Your Novel: What Will You Write?

/
12 Days of Planning Your Novel: What Will You Write?

Welcome to Day 1 of Planning Your Novel. I thought it would be fun to do a series based on one of my favourite Christmas songs: The 12 Days of Christmas.

Now, the 12 days of Christmas are actually December 25 - January 5, but I wanted to release all 12 parts of this series before Christmas so that if you are following along with me, you’ll be all set to write during the actual 12 days of Christmas, a time when many people have some time off. Of course, you can work through this series anytime you want. I understand the holidays can be a very busy time!


Read More