GMC: not just for stories.

GMC: not just for stories.

If you’ve been around the fiction-writing-reference block, you’re probably familiar with the concept of GMC… Goal, Motivation, Conflict. (If you aren’t, I strongly recommend you go grab a copy of either Debra Dixon’s book of the same...
Playing to Win

Playing to Win

What does “playing to win” mean?   This one’s gonna be a rough one, gang. But it’s important. I love the movie The Replacements. (Largely due to Keanu Reaves, not gonna lie.) But there is a great line in it, where the coach played by Gene...
How do I know my book is good enough?

How do I know my book is good enough?

This is one of the hardest, most heart breaking questions I get asked as an editor and a coach. For one thing, it is impossibly subjective. There is no scientific instrument where you pop your manuscript in, push a button, and after a few whirring minutes get a...
If I had a nickel…

If I had a nickel…

  Quite often, usually at the beginning of the year or just before NaNo, I get a flood of emails from authors who want to work with me because they aren’t where they want to be in their manuscripts. “I just need to get my act together!” they...