Advice
Making Your Prologues Worth Reading
Prologues are not popular. A lot of readers actually refuse to read them, and skip right over them like a short wall: These readers have found that prologues are pretty much a waste of time, and so there’s no reason to read them. Too many writers use the prologue to catch people up, introduce characters with little payoff, or just show off that they can write; these are poor reasons to have a prologue. While the prologue can do a lot of work for your story, it needs to be done with some finesse.
By Jamais Jochim7 days ago in Writers
letters never meant to be sent
Some words live inside us for years. They sit quietly in the heart, waiting for a moment that never comes. Not every feeling finds its way into conversation. That is where letters never meant to be sent begin — as private conversations with ourselves.
By shaoor afridi8 days ago in Writers
Should You Publish Wide or KDP Select? I Chose Wrong.
One of the first decisions you make when self-publishing is whether to use KDP Select. This means you're faced with a dilemma: Amazon exclusivity, where your book is only available on Amazon, or publish widely across every self-publishing platform.
By Ellen Frances8 days ago in Writers
Show Me Your Prose!. Content Warning.
I’ve caught the unofficial challenge bug again, and I have a lot of devious ideas (like my Cthulu’s Challenge: poetry in pig latin, but I’ll probably save that one for next Christmas or some other time when the sweetness gets a bit too cloying for my tastes.
By Harper Lewis9 days ago in Writers
This Writing Trend Is Making Teenagers Rich in the US
A quiet revolution is happening across the United States. It’s not in Silicon Valley boardrooms or Wall Street trading floors. It’s happening in bedrooms, dorm rooms, and coffee shops, where teenagers are typing on laptops and smartphones and earning money that many adults only dream about.
By Sathish Kumar 9 days ago in Writers
How I Write When I Only Have 30 Minutes
Most days, I don't have two hours to write. I don't have an hour, and some days I barely have 30 minutes. Between everything else I need to do in my writing business, life, obligations, and being human, pure writing time gets compressed.
By Ellen Frances10 days ago in Writers
Why Writing Gets Hard Right Before It Gets Good
I almost quit three days before my breakthrough. A little while ago, I'd been writing daily for two months, and it was hard (impossible, brutal, exhausting) the entire time. But around week eight, it became unbearable.
By Ellen Frances12 days ago in Writers
The Protection-of-Innocence Reciprocity Doctrine. AI-Generated.
Core Moral Premise The highest duty of any legitimate social order is the protection of innocent life. Innocent life has absolute moral primacy. Any system that systematically insulates predators, tolerates predatory asymmetry, rewards hypocrisy, or allows aggressors to retain insulation has inverted its purpose and forfeited legitimacy. Truth, justice, reciprocity, humility, mercy, forgiveness, and vertical accountability are structural necessities rather than optional virtues. Vertical accountability means recognition of and submission to a moral law higher than oneself. Authority must flow toward those who most consistently demonstrate sustained competence in moral and epistemic discipline. This competence is shown through observable conduct and trajectory over time, not through doctrinal label, tribal identity, credential alone, or self-profession.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast12 days ago in Writers
