Everyone says kill your adverbs—but that's lazy advice. This 3-step system shows you exactly which adverbs to cut, which to swap for stronger verbs, and which are doing genuine work worth keeping.

Plot and story aren't the same thing—and conflating them is one of the most common reasons manuscripts stall. Here's exactly what sets them apart, and a five-step method for plotting your book from start to finish.

Perfectionism doesn't make your writing better — it stops you from finishing. Here's what 21 years in publishing taught me about quality, errors, and knowing when to call it done.

Stuck in the middle of your draft and can't move forward? This one writer's block trick will get you unstuck and back to writing in minutes.

Can't seem to finish what you start? Here's a 4-step system for setting a writing deadline that actually works — and breaking your project down until it's done.

Before query letters, agents, or book covers: every writer needs to complete their first draft before they can pursue getting published.

Stop staring at the blank page. Here's a 4-step process for writing your first draft from idea to manuscript—without intimidating yourself out of starting.

Flash fiction tells a complete story in 1,000 words or fewer — and it's one of the most publishable forms of short fiction. Learn five principles for writing great flash: starting from an image, showing without telling, using reader inference, making characters carry the story, and embracing ambiguity.