Category: Guest Posts

Year-End Tax Help for Authors

Julian Block tax expertGuest Post
by Julian Block

The only time most of us think of doing something about our federal income taxes is once a year — the hours we spend actually grappling with Form 1040 or when gathering records to deliver them to a paid preparer. What we should do is make tax planning a year-round concern and position ourselves to take full advantage of the many opportunities that are available to lessen the amount that is siphoned off each year by the IRS. The savings can amount to many thousands of dollars. What follows are some tactics that not only can save taxes for 2014, but even provide a head start on 2015 as well. Continue reading “Year-End Tax Help for Authors”

The Perils of Internet Forums

Author Bruce FottlerGuest Post
by Bruce Fottler

When I entered the world of indie-publishing, I was hungry for information and interaction with other writers. For years I was active in hobby forums, so writer-centric forums seemed to be an obvious place to start. After a few years of participating in writer forums, I’ve learned they can be helpful, supportive, and perilous.

Wait, why perilous? Continue reading “The Perils of Internet Forums”

A Treasure Trove of Research Sources for Authors

Christine FrostGuest Post
by Christine Frost

I confess — I’m a digital hoarder. Spending many years in the academic world and being a historical fiction author, I’ve collected a tremendous amount of research. Over the years, I’ve taken notes from countless books to ensure I’m accurately portraying the historical figures, cuisine, and cultures I’m portraying in my writing. It’s easy to get swept up in taking notes. New ideas for the story come with each interesting detail.

There is a delicate balance in historical fiction. In order to be able to move comfortably within the realm of the story you’re creating, the scale of research needed can be huge. The risk for writers is spooling out endless facts in prose just because there were dozens of fascinating details that were discovered in research. While working on my second novel, set in medieval Ireland, I happened to find a book describing everyday life in rural areas. Soot houses dotting the Irish landscape may provide just the right touch of authenticity, but an expository paragraph on their construction and functionality bogs down the narrative and removes the reader from the story. Continue reading “A Treasure Trove of Research Sources for Authors”

Left & Right Brain Techniques for Writing

Sharon TenenbaumGuest Post
by Sharon Tenenbaum

It is a very popular topic these days to talk in terms of Left and Right Brain. The Right Brain being visual, simultaneous and contextual, whereas the Left Brain being linear, logical and textual. But what does this mean? How is it affecting our creative capabilities to create art and even more so, how is it affecting our capability to understand and interpret it?

There are four fundamental differences between the way each hemisphere of our brain works but in this post I will touch one. One of the central differences between the two hemispheres is that the Left specializes in Text whereas the Right hemisphere specializes in Context. Continue reading “Left & Right Brain Techniques for Writing”