Written by renowned author-entrepreneur Joanna Penn (of TheCreativePenn.com), How to Market a Book is a powerful reference guide that teaches authors how promote their books and build lucrative and long-lasting creative careers.

This book is a short, actionable guide to increasing your writing efficiency. Though at times a bit inelegant, “2,000 to 10,000” offers powerful productivity strategies that will increase the rate at which you plan, draft, and edit new creative projects.

You don’t have to remain trapped in this endless cycle of unsatisfying writing sessions forever. In fact, you can break free in as little as three simple steps.

These steps aren’t designed to help you optimize your writing sessions. There are plenty of strategies for achieving that goal, such as writing when your creative energy peaks and recreating the environment in which you write best.

Creative are knowledge workers who rely upon information and ideas to create fantastic work. So it’s no wonder that our heads are often chaotic or in the clouds, brimming with all sorts of thoughts that we struggle to organize and employ.

That's where a second brain comes into play. By taking the time to create a unified system for knowledge management, we can organize our creative work and get serious about writing with clarity and focus.

In today's article, Kristen breaks down her preferred knowledge management system, why she loves it, and how you can set up your own!

Storytelling is both an art and a craft — and like any craft, the skills required to write great stories can be taught and learned.

What are some of the other steps you can take to improve your skills and stories beyond simply consuming how-to content? And how can you best apply what you learn to truly level up in your craft?

In today's article, Kristen breaks down the six essential strategies you can put into practice to pave the way for incredible growth in your writing life!

Can you visualize an ideal day in your writing life?

If you’re like most writers, then I imagine that day looks something like this: You sit down with your beverage of choice, crack open your manuscript, and slip into an easy creative flow. Words fly from your fingertips as you lose yourself for hours in a deeply fulfilling, highly productive writing session.

Isn’t this how you imagine your writing practice should unfold? It’s certainly the image that society has sold us concerning what a “real” writer’s creative work should look like.

But if that’s the case, then what happens when you don’t crank out words with ease? When writing proves painstakingly difficult? When you turn to avoidance and procrastination rather than doing the damn hard work? There must be something wrong with you. Right?

Have you tried and failed to build a lasting writing habit time and time again?

You aren't alone. In fact, maintaining consistency in the face of creative turbulence (and the rollercoaster that is life) is something I've long struggled with myself.

Taking a break from writing when life gets tough is one thing. But when the slightest hint of upheaval repeatedly sends your creative practice into a tailspin, you know you have an issue on your hands — and that is issue is almost certainly a distinct lack of self-trust.

Want to create a better, stronger writing habit?

Here at Well-Storied, I often talk about the many reasons writers fail to put pen to paper or fingers on keys, including:

• Time

• Doubts

• Creative Resistance

• Perfectionism

• Imposter Syndrome

• Burnout

But what about those of us who are looking to maintain (or even improve upon) the writing habits we've worked to build? Today, I'd like to share the easiest way to double down on your commitment to the craft: habit tracking.

Wish you could crank out your stories more quickly? You aren’t alone.

Run a quick Google search for “how to write faster,” and you’ll find hundreds of blog posts detailing writing productivity hacks ranging from disabling your internet connection to dictating your first draft, practicing your typing speed, and writing while groggy to smother your inner critic.

These tips may prove helpful for some (or even many) writers, but the hack-centered conversation around writing productivity often fails to account for the full complexity of this topic — and in doing so, fosters an unhealthy approach to getting words on the page more quickly.

“Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.”

This quote, often attributed to Anton Chekhov, is frequently used as an example of the “Show, Don’t Tell” technique that can help writers craft descriptive sensory language. 

The use of such language has grown popular in recent decades thanks to the rise of film and television, which has led readers to favor fiction they can visualize as clearly as a movie in their minds’ eye. I discussed this shift toward film-making principles (and away from fiction’s previously popular all-knowing narrator) in my first article on the “Show, Don’t Tell” technique.

But today, I want to explore “Show, Don’t Tell” in a new light…

As both a reader and a writer, I am a big fan of romance.

I love the unique tension and allure that exists within a love story, the will-they-or-won’t-they mystery that leads to such great page-turning material. But that material can’t exist without strong romantic chemistry between the characters in question (as evidenced by many a lackluster rom-com, am I right?) And unfortunately, chemistry isn’t exactly easy to define or to craft.

Though I don’t write within the romance genre myself, romantic subplots are a staple in my personal brand of storytelling. So today, I’m going to share with you everything I’ve learned about crafting romantic chemistry readers can believe in.

Finding your personal writing process is essential to building a writing life you love.

Without knowing which techniques help you create your best work, you’ll struggle to get your stories down on the page. But every writer’s process is unique. The methods that work well for one writer won’t necessarily work for you. That’s why it’s vital you discover your unique writing process, including the method that helps you craft your best first drafts.

Traditionally, writers outline their stories, then use that outline to guide them as they draft their idea in full. But what if this method doesn’t work well for you? Good news! Today, I’m sharing three alternative drafting techniques that might just revolutionize your writing process. Let’s break them down together.