Writing Tip Wednesday: An invaluable author resource

Today I’d like to introduce you to Kristen Lamb, a bestselling author of fiction and nonfiction books. I was first introduced to Kristen through her author resource website as well as the social media author site she runs.

Kristen Lamb’s website offers you a veritable one-stop resource for almost all of your author needs. I’ve made use of her free articles on story craft, building suspense and tension in fiction, plotting story arcs, how to sell more books, how to dream up story ideas to draw readers in, and creating character back stories, among other subjects. She’s also an expert on author branding, which most of us authors need help with, especially today. The market is flooded with so many books that it’s doubly difficult to get noticed. Bottom line: If you need help with something, Kristen’s website likely has an article or class on it.

One of my favorite recent articles on the website is about how to craft character wounds to create unforgettable stories. This has been a key theme in my writing: Deeply flawed characters mirror real life. No one wants to read about perfect characters. A central thesis that arises in many of Kristen’s articles is that CONFLICT creates a good story and keeps it moving along, compelling the reader to move forward.

If you think about some of your favorite books and movies, there is almost always a central goal and the conflict revolves around meeting that goal. For example, in the movie 3:10 to Yuma, the goal is to get criminal Russell Crowe on the prison train; and the conflict is whether or not law enforcement will be able to do it before the criminal’s buddies rescue him. When you’re creating fiction, you’re writing about how flawed characters are resolving a conflict.

In addition to the plethora of free articles, Kristen’s website offers low-cost writing classes. Check out the class list. Many classes are also advertised at the end of the articles so pay attention there, too!

Lastly, and maybe most importantly, Kristen heads Wanatribe, a social media site for authors. One of the most useful features of this site is the chat feature, where authors encourage each other to conduct writing sprints and then report on what we’ve accomplished, whether it’s writing fresh words, proofreading, or editing. Oh, and when you sign up on Wanatribe, you’ll get regular emails from Kristen nagging you, uh, I mean, encouraging you to get on the site and SPRINT. Remember: in order to publish books you’ve got to get that butt in the seat and WRITE.

Do yourself a favor and sign up on Wanatribe and ping me when you’re ready to sprint. And check out Kristen’s resource website for virtually any writing-related topic that you want help with. You will be glad that you did!

HAPPY WRITING!!!