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Book Review & Contest Insights from Real Reviews and Submissions

What separates great books from the rest? Below are articles with insights from real reviews and contest submissions—what works, what doesn’t, and how to improve your book. You’ll also find a wide range of articles covering writing, publishing, marketing, and more. Each article has a Comments section so you can read advice from other authors and leave your own.

Why Some Books Win Awards (And Most Don’t) — Insights From Real Contest Submissions

What separates award-winning books from the rest? After evaluating contest submissions across a wide range of genres, certain patterns become clear. Some books consistently rise to the top. Others, even with strong ideas and clear effort behind them, fall short. The difference is rarely dramatic—it...

What We’ve Learned From Reviewing Hundreds of Thousands of Books (And Why Most Don’t Stand Out)

After reviewing and evaluating books across thousands of submissions over the past two decades, certain patterns become impossible to ignore. Some books immediately stand out to reviewers. Others—even well-intentioned ones—fade into the middle or fall short. The difference is rarely luck. It comes down to...

Why We Need Technical Writing

Do you remember when you were back in high school or college? Remember when your professor forced you to write all those papers and presentations, made you rewrite those drafts over and over again even if it meant spending night after night correcting everything? Remember...

When You Tell People You're a Writer

When I get money from writing, I’d tell my parents about it. This is because, usually, they plan on buying me something they think I might need. So I tell them I can get it myself, and that they can use the money for something...

Writing at an Effective Pace

Pacing refers to the speed or the rate of motion with which characters, setting, plot, and relationships develop through the story. Pacing, when done too fast, creates a hurried atmosphere and does not give the reader breathing room. Too slow and the reader gets bored. Moderate...

Structuring a Memoir – The Ins and Outs of Writing Your Story

Structuring any novel or book can be the hardest part of the writing process. While most authors love the thrill they get from structuring their stories, some authors find this impossible to do. Writing a memoir is already an emotionally tiring process for many authors,...

Emotional Changes in Characters

Emotional change is an internal aspect of a character. Readers are not fully capable of profoundly understanding these emotional changes, even though they believe they can look through character motivations. The writer must allow the reader access to the emotional changes in a character since...

How to Boost Your Writing Output While Working Full-Time

The dream life of a writer is to dedicate all their time to writing and have no other regrets or responsibilities to make them feel guilty. Alas, this is not easily achievable, hence which is why most authors work full-time jobs as well as find...

Effective Tips for Writing More Creative and Original Fiction

Anyone can write, but not everyone has the capacity to write original and creative fiction. There is a difference between good fiction and fiction that has no substance. Successful authors will tell you that writing creatively is an art that needs years of experience, patience, and...

Thoughts on Writing Sex Scenes

Writing a sex scene is not easy. Anyone can write about two bodies copulating, but how to execute it in good taste requires skill. Sex sells. It is a biological imperative that evolution designed to feel good to keep us engaging in it—to ensure the...

How to Get More Creative in Your Creative Fiction

Anyone can write a story, but not everyone can write good fiction. Writing great fiction is more challenging to create. It is the by-product of adherence to discipline and the demands of the craft. Creative fiction is like a wild beast that needs taming. The...

How to Link Episodes in Your Novel

In an episodic novel, how the writer links events determines the degree of unity and suspense in his story. The writer must use the linking episode technique with precision. Linking episodes are distinct from events that happen one after another — linking two episodes works...