Opening Lines- The Good, Bad, and Ugly

August 10, 2017August 22, 2017 / Sheila McIntrye Good, Author / 2 Comments

Aw, the elusive, perfect opening line. It’s the most important line of your book. If you can’t grab the reader’s attention from the beginning, all the gnashing of teeth, hair pulling, and hard work you put in writing will have been time wasted; much like watching the news.

Sometimes, your muse whispers the perfect opening line in your ear, and other times it’s as elusive as the winning lottery ticket. Don’t sweat it. All writers struggle with getting it right at some time in their career. Others end up in therapy – kidding.

Wherever you find yourself on the writing continuum, it’s good to know you’re not alone. So, Sit back and enjoy, The Hipster & the Clairvoyant: 6 Bad Openings for Your Book from Dinty W. Moore (Psychology Today).

Do you have a bad opening line, you’d like to share? We’ve love to read it; share it below. In the meantime, I think I’ll head to the kitchen, I’ve suddenly got a hankering for beef stew.

Pretend I’m your therapist, talk to me. Tell me your story. I’m all ears.

Procrastination: There’s an App for That

August 9, 2016October 21, 2016 / Sheila McIntrye Good, Author / 10 Comments

Do you have a project you’ve been working on since Edison invented the light bulb? You want to get to the finish line but for some reason, you haven’t.

I know, it’s the hours in the day ( they haven’t changed), the retired husband (I sympathize), the grandkids, laundry, HBO (had to catch up), Twitter, Facebook, or any number of excuses we come up with to justify not reaching the finish line.

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” Thomas Edison
Tweet this

Procrastination is one of those insidious things that – surprise, surprise, do not get better with age. But, cheer up – there’s an app for that!

Thanks to Amy Rolph from Unstuck Advice, we can now have a digital monitor. The Unstuck app helps identify the type of procrastination you’re exhibiting and offer solutions.

Are you a drifter, deflated doer, waffler, perplexed planner, avoider, or just a fuzzy forecaster? Check out the Unstuck App to find out, and get the project completed!

I’d love to hear your comments. Talk to me. Tell me your story and look for me on Facebook at SheilaMGood, Pinterest, Bloglovin, Twitter@sheilamgood, Contently, and Instagram. You can follow my reviews on Amazon and Goodreads.

Manuscript – Agent and Editors List

April 15, 2016March 30, 2016 / Sheila McIntrye Good, Author / 11 Comments

Day 13: #atozchallenge

http://www.thewriteoneblog.com

Are you ready to find the perfect agent for your manuscript? Then you’ll want to check out the Manuscript Wishlist (MSWL).

With an impressive array of agents and editors, this site is all about helping you get your manuscript into the right hands. It couldn’t be any simpler.

MSWL is your go-to place for up to date:

1. Agent lists
2. Editor lists
3. Genre – name filters (parametric search)
4. Keyword Search
Is your manuscript ready for prime time? Looking for an editor or agent, check out MSWL.

I’d love to hear your comments. Talk to me. Tell me your story and look for me on Facebook at SheilaMGood, Pinterest, Bloglovin, Twitter@sheilagood, and Contently.

Free 5 Part Video Series on The Story Grid

August 21, 2015August 21, 2015 / Sheila McIntrye Good, Author / Leave a comment

I just finished an amazing five-part video series on the craft of story editing, by Shawn Coyne, The Story Grid. It is one of the most informative series I’ve seen to date. In addition to the videos, free downloads and full transcripts are available.

Click here to download all five videos. Buy the book here or on Amazon.

“Story Grids inspire writers by showing them exactly how the literary masters structured their masterpieces. Creating a Story Grid for your own work will literally show you exactly how your Story works. Seeing a novel from start to finish is an indispensable editorial tool.”