Writing Tips, Workshops, and Inspiration from Bestselling Authors

TENSION AND PACING By Allison Brennan A long time ago, I interviewed my first editor and asked her what recurring issue she saw that she had a hard time fixing. She didn’t hesitate: pacing. She said it was so fundamental to a story that while you could suggest cutting too-slow scenes or expanding too-fast ones, getting pacing right throughout an entire novel was a major challenge, especially for new writers. I’ve been teaching writing classes for over 20 years now, and o

Your brain will support habits that facilitate your writing; you just have to start them. When we repeat behaviors, we create and strengthen neural pathways related to these behaviors. I researched this for Snap!, a book about maximizing your aha! moments. Habits are important! Some assist our momentum, but some can thwart it.

What's It Like To Be an Executive Producer for a Limited Series? I pitched a show called "Murder House Flip" to an associate at Sony, based on a cross between my forensic experience and my love of home renovation. I helped to create it and we sold it, which made me an executive producer. I briefly describe my experience for those writers who are curious about working with Hollywood. CRIMINAL MISCHIEF On Outliers YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLia8l

Announcing a New Outliers Writing University and MWA Partnership Big news! We’re thrilled to announce our new partnership with Mystery Writers of America, the premier organization for crime and mystery writers. This partnership brings together two powerhouses of the writing community, and we’re just getting started. MWA is the premier organization for mystery and crime writers, and together, we’ll be working on shared events, resources, and educational access to strengthen

Outliers Writing University will be at Author Nation, on Monday, November 3, in the Vendor Rooms area, where writers, authors, and publishing pros come together to learn, connect, and grow.Are you going to be there? If so, stop by our table and say hello! Learn about OutliersU, get a discount on our yearlong membership, and let’s talk stories, creativity, and turning your writing and bestselling dreams into reality.See you there! Outliers Writing University: https://www.outli

“She wouldn’t do that,” Traci would exclaim. And she was probably right. I watched my friend switch into cop mode during numerous ride-alongs and warned her about letting her police mindset shield her from the authenticity of human interaction.

Writing advice is easy to find. There are books, articles, groups, and websites galore that offer it. What grabs my attention are resources that pull me deeper into my characters’ heads. I’ve read a lot of books on writing. The following three stand out. A Writer’s Guide to Active Setting by Mary Buckham The idea of active setting is to experience a location through needs, fears, goals, and regrets. Items in the setting should feel like they matter to someone in the s

How was malaria prevented and treated in 1898? Q: My story is set in 1898, near the end of Queen Victoria’s reign. How would a British sailor who had been shipwrecked in a jungle treat himself for malaria? My research tells me quinine was first developed in 1820, but would it have been commonly available in 1898? How likely is it that my sailor would have had quinine in his survival equipment? If the sailor did not have quinine, how else might he have treated himself? (