Category Archives: Readerly on Writing

Are you looking for something to inspire you to write?  Here is a list of favorite books and web pages about writing that I read in 2021.  I am also including one about women’s history, since there were a bunch of inspiring women in it.  Not least, Eleanor Roosevelt. Alberts, Laurie. Showing & Telling: LearnContinue reading “Books about Writing that I enjoyed in 2021…”

Revising is a difficult process, for many reasons.  We are frequently so close to the topic/material, that it is hard to see it fresh.  That is why a lot of advice is to let things sit for a while after you finish a draft, so you can look at it with new eyes.  You shouldContinue reading “Revising is hard!”

NaNoWriMo is coming up!  If you, like me, tend toward the plotting side rather than the pantsing side, and the thought of writing 50,000 words in one month makes you begin to hyperventilate, fear not, dear reader, Readerly has you covered.  For the plotters among us, and the pantsers who want to be them, ReaderlyContinue reading “Plotter or Pantser? Plan your Novel in November with NaNoPlanMo”

In 1931, Ranganathan first published his blockbuster of the library world, The Five Laws of Library Science.  You may laugh, but most librarians still take these laws pretty seriously, albeit with a few parenthetical updates.   Here are the five laws: Books Are For Use Every Reader His/Her Book Every Book Its Reader Save The TimeContinue reading “Save the Time of the Writer…It’s what a Book Coach Does!”

In Lisa Cron’s book, Story Genius, she writes about the what if in fiction.  The “what if” provides the external impetus that will kick off the protagonist’s internal struggle (43).  The what if on its own is not enough for a book, but it can be a powerful way to begin to frame an ideaContinue reading “What is your What If?”

Did you know that Agatha Christie is the BEST SELLING NOVEL WRITER OF ALL TIME?  Only the Bible and Shakespeare have outsold her.  It’s true, people love murder.  Cozies are a particular brand of murder, though.  For those of you who aren’t regular cozy readers or fans of Agatha (no way!), here are the genreContinue reading “Plotting Your Cozy Mystery”

This is part 2 of a series about writing compelling characters in Historical Fiction. You can find the first part here. According to James C. Scott’s Domination and the Arts of Resistance, part of the difficulty in dealing with the history of a subordinate group is that there is a public transcript of events andContinue reading “Finding the Gap and using Outliers as models when writing Historical Fiction”

Write Historical fiction that is authentic rather than pedantically accurate.