In the wake of the #MeToo movement against sexual assault and harassment, a new book prize is seeking thrillers in which “no woman is beaten, stalked, sexually exploited, raped, or murdered.” Submit your manuscript to the Staunch Book Prize, the writing contest for our times. (more…)
All posts by cindyfazzi
Newly Launched Staunch Book Prize Reflects #MeToo Movement
Posted by cindyfazzi on February 7, 2018
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2018/02/07/newly-launched-staunch-book-prize-reflects-metoo-movement/
Best of 2017: “Baby Driver” & “Lady Bird” Offer a Fresh Take on Old Tropes
Image courtesy of people.com.
Film Review: “Baby Driver,” directed by Edgar Wright, 2017; “Lady Bird,” directed by Greta Gerwig, 2017
In 2017, two films featuring young protagonists broke the mold to give same old same old tropes a fresh take. In “Baby Driver,” the creative use of music made it an extraordinary heist film, while the unlikely focus of “Lady Bird” on mother-daughter relationship set it apart from other coming-of-age movies. The two films are among the best and most original of last year’s crop of films. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on January 31, 2018
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2018/01/31/best-of-2017-baby-driver-lady-bird-offer-a-fresh-take-on-old-tropes/
Best-Selling Author Shares 4 Things Your Novel’s First Page Must Have
Photo courtesy of Visual Hunt.
The first thing a reader of a novel wants to know is the main character, according to best-selling suspense author Hank Phillippi Ryan. If you’re writing a novel, she said your opening page must have these four important things. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on January 24, 2018
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2018/01/24/best-selling-author-shares-4-things-your-novels-first-page-must-have/
Forget about Snowflake—it’s time for “Up Lit” and Other New Words
We need “up lit” books as an antidote to so much negativity in politics.
Snowflake is last year’s cliché, while Brexit is so 2016. It’s time for a fresh batch of new words, or at least newly repurposed words. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on January 17, 2018
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2018/01/17/forget-about-snowflake-its-time-for-up-lit-and-other-new-words/
Neither Predictive nor Prescriptive, “The Bestseller Code” is Anything But
Book Review: “The Bestseller Code: Anatomy of the Blockbuster Novel” by Jodie Archer & Matthew L. Jockers, published by St. Martin’s Press, 2016
We’ve all read about studies that made us scratch our heads—research results that told us things we already knew, such as a healthy diet is key to living longer and people who exercise are in better shape than couch potatoes. “The Bestseller Code” is one of those studies. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on January 10, 2018
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2018/01/10/neither-predictive-nor-prescriptive-the-bestseller-code-is-anything-but/
Small Presses: 3 Publishers Want Literary, Romance, Speculative Novels
New year, new opportunities! You may submit to these publishers even if you don’t have a literary agent if your manuscript falls under these categories: literary, romance, and speculative. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on January 3, 2018
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2018/01/03/small-presses-3-publishers-want-literary-romance-speculative-novels/
Top 5 Blog Posts: Prologues, Literary Snobs, & Unagented Submissions
Photo by Hypnotica Studios Infinite on VisualHunt / CC BY
Time sure flies! Since this blog’s launch on Feb. 15, 2014, I’ve published 255 articles on writing, reading, publishing, books, and movies. The five most popular articles focus on effective prologues, signs of a literary snob, and publishers that accept unagented and unsolicited manuscripts. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on December 27, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/12/27/top-5-blog-posts-prologues-literary-snobs-unagented-submissions/
In Praise of the Lowly Comma
One tiny comma can sometimes make all the difference when it comes to the meaning of a sentence or a contract for that matter. Strunk and White advocated for the Oxford comma in their classic book, “The Elements of Style,” while the AP Stylebook doesn’t require series comma. If you’re an Oxford-comma proponent like me, a recent federal court ruling will reinforce your position. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on December 20, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/12/20/in-praise-of-the-lowly-comma/
Did You Know? How “Red Herring” Originated
Dashiell Hammett’s seminal detective novel, “The Maltese Falcon,” opens with the mysterious Miss Wonderly hiring private eye Sam Spade and his partner, Miles Archer, to follow a man who eloped with her sister. It’s a classic red herring. Readers of mysteries, crime fiction, and suspense novels love red herrings, but where did the term originate? (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on December 13, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/12/13/did-you-know-how-red-herring-originated/
The Giving Season: 7 Gifts the Writer in Your Life Actually Needs
Need a gift idea this holiday season for the writer in your life? The spiffy journals and coffee mugs with literary quotes are nice, but skip them this year. If your writer is anything like me, he or she needs certain things many people don’t think about. (more…)
Posted by cindyfazzi on December 6, 2017
https://cindyfazzi.wordpress.com/2017/12/06/the-giving-season-7-gifts-the-writer-in-your-life-actually-needs/
Cindy Fazzi 