Biz

Randy Rooney

Insta-Brandomatic

My critique group picnic had been in full swing for an hour when I heard a horn honking repeatedly from the direction of my house. The honk had a familiar tone—it goes with a certain truck that’s been to my house far too often in the last year. The truck belongs to my plumber, Sam, who was not invited to this party.

I dashed up the slope from our firepit to the house, raced around the side, and skidded to a stop in the driveway. Sam’s enormous pickup truck had backed all the way down my driveway. His niece Samantha was driving a small forklift off the

Word For Words

The Image of Grace: Editing as a Discipline

I have a wonderful book called Flannery O’Connor, Images of Grace that never fails to encourage me as a writer and an editor. The biggest encouragements in this biography are O’Connor’s honesty about the hardships of her life and art, and the reality that discipline and perseverance are required for both.

O’Connor, a formidable twentieth-century novelist and short story writer known for her Southern Gothic style, struggled with systemic lupus, a chronic inflammatory disease. She was upfront about her...

Agent Column

Meet the Hartline Agents Pet Peeves

What I’m looking for in fiction is Romance, Women’s fiction, girlfriend stories, mystery/suspense, Romantic suspense, comedy, historical, except for Civil War era... No sci fi or speculative fiction unless it is so well written it blows me away. First and foremost is romance, both formula...

Screenwriting 101

Drive the Plot with Jeopardy When the Audience Cares

For years, screenwriters searched for new ways to put the protagonist or hero into jeopardy to drive the plot forward. It’s so common that many writers lose track of the key element that makes it effective—making sure the audience cares about the hero first.

Bookclubs

Confessions Of A Book Club Leader

I’m a book club leader. What I have to confess might surprise you. I find myself amazed that God has chosen me to be a leader in the first place. I confess I’ve never hoped or dreamed I’d be in the position I find myself in now—ever!

POD and Self-Publishing

My Thoughts on Self-Publishing

I began writing fiction about four years ago, after I encountered little-known historical information that I thought folks should know. Most...