By Janice Hardy The primary goal of an opening scene is to make readers want to read the next scene.  You’d be surprised how often w...

By Janice Hardy The premise is the core of the novel. Make sure it's solid. When I first started The Shifter (the first book in my tril...

By Janice Hardy Readers don’t mind backstory—as long as it’s something they want to hear about. The first novel I ever wrote was fantasy, so...

By Janice Hardy Betrayal can come in many forms, and most of them make for great stories. The "unexpected betrayal" has alway...

By Janice Hardy Character archetypes are a useful tool in creating characters for a novel. At some point in your writing journey, you’...

By Janice Hardy Our inner editor is an enemy to our muse—here’s how to shut it up. I think writers would get a lot more written if the...

By Janice Hardy Many readers decide before the end of the first page if they’re going to keep reading. A lot of pressure is put on t...

By Janice Hardy Little tweaks can make a big difference in our novels. It always amazes me how many decisions go into writing a stro...

By Angela Ackerman Part of the How They Do It Series JH: Fear is at the heart of so many stories, because it’s often what’s keeping the prot...

By Tess Perko Part of the How They Do It Series JH: Becoming part of a writing community can be a rewarding and beneficial experience for th...