Author: Laurie Boris

Laurie Boris is a freelance writer, editor, proofreader, and former graphic designer. She has been writing fiction for over twenty-five years and is the award-winning author of four novels. She lives in New York’s lovely Hudson Valley. Learn more about Laurie at her website and her Amazon author page.

What Football and Marriage Taught Me About Writing

Jets QB Mark Sanchez, photo courtesy of FoxSports.com.

Recently, I had a chance to scarf up a couple of pretty decent tickets to an NFL game. (American football, yes, I know, stop laughing, you silly round-ball kickers.) The New York Jets were playing the New England Patriots. I am a casual watcher of both teams, mainly when they’re winning, but my husband has been a die-hard Jets fan for most of his life.

Granted, the game was on Thanksgiving and I’d already made plans with my family, but as my office mate took a pass on the opportunity then subsequently offered it to me, this stream of thoughts flowed through my head: Continue reading “What Football and Marriage Taught Me About Writing”

The Basics of Beta Readers

Photo courtesy of Eliza Stryder @ Photobucket

I see you out there, your fingers aching with that sweet, sweet pain of finishing a novel. You have a sense that someone should look at it before you publish. The neighbor’s babysitter, perhaps, because she has a degree in English? Okay, it’s in English muffins, but that’s close enough, right? Or maybe someone said you should have a beta reader. What’s that, some kind of telepathic fighting fish? Um…no. Continue reading “The Basics of Beta Readers”

This is Your Brain on Writing

I used to write first drafts longhand. Yes, with my actual hands using a device they once called a “pen,” which is not the same as that stylus-thing you use at the bank or on your MaxiPad. And paper: lots of paper in lots of marble composition notebooks, at least fifty of which are currently on a shelf in my closet. Many trees died for my filthy habit. But I was not ashamed because they were bad trees, bad, misbehaving trees that jumped into traffic and collided with people’s cars. Bad, naughty trees.

Continue reading “This is Your Brain on Writing”

Special Encore: Best References for Fiction Writers

[IU Staff Slavedriver Laurie Boris is away on special assignment. Since November hails the beginning of NaNoWriMo, we thought it appropriate to run a special encore of Laurie’s excellent article on the best resources for fiction writers. That, and I’m too lazy to write an extra post, but mostly the first thing. – Hise]

Search the Internet, and you’ll find hundreds of books and websites about how to write and sell fiction. I’ve scanned many over the years, but there are very few I go back to again and again. Here’s a cross section of what I’ve found to be among the best. As usual, your actual experience may vary. Continue reading “Special Encore: Best References for Fiction Writers”