I'm in the process of composing my list of resources to go at the end of Write To Be Published. Obviously, I have a list I made all on my ownsome, but what would you like? Now is your chance to nominate your favourite blogs and websites.
Just add them to a comment, including a tiny something to describe them. Please include the whole URL, even if you can't make a live link.
I will then organise them - at my discretion - into a list for this blog and also a shorter list for the book. I want generous blogs with quality information. Do include blogs by unpublished writers but I will probably not include them in the book, as my focus for that is on expert advice, more than simple experience of trying to get published.
And to the acerbic commenter who, when I asked something like this before, accused me of using you to write the book: erm, it's the BOOK OF THE BLOG! *shakes head in bemusement / amusement*
25 comments:
In a fit of brazenl self promotion, can I mention my blog - just been renamed Connecting the poetry and the prose - at http://bridgetwhelan-writer.blogspot.com/
And to be horribly ingratiating, look at the twitter posts and you will see that you've been given a big name check. It's down to you that I ventured back on twitter - still feeling my way but enjoying it.
My favorites below. I'm staring out the writing process and have found these so helpful.
http://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/blog/
http://queryshark.blogspot.com/
http://www.fictionfixitshop.com/blog/
http://blog.nathanbransford.com/
I am sure you have already included these Nicola - ABBA (that's An Awfully Big Blog Adventure everyone else - required reading for would be writers for children &YA), Jane's How Publishing Really Works, and Emma's This Itch of Writing.
I also like Seven Miles of Steel Thistles - for the insights into using folklore and fairy tales in writing. I could add others but I think that one is particularly good.
http://childrenspublishing.blogspot.com/
Unbelievable the amount of information they sort through and present in an organized and helpful way.
I like:
http://mysterywritingismurder.blogspot.com/
Partly because I write mysteries myself, but also for the very sensible more general writing advice and examples from everyday life.
I was hoping there would be a slew of suggestions by now so that I could get diverted from work. Adventures in Children's Publishing,Book Maven, Bookwitch, Bookwords, KidLit.com, The Chocolate Keyboard, Behlerblog, Writer Beware etc all have useful things to say from time to time - particularly Behlerblog which has an insight into what happens across the pond.
I also think it is worth just reading some blogs for their writing - e.g. Catdownunder (above) to name one of your own followers. Having said all that - I do not write. I am a librarian. I read and I like to look at what is going on in the world of writing and sometimes have to answer reader/writer queries.
Danielle Thomas - MSC Library.
I use Duotrope.com just about every day, it's a fantastic resource. It's more for short fiction/poetry writers (though they do list some book publishers), so I'm not sure if it's quite in keeping with the book.
I read Sarah Duncan's blog first thing in the morning. She always has something interesting and helpful to say. Her analogies to different aspects of writing are inspired!
http://sarahduncansblog.blogspot.com/
second third and fourth Kirsty's nomination for Duotrope -a s a source of info for anyone wanting to publish short stories it's essential.
I'll nominate Jane Friedman's There are no Rules blog at Writers' Digest, because she isn't afraid to give an alternative viewpoint but has a good standing as an insider
http://blog.writersdigest.com/norules/
People can think what they want about ebooks, but they ought to be knowledgeable about them, and the best site for keeping people up to date as well as giving sould advice is Digital Book World
http://www.digitalbookworld.com/
which offers information and updates on the more evangelical ebook preachers like Seth Godin and Richard Nash that people need to know about, but presents them in a very balanced way. I'd also recommend CEO Guy Gonzales' personal blog
http://www.loudpoet.com
Hi, Nicola! Although I'm a lurker rather than an outed follower, could I put forward my blog
http://www.joanlennon.blogspot.com/
as a friendly face in the storm sort of thing? I blog weekly about the way this strange life feels when you're in the thick of it. (And I normally don't mix metaphors quite so much while doing so.)
Cheers, Joan.
I'd like to nominate Strictly Writing - the mix of people there at different stages of their writing careers always have something new and interesting to say.
http://strictlywriting.blogspot.com/
I'd nominate From The Mixed Up Files Of Middle Grade, written by a group of MG authors, full of fantastic content that's good for writers of YA and adult as well as MG: http://www.fromthemixedupfiles.com/
I nominate Not for Robots http://notforrobots.blogspot.com
a series of essays by Laini Taylor, about writing - particularly the process with great motivational tips for how to keep writing once you've started.
I'd nominate Sally Quilford's Competitions Calendar, here: http://www.writingcalendar.com/ which is a user-friendly site, regularly updated, listing pretty much all writing competitions by closing date, and with helpful tips, advice and articles.
A couple that I recommend, ran by published authors (and one agent):
Thriller and suspense writing, and reality-checks in general for writers:
http://killzoneauthors.blogspot.com/
My favorite agent site. Always something worth reading out here about the business side of writing:
http://cba-ramblings.blogspot.com/
I often visit www.yingleyangle.com
with lots of advice on how to edit your book and make believable/live characters. The host is a short-story published author but is also trying to publish his novel I think.
Example of his writing advice:
http://www.yingleyangle.com/2010/07/20-questions-to-help-improve-your.html
You probably already have this, but http://pubrants.blogspot.com is great.
One of my favourite blogs for great, insightful and easy reading advice on writing is YA fantasy author, Janice Hardy's http://storyflip.blogspot.com/
Also The Bookshelf Muse - her thesauruses are invaluable, particularly for fiction writers: http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/
On a slightly different note, I recommend that any writers of childrens books join SCBWI. The Society of Childrens Writers and Book Illustrators.
The British Isles branch is buzzing at the moment. It's a great mixture of socialising with other writers and illustrators (published and unpublished), professional development workshops and networking opportunities with publishers and agents.
There's an annual conference, an annual retreat, Masterclasses, Professional series and much more.
The link is http://britishscbwi.jimdo.com/
I'd like to nominate my 2 all time favourite writing blogs:
The hugely entertaining and reassuring Strictly Writing at http://strictlywriting.blogspot.com/ - written a mixture of published and unpublished writer
and:
This Itch of Writinghttp://emmadarwin.typepad.com/thisitchofwriting/ - which i very much hope will be be turned into a book in the not too distant future.
My main choice would be the 'Author! Author!' blog. US-based and incredibly detailed. http://www.annemini.com/.
And now I'm off to check out the ones everyone else has mentioned.
These haven't been mentioned yet.
For quick inspiration: http://www.advicetowriters.com/
For industry news: http://www.booktrade.info/
General: http://bloodredpencil.blogspot.com/, http://writerunboxed.com/, http://www.pw.org/, http://writetodone.com/
For comic relief (and what not to do): http://slushpilehell.tumblr.com/
Best of luck with your deadline, Nicola!
Thanks for all your nominations - it will take me a while to get them checked and onto a list. I won't be including blogs that are simply a writer writing about themselves and random things - I need to focus on ones that actually offer advice or resources.
Kristin - thank you! I did it!
Hurrah!!! Congratulations! Can't wait to read it!
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