The Mid-Holiday Writing Retreat: Claim Your Time, Writer

Feeling like your writing time keeps getting chipped away by the holiday chaos? This post explores how to reclaim your creative space with a personalized mid-holiday writing retreat. Between Christmas and New Year is the perfect window to refocus, recharge, and write your heart out—without leaving home.

The Two Sides of Conflict: Why Your Story Needs Both

Conflict is the heartbeat of fiction—but not all conflict is created equal. External conflict drives your plot forward, while internal conflict drives your character’s growth. When you make those two forces feed each other, your story hits harder and lingers longer.

The Hazeldean Artisan Market—Wait, When?

Mark reflects on the strange physics of author life—writing about the Hazeldean Artisan Market before it happens, even though you’re reading about it after the fact. Between the smell of coffee, glitter-covered tables, and fellow creatives, he celebrates the timeless joy of connecting with readers and fellow artisans (and maybe bending the space-time continuum just a little).

Sybil Ludington: Teenage Girl vs. the British Empire (Sort Of)

In 1777, sixteen-year-old Sybil Ludington may have ridden through a stormy night to rally a scattered militia—and possibly outshone Paul Revere while doing it. Or… maybe she didn’t. The truth is tangled in legend, but the story of a teenage girl rising to the moment (and then vanishing from history) is worth dusting off. Whether myth or memory, Sybil’s ride says a lot about the women history tends to forget.

The Two Survival Strategies Every Indie Author Needs Now

The indie publishing world has fractured into a thousand niche markets, and the old one-size-fits-all advice just doesn’t cut it anymore. To thrive now, you need two things: a platform that keeps your readers close, and an experimental mindset that helps you navigate the mountain of conflicting advice. These aren’t just tactics—they’re survival strategies for the modern indie author.

Mastering the Scene: Why Your Novel Depends on It

A novel isn’t a pile of words—it’s a chain of well-built scenes. This post breaks down the five parts of a powerful scene (from Inciting Incident to Resolution) and why scene craft is the difference between a draft and a publishable book.

No, It’s Not Your Imagination. Publishing Is Tough Now.

If it feels like publishing is tougher than ever — it’s not your imagination. The market is saturated, algorithms are pay-to-play, and readers are trained to expect endless content for pennies. But that doesn’t mean you’re doomed. It means the game has changed. And smart indie authors are adapting by building direct reader platforms, redefining success on their own terms, and learning to market without selling their souls. The old paths are gone — time to blaze your own.

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