About Today’s Post

It has been a busy summer for me, and the busyness will continue for a few more weeks.

I was delighted to host several family visits. Dog sitting and cat sitting filled me with laughter and joy. Several trips with family members to a hospital more than three hours away kept me on the road when I’d usually be writing. Oh, and I visited family on separate trips to the same city.

Wait, I’m not finished: I’ll be attending a graduation ceremony for a grandson who lives about nine hours away. Of course, it won’t be an in-and-out visit. I intend to stay for close to a week.

Being a writer involves more than writing. Part of writing means taking breaks when you need them — without guilt.

So, today I present a number of helpful resources from other bloggers, whether you’re looking for help with a stale plot, opinions about writerly success, jobs training #AI, or …

Are You Stuck With a Plot That Doesn’t Seem to Be Going Anywhere?

Insecure Writers Support Group presents an article by Reedsy writer Savannah Cordova. Check her advice in 5 Unexpected Plot Devices to Consider for Your Next Story.

Readers and editors frown on overly obvious twists, especially when they’re wrapped up in convenient coincidence. However, well-written narrative that includes one or more of the five plot devices in this article might give you just the idea you’ve been searching for.

Real Life Can Drive a Story to New Depths

True events like those described in Plan a Trip to Alaska and Stay in These Classic Airplanes Converted into Luxury Accommodations, by Andy Corbley of the Good News Network, can provide a springboard that generates new ideas. What could you use instead of an airplane? An office building, perhaps, or an obsolete train carriage? If you write science fiction, you could research what might happen with out-of-date spacecraft.

AI Is a Popular Topic Nowadays

Should you embrace AI — or block it?

Did you know that some authors are taking jobs where they write in order to train artificial intelligence? Writers Taking Jobs Writing to Train AI, on the Writers Write website, provides more info.

These jobs won’t make you famous, but they could provide a decent income while they help ensure that AI doesn’t spout garbage.

Are You a Successful Author?

That’s a loaded question, right? Your idea of successful might be to earn a living wage doing what you love, while someone else might define success as sharing important information or experiences. In fact, if you talk to ten different writers, you might receive ten different ideas of what success means.

Whatever your opinion, you can improve readership by trying some of the tips in 10 Things Every Author Must Do to Be Successful, by Penny Sansevieri on the Writers In The Storm blog.

Bios, Bios, Bios … Boring or Interesting?

Many writers love writing, until they have to write their bio. Then their brain refuses to function. Bio? What’s that? My name? Um …

Bang2Write’s Lucy V. Hay offers guidance with Goodbye Boring Bios! How to Write an Online Bio That Gets Results.

Trilogies: Good Idea or Bad?

Jacqui Murray’s site, StoryEmpire.com, provides advice in What’s Happening in the Writer’s World — Trilogies. What is a trilogy, and why would you write one? Is a trilogy right for you? If so, you might appreciate the seven tips she provides.

Are You Guilty of Reusing Story Points From Previous Novels?

Settings, characters, problems … Are your WIP elements too similar to what you’ve written before? Consider Roz Morris’s advice at NailYourNovel with Same Old Same Old — How to Write a Novel That Doesn’t Repeat Your Other Novels.

Do You Have a Bucket List?

Are your creative success metrics as significant as you think? Terah Shelton Harris shares her thoughts on Writer Unboxed, via Rethinking Your Bucket List Accomplishments.

And That’s a Wrap

For now, at least. I’ll return to a more regular schedule of blog posts sometime in October.