Recent Articles
Collecting ideas part 2: Cultivating what’s inside you
Part of collecting ideas includes not just searching outside yourself but also searching inside. I suppose this could also be a step in the process of developing ideas. We all have unique experiences and backgrounds that have shaped us into unique people....
Where do you get your ideas? Part 1
Ideas are all around us. The problem is, sometimes we’re so focused on other things, our eyes fixed on just about everything else, that we miss them. When I visit schools or I do author panels or interviews, I’m frequently asked where I get my ideas. My answer is...
How many drafts do you need to write a story?
One of the most frequent questions I get from young writers and even seasoned writers is: How many drafts do you need to write a story? I have a super helpful answer: It depends. Let me explain. Some of my books only took four or so drafts. (Even saying “only four”...
How to write a book: little steps each day until it’s done
My first book, a middle grade novel in verse, was written in tiny fifteen- or twenty-minute windows, back when my kids were very young. I had a newborn, two 3-year-olds (twins—so double trouble), a 5-year-old, a 6-year-old, an 8-year-old, and not a lot of...
How do you balance multiple projects?
At any given time, I’m working on between three and five manuscripts. Some people’s jaws drop when they hear a thing like that (probably because the average person can hardly imagine working on one manuscript!). Maybe it’s a leftover consequence of my decade in...
How to set goals when so much is beyond your control
As much as we like to think we have everything under our control (or maybe that’s just me), there’s a lot that’s out of our control, especially when it comes to writing. Sometimes kids get sick and writing time disappears. Sometimes there’s a freak snowstorm in Texas...
How to collect ideas
Since you’re having such a wonderfully imaginative September, I wanted to send a short-ish note about collecting ideas. Collecting ideas, for me, is incredibly important. I don’t ever want my ideas to slip through my unprepared fingers. But we’ve all been there:...
Write a GREAT Book Even When Your Time is Limited
