What if you could write faster without sacrificing quality?In the indie publishing world of rapid release and blistering words-per-hour, it’s easy to end up burnt out, creating subpar work, and losing your enjoyment of your craft.There’s a better way.In How to Write Fast, Platt and Silver show you how to shift your approach to writing to increase your natural speed, while tapping into your inner storyteller and releasing mo...

What if you could generate creative ideas for your writing on demand and never had to stare at a blank screen again?Books require ideas. From the initial idea for a novel or series, right down to the objects in a scene and words in a sentence. In a single project you may need hundreds or even thousands of ideas. If you rely on lightning to strike or ideas to simply "come to you," you could be left waiting until they are shoveling in the dirt on top of you.I...

End the frustration and learn dictation in just 15 minutes a day.Sean M Platt spent over a decade trying to learn dictation, without success. He ended up frustrated and giving up after every attempt. After a sudden insight one day he made a few tweaks to his approach to dictation and has used dictation every day sinceIn 15-Minute Dictation Platt and Silver show you how to adjust your approach to dictation to leave behind frustrating starts and stops and fin...

Fewer words. Sharper stories. Bigger impact.Stuck in prose that drags? Worried readers are skimming past your descriptions to get back to the story? Time to say F*ck the Details and write fiction that moves.Description doesn't have to be a speed bump. Used right, it disappears — and the story keeps moving. Used wrong, it grinds everything to a halt, and your reader puts the book down.Sawyer Black has spent years st...

Forget the hustle and grind. The career-author difference is compounding.Sean Platt and Johnny B. Truant have spent over a decade running Sterling & Stone — millions of words published, dozens of titles, hundreds of authors mentored along the way. They've watched plenty of talented writers quit. And they've watched plenty of less-talented writers build careers that last.The difference, almost every time, comes down to mindset. Not the cheesy kind. The compo...

There's no luck in a fiction career that lasts. There's a formula.Sean Platt and Johnny B. Truant have written more than a hundred fiction books between them at Sterling & Stone, the indie publishing operation they built from scratch. They didn't get there on instinct. They got there with a formula, refined over a decade of writing, publishing, and watching what actually works.The Fiction Formula is the fiction-specific companion to Write. Publ...

What will take your fiction from good to great? From decent to dazzling? From lackluster to blockbuster?Characters who "jump off the page."Of course plot matters. So does conflict, and scenes, and every other aspect of the fiction craft. But without unforgettable characters, your books will always be less than they could be.Don't let that happen.In WRITING UNFORGETTABLE CHARACTERS you'll learn:How to lay the foundation for a me...

Theme Is What Your Story Is Really AboutTheme—the mysterious cousin of plot and character. Too often viewed as abstract rather than actionable, theme is frequently misunderstood and left to chance. Some writers even insist theme should not be purposefully implemented. This is unfortunate, because in many ways theme is story. Theme is the heart, the meaning, the point. Nothing that important should be overlooked.Powerful themes are never in...

"Help! My plot drags, sags, and has no heart!"This looks like a job for Plotman!Yes, solving your plot problems is why the superhero of story came to Earth. His mission? To give practical, easy-to-apply answers to the most vexing plot questions writers face, such as:• How do I plan a plot if I'm not a plot planner?• Does my plot need a prologue?• What if I hit a plot wall?• What if my plot is getting away from m...

The bestselling author of Take Off Your Pants!, the popular outlining guide for writers, is back with another how-to manual for those seeking to start a career in historical fiction.There’s no doubt that historical fiction is popular with readers. In fact, the genre is expanding all the time, gaining market share and influencing other media at a rapid pace. But the HF market has some peculiar quirks that can challenge any writer.In Making It in Historical Ficti...

“The first page of a book sells that book. The last page sells your next book.” –– Mickey SpillaneWhat are the secrets for writing a great ending for your novel? How do you leave readers so satisfied that they'll want another book by you—right now? What tools and techniques can shape your last fifty pages into a powerful, unforgettable experience?In this book, International Thriller Writers Award winner and #1 bestselling writing teacher James Scott Bell re...

What if there was a shortcut for helping readers get to know your characters? Would you take it?Characters are as complex as people and revealing their inner layers without chunky blocks of pace-stopping description is a challenge. The Occupation Thesaurus can help you unlock one of the best tools in your show-don’t-tell writing kit: a character’s job.Occupations are part of our everyday world, meaning they can be used to encourage readers to make ...