Top Writability Resources for Your Writing Needs

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So over the course of about fifty-one months, Writability has accumulated over 750 posts. Which is, um, a lot. And while the directory has almost all of them (I try to do my best to keep it updated), I am well aware that scrolling through 750 blog posts can be a teensie bit overwhelming. Kind of like hoping for enough snow for a white Christmas and getting seven feet instead (too soon, Buffalo?).

Ehem. Anyway. 

I thought it might be helpful to highlight some posts for you guys, depending on your specific writing needs. So here we go. 

Brainstorming & Plotting

Are you a plotter or a pantser? There isn’t a right or wrong answer, but assuming you're a plotter, once you have an idea you’d like to explore, it’s time to turn that idea into a plot. One option is to try writing a synopsis before the first draft—which is less terrifying that it sounds (I know! I was surprised too). Otherwise, I vlogged about how I plot my WIPs, and before that I blogged about it. You may also want to check out Scrivener’s cork board, which I love forever for plotting and brainstorming.

Not sure what plot points you hit? I haven’t covered them all (yet!) but here are some plot essentials you want to make sure you include.

If you’re not a plotter but you still want something to work off of, you may want to try plotting without plotting (not a typo!).

First Drafting

Eventually! It’ll be time to dive into your first draft. Remember that you don’t have to know everything before you start drafting, whether you’re a plotter or pantser. Also good to keep in mind that usually, the first draft sucks (really, but it's okay), and you don’t have to get it right the first time. Not even close. 

If you want to get through your first draft quickly, you may want to try fast-drafting. And while you don’t have to think too hard about getting things right when first drafting, you may find it helpful to think about how to write strong supporting characters and awesome face-smooshing—excuse me, kissing—scenes. 

Revision/Editing

So you’ve written your first draft! YAY! Before you dive into editing, you’ll want to let your manuscript cool a little so that you can read your writing a little more objectively. 

But then the time will come to dive into your manuscript again! Which can be a little scary, but not to fear—here are some tips on how not to get overwhelmed with revisions. Remember not to be afraid to make big changes, and while you’re at it here’s how to use what ifs while revising and how to use brainstorming to edit. 

When you reach the time to line edit, don’t forget to hunt down those filter phrases. 

You’ll also need critique partners in this stage (and remember—critiquing others helps you, too!). If you don’t have any, here are five places to find critique partners, and how to choose the right CPs.
Finally, if you have Scrivener for Mac and you like pretty colors and seeing the changes you’ve made, here’s how to use Scrivener’s version of track changes. 

Querying

So you’ve polished your manuscript to a beautiful gleam with the help of critique partners! Yay! Now, assuming you want to get traditionally published, is time to prepare to query agents. First thing you’ll want to do is finally get the dreaded synopsis out of the way (I know, I know). 

Next you’ll want to think about what genre and category your novel is in before you start researching agents so you know who to target. Now sure where to start? Here’s how to determine your WIP’s genre—and the vlog version if you prefer. (Hint: YA is not a genre) and here’s part one and part two of my basic genre index, for an overview. 

Know how to categorize your novel? Have your synopsis ready? Awesome. Time to start researching agents—and here are extra researching resources. While you’re researching, here are some red flags to look out for. Ultimately, not every agent will be the right agent for you, so here are some tips on choosing the right agent for you.

Now some tough love: you’re going to get rejected. A lot. And even after you get agented and published, rejection doesn’t stop. But here are some tips to help you get through the query wars, and here are some encouraging stats for the querying writer. Ultimately, I think hope is the best remedy for rejection, so try to remember this is just part of the process and all writers go through it. 

And finally, if it ever starts to feel like too much and you’re thinking about giving up on your writing dream altogether, please read this first.

Did I miss any resources you especially like? What tips would you add to the roundup? 

Twitter-sized bite:

Looking for writerly resources and pub tips? @Ava_Jae rounds up helpful posts for every stage of the writing process. (Click to tweet)

5 Places to Find Critique Partners

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So we all know just how essential critique partners are if you’re serious about your writing career, but as someone who has had to search for CPs several times, I understand that it’s not always easy to find them.

The internet to me, is like space—it never ends and it’s constantly expanding. And while there are hoards of writers scouring the depths of cyberspace, it’s not always easy to pick out a couple select few for the purpose of ripping each other’s work apart giving each other feedback. This is particularly difficult if you don’t know where to look. 

That being said, I’ve devised a list of five great places to help you satisfy your CP searching needs. 

1. Twitter. I’m pretty sure Twitter has made just about every one of my helpful lists for writers, and for good reason. I’ve found three CPs off Twitter alone, and most times, even when I use other sites, I contact the potential CP on Twitter. Why? Because people tend to check Twitter a lot more often than they check other sites, and it’s easy to get quick up-to-date information across in 140 characters. Combine this with the fact that there are LOADS of writers on Twitter, and you have an ocean of CP possibilities. 


2. Ladies Who Critique. This one doesn’t really help the men (sorry!), but for you ladies out there looking for critique partners, this is a great place to start. After filling out a profile that covers everything from your critiquing availability and expertise, to the genres you like to read and write in, you can search for other CPs by groups, genres, or just free scrolling. I’ve had success with this site too, and while it isn’t as active as I might like, it’s a great place to start your search. 


3. How About We CP.This is a great tumblr run by fabulous literary agent Jessica Sinsheimer. Writers searching for CPs submit a quick profile that covers contact info (Twitter or e-mail), interested genres, how honest they like their critique, and a bit about the writer and their MS. The entries get posted for public viewing pleasure, and you can contact each other for future swapping purposes. 


4. YA Writers Reddit. As well as just being an overall interesting and informative place of discussion, this reddit run by the NYT Bestseller Beth Revis and a few other fabulous writers, had a CP connection post earlier this month and there are more planned in the future. 


5. CP Seek. Just as the title indicates, this is a great forum full of writers searching for critique partners. Like LWC, it isn’t updated quite as often as say, Twitter, but it’s another great place to start your search.  

So those are my top five to-go places when searching for CPs, now I want to hear from you: where do you go to find CPs?

Twitter-sized bites: 

Looking for a critique partner? Here are five CP-seeking resources you may want to check out. (Click to tweet)  

Where do you go to find critique partners? Writer @Ava_Jae shares her top five CP-seeking sites. (Click to tweet)