How might we go about capturing on the page the relationships that have formed us? How do we write about our bodies, their desires and traumas? What does it mean for an author’s way of writing, or living, to be dismissed as “navel-gazing”—or else hailed as “so brave, so raw”? And to whom, in the end, do our most intimate stories belong? Drawing on her own path from aspiring writer to acclaimed author and writing professor—via addiction and recovery, sex work and Harvard night school—Melissa Febos has created a captivating guide to the writing life, and a brilliantly unusual exploration of subjectivity, privacy, and the power of divulgence. Candid and inspiring, Body Work will empower readers and writers alike, offering ideas—and occasional notes of caution—to anyone who has ever hoped to see themselves in a story.

    So why does the second part get such short shrift? Refuse To Be Done will guide you through every step of the novel writing process, from getting started on those first pages to the last tips for making your final draft even tighter and stronger.From lauded writer and teacher Matt Bell, Refuse to Be Done is encouraging and intensely practical, focusing always on specific rewriting tasks, techniques, and activities for every stage of the process. You won’t find bromides here about the “the writing Muse.” Instead, Bell breaks down the writing process in three sections. In the first, Bell shares a bounty of tactics, all meant to push you through the initial conception and get words on the page. The second focuses on reworking the narrative through outlining, modeling, and rewriting. The third and final section offers a layered approach to polishing through a checklist of operations, breaking the daunting project of final revisions into many small, achievable tasks. Whether you are a first time novelist or a veteran writer, you will find an abundance of strategies here to help motivate you and shake up your revision process, allowing you to approach your work, day after day and month after month, with fresh eyes and sharp new tools.

    Why do we write and what stops us? How does the urge to express ourselves fight with the worry that no one will care or that we will get in trouble? How do we identify and overcome everything that gets in our way so we can start making work?

    The only problem? You have no idea where to begin.Any way you slice it, the self-publishing learning curve is steep. Despite numerous late-night research sessions, you’re still not sure how to hire a freelance editor or budget for pre-publication expenses. Terms like distributor, aggregator, and imprint elude you, and complicated book marketing advice has tempted you to give up your goal of self-publishing for good.If you’re worried your writing dreams will remain forever out of reach, take heart. Self-publishing might be a veritable Mount Everest of creative feats, but you are capable of making the climb. With insights and actionable advice, this comprehensive reference guide will help you master the following key aspects of the self-publishing journey:• Producing quality print books, e-books, and audiobooks• Crafting online listings that boost your books’ visibility• Establishing an author platform that attracts your ideal readers• Implementing the five main types of book marketingBy the time you finish Self-Publishing Simplified, you’ll not only have the vital information you need to produce, launch, and market your novel, memoir, or nonfiction book. You’ll have the tools to build a lucrative and fulfilling career as an independent author.

    In order to find success at genre fiction writing, authors need to figure out which projects will move them towards their ideal career. In Romance Your Goals, New York Times and USA Today bestselling romance author Zoe York lays out a new framework for creating a chain of goals, achievable mile markers that point you in the right direction. This book includes:* decision-making tools you can add to your career management toolbox* further expansion on the Series 2.0 concept, and how progressive career growth can happen without breakout bestseller success* support for knowing when to take your writing career in a new direction

    

    She was going to have to do this, too—ironically, inexplicably, comically—as she did everything else, the hard way. Part memoir, part craft guide, Work Hard, Not Smart, shows how Alexis lives her messy literary life. She invites you to step into her mismatched shoes. And if you do, you’ll find the writing companion you’ve been looking for.

    Why a cake? Because every author starts with the same general ingredients of characters, plot, and setting, but it’s how each author combines and adds to those ingredients that makes a book an author’s own unique creation.This essay offers a few tips and poses some questions for figuring out the things you enjoy and do best as an author, so that you can write your own cake, whether it’s a big, bold epic fantasy adventure, a subtle, nuanced mystery, an emotion-packed romance, or something else.Note: Write Your Own Cake is a 2,000-word essay about writing and worldbuilding. It first appeared as part of the Scribbler subscription box in November 2018.

    In graphically engaging spreads that utilize typography in an innovative way, Snails & Monkey Tails examines the evolution of these mighty linguistic tools--from the punctum, or point, created by an ancient scribe to the guillemet, used most commonly in lieu of quote marks by the French (and named in honor of a typographer Guillaume Le Bé). With verve and insight, Michael Arndt explains their proper usage and how they came to be universally accepted today.Snails & Monkey Tails--Snails (@); Monkey Tails (&)--is packed with intriguing facts, history, stories, and lore, as well as grammar, explaining it clearly and with examples. What is the purpose of the comma--perhaps the most used symbol in the English language--and what are the proper uses of the asterisk? Do quote marks go inside or outside punctuation? What about a quote within a quote--a quote from someone quoting someone else? How much space goes on either side of an ellipsis? What's the difference between an en-dash and an em-dash?Complete with a listing of useful terms and clear diagrams for creating typographical marks and symbols correctly on both PC and Apple computers, Snails & Monkey Tails is essential for bibliophiles, writers, grammarians, graphic designers, typography enthusiasts, logophiles, and anyone with a passion for the written word.

    From Thomas Bewick to Eric Ravilious and Clare Leighton, many artists' depictions of animals, birds and wildlife have illustrated White’s celebrated book, together providing a microcosm of natural history illustration from the eighteenth century until today. In Drawn to Nature, Simon Martin has gathered joyful and beautiful images of the extraordinary array of wildlife described by White, providing an insight into the continuing appeal and relevance of the Natural History.   This fascinating account takes us from some of the earliest published depictions of birds and animals, to pioneering nature photography, the revival of wood-engraving in the 1920s and 30s, and responses to White’s message about the natural world by contemporary illustrators such as Angie Lewin and Emily Sutton. The book also includes an introduction to the life of Gilbert White by Sir David Attenborough, an essay by Virginia Woolf, poems by modern and contemporary poets, and a jacket design by Mark Hearld.

    

    Packed with step-by-step activities, advice and suggestions, the writer is guided through practical exercises and encouraged to put pen to paper. Are you stuck in a writing rut and don't know how to move forward? Do you lack a daily routine and need a structure to set daily or weekly writing time for yourself? Do you want somewhere to gather your writing ideas and scribbles together in one place? This workbook is the perfect place for the budding writer who wants a spark of inspiration, to sharpen their ideas and perfect their skills at their own pace. The workbook is composed around a series of have-a-go exercises with ample space (double spread) for the user to write and doodle in. This Journal Workbook will become the must-have companion for creatives on the go.