By Janice Hardy Be wary of going too far and turning a good sentence (or scene) into an overwritten mess.  The term "purple prose...

By Janice Hardy Your favorite book is more than a great read—it’s a masterclass in writing craft. I have a beat-up copy of Dave Duncan’s...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Some rules are absolutely made to be broken. There are tons of rules in writing. Some we need to follow to ...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy "Bad writing" means different things to different readers. We writers notice bad writing far more ...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Tone is an important part of any story. The wrong tone can ruin the mood and steal the thunder away from...

By Jeanne Cavelos Part of the How They Do It Series JH: Studying the masters is a wonderful way to improve your own writing, and Steph...

By Fred Johnson, @standoutbooks  Part of the How They Do It Series JH: Writing great fiction relies on trusting your ear as much as ...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy  The week’s Refresher Friday takes a heavily update look at writing what you know. Enjoy! Writers hear it...

By Roni Loren, @RoniLoren Part of the How They Do It Series JH: It's not unusual for writers to have a style that's unique to t...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Publishing is a business, so to be part of that industry, you do need to write at a professional skill l...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy I love crafting scenes where my narrator can't see. I'm not sure when this developed, but quite ...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Just like rhythm in the narrative can hook or bore your reader, the flow of your dialogue can also cause ...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy One of my favorite techniques is dramatic irony, which itself is a little ironic since I've discover...

By Sarah Skilton, @Sarah_Skilton JH: Please welcome YA author (and literary agency sister) Sarah Skilton to the blog today to chat with...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Aaron Sorkin is a god when it comes to dialogue. Seriously. For those unfamiliar with the name, Sorkin...

By J. Kathleen Cheney We welcome to the blog today science fiction and fantasy writer, J. Kathleen Cheney . In honor of yesterday’s “Ta...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy OMG!!! You can't ever use exclamation points!!! Ever!!! Exclamation points are a troublesome beast...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy   “Trust your reader.” You hear it all the time, but what exactly does that mean? Do you just assume they...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Fiction it about more than describing a situation and telling readers about it. Good fiction flows and da...

By Janice Hardy, @Janice_Hardy Q: Can you mix first and third POVs? Short answer: Sure. Long answer: Like everything else in writing...