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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 New!

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) New!

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...

How to Get More from your Reading Experience - Part 1

Part of being a great writer is being a great reader. Reading plays a significant role in a writer’s life, that is, for any writer who wants to get better at their writing. However, readers read with different intentions in mind. While sometimes we read...

On Transgressive Fiction (Part 2 of 2)

Art does not always celebrate the beautiful. Art also shows us the dark side of human existence. This is what makes transgressive fiction an important genre. From a psychological standpoint, we do not want to get ourselves into any form of hurt or trouble. When...

On Transgressive Fiction (Part 1 of 2)

Not many writers dabble in transgressive fiction. The genre deals extensively with taboo subjects and characters that fall under the antisocial spectrum. I once had a chat with a bookworm who told me that she isn’t particularly thrilled with reading this genre because it depresses...

Should You Abandon or Continue Writing Your Novel? (Part 2 of 2)

While some people look down on the writing profession, others can only wish that they could become a writer. At parties, bars, and cafes, you often hear people complimenting writers they meet by stating that they have often dreamed of writing a book someday. In the...

Should You Abandon or Continue Writing Your Novel? (Part 1 of 2)

You are reading this because you love to write. You have that personal need to jot down what’s in your head. You want to go for the big leagues--write the great American novel and earn accolades from it. This is your way to satiate your...

Imagism - A Poetry Workshop Lesson

During school, it felt like poetry was the more rushed lesson, the more brushed past lesson, the more dreaded lesson. It felt as though less effort was put into teaching the real art and beauty of poetry. I know my classmates found a lot of...

Dante’s Inferno: The Nine Spheres of Heaven

There are times when a happy ending isn’t appropriate. There are times when happy endings only serve to protect our own innocence, however misguided that might seem, even if it doesn’t make sense in the end. We change certain aspects of our characters and hope...

Horrific Inspirations: Klara Mauerova

Traditional fairytales always praise a mother’s love. They tell wonderful stories of how mothers put their children ahead of their own needs, how they would fight to the end just to protect them from any perceived threat. Even if the outcomes are devastating, at the...

Horrific Inspirations: Ma Baker

I’ve always been fascinated with the inner workings of famous gangs, especially their leaders. This was even more so with parents who indoctrinate their children into their gangs. Perhaps they wanted to make a family business, a legacy filled with violence and blood. Maybe they...

Horrific Inspirations: The Work

Nowadays, people believe slavery is gone for good. That we are long past the days of subjugation, and that we can do whatever we want. Well, in America, at least. However, as any good writer knows, slavery doesn’t have to pertain to racism or prejudice....