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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...
Horrific Inspirations: John Wayne Gacy
John Wayne Gacy was known for his rather unique profession. As Pogo the Clown, he would often perform for many children, and would make sure that they were having a good time. He was always a recognizable figure, spending his days at children’s parties and...
Horrific Inspirations: Jeffrey Dahmer
In the TV show, American Horror Story: Hotel, there’s a certain night where many of America’s most prolific serial killers gather. That night is called Devil’s Night, and one of the guests so happens to be a man named Jeffrey Dahmer. The documentary My Friend Dahmer tells...
Narcissists in Literature
Narcissism has a rather romantic beginning. In Greek mythology, a young nymph named Echo had fallen in love with a man named Narcissus. However, Narcissus rejected her, quite brutally I might add, and as a result, Aphrodite cursed him to fall in love with his...
Sociopaths and Psychopaths in Literature
Like it or not, we live in a world where sociopaths and psychopaths seamlessly blend into society. What’s more, psychopaths and sociopaths have been portrayed in both the media and entertainment as violent beings with little consideration for anyone else. Even more surprising is the...
Horrific Inspirations: Elizabeth Bathory
Whenever people think of vampires, they think of blood, sex, possibly even Edward Cullen from Twilight. Sometimes, history comes to mind, while other times, it’s fantastical works such as Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Anne Rice’s Interview with a Vampire. But whatever we associate with the...
Sympathy for the Devil
There are times when not everything in a story should be categorized, especially when it comes to complicated things like good and evil. There are, after all, rarely any humans that fully adhere to their own moral code, and to label them as such is...
Character Research
So, you have a great idea for your next novel. A thriller based in a hotel in England. Once you have an idea for your novel, the next step will be creating interesting and engaging characters that the reader can believe in. Every novel has...
Mistakes Made When Writing A Synopsis
The synopsis can vary wildly from writer to writer. The most important thing to remember when writing your synopsis is that you must write it for the benefit of the reader, and not as a guideline to write your novel by. The main objective of...
Horrific Inspirations: The Importance of an American Psycho
Serial killers are, in a twisted way, fun to read about. Whether they’re the protagonist or the antagonist, serial killers are portrayed as unhinged, disturbed, and, in many cases, insane. Though they may have some spark of humanity within them, this little light is often...
Horrific Inspirations: The Suicide Forest
In the movie The Forest, the protagonist must find her sister after she goes missing in a forest called Aokigahara. In the horror game Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water, the forest was used as inspiration for the story’s setting. In Jeremy Bates’s Suicide Forest, the forest...