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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...
Understanding Informed Consent and Confidentiality Part 2
Confidentiality Confidentiality is a promise that practicing psychology professionals make to their clients that all communications and information provided by the client will remain private except when required to be released by the law (Southern New Hampshire University, n.d.). However, confidentiality is not just a...
Understanding Informed Consent and Confidentiality Part 1
In my article "The Need for Psychology Understanding,” I discussed how fiction writers need at least a basic understanding of psychology in order to write realistic content, dialogues, characters, and relationships. One such psychological concept is informed consent and confidentiality. Many writers have a basic...
Domestic Violence in Fiction
On television, we see violent men and women abusing their partners, only for their partners to turn up in a police investigation later on. We read articles and court cases about people accusing their former loved ones of physical, sexual, and psychological violence. We see...
This and That: Overused Words and Creatively Original Alternatives
How many times do you use the word, that? “That flower over there that you said would grow into a big flower that would dominate that garden that is in front of that house.” Overused? Starting to grate on your nerves as you read all...
Travel Writing Inspirations
Many writers dream of exploring the earth. Some are drawn to fascinating sites that have inspired countless legends, while others take a more scenic route, looking to local towns for their muses. But either way, when it comes to travel writing, you can’t help but...
Writing Great Reviews: Appraising Atmosphere
One of the greatest selling points of novels, particularly those in the genre fields as opposed to literary works, is the power of atmosphere, which here means the quality to take readers into another world in an immersive and engaging fashion. Perhaps more notable in...
In An Age of Uncertainty, Where Do I Begin?
Some of the greatest works in literature were written while the author was in isolation of some description or under quarantine. Take William Shakespeare, for example. His life and creativity were frequently hindered by outbreaks of the plague. It has been suggested that one of...
Writing Great Reviews: Children's and Teen Fiction
In this audience-specific article, we continue honing our skills for appraisal and recognition of good writing, but this time with a specific focus on the world of writing for under eighteens. This is an exercise in thinking as a reviewer first and a reader second,...
Understanding Random Assignment Part 2
Methods of Randomization Randomization is a vital part of any research study that utilizes human subjects for research participants; however, while the importance of randomization is universal there are different methods that can be utilized by researchers in order to ensure randomization in the selection of participants...
Understanding Random Assignment Part 1
In my article "The Need for Psychology Understanding,” I discussed how fiction writers need at least a basic understanding of psychology in order to write realistic content, dialogues, characters, and relationships. One such psychological concept is random assignment in research studies. Understanding random assignment and...