Welcome to Blog Treasures, my weekly roundup of the best of the blogsphere from the last week. Enjoy the links!
Featured
Writers Block. Every writer experiences this phenomenon from time to time. Joanna Penn (The Creative Penn) offers us solid advice on defeating one of writings greatest occupational hazards in Writers Block: The 12-Step Cure.
Post NaNo
From Roz Morris: Finishing Your Draft? Don’t Open It Again Until Christmas.
From NYT Best-seller Bob Mayer: NaNoWriMo Conflict: The Fuel of Your Story. Includes Bob’s famous and very helpful Conflict Diagram. Also from Bob, What To Write. Knowing the answer to this is the key to being successful as a writer. What’s your passion?
From Chuck Wendig: 25 Things You Should Know About Your Completed Novel.
From Larry Brooks: Make December Your NaNoWriMo Revision Month.
From Martha Alderson: 4th Annual Plot Writing Month (PlotWriMo). Started December 1.
On Publishing & Social Media
From Jane Friedman: 3 Reasons to Have a Website If You’re Unpublished. Also from Jane: Turn Your WordPress Blog Into A Book.
From Carrie Mumford: 10 Lessons Learned from 10 Months of Blogging. Must read for bloggers, excellent advice.
From Ali Luke (Aliventures): 6 Reasons Why I Chose To Self-Publish My Novel.
From Dan Blank: Top Blogs for Writers. Looking for the best resources on the blogsphere? Dan provides links to 5 of my all time fav’s in the above post. Also from Dan, Should Writers Focus on the Craft of Writing or Building Their Audience?
How Hashtags Can Win Friends and Influence Enemies by social media jedimaster Kristen Lamb.
Where Are The Parents in YA? by Kait Nolan. I’ve always wondered about this one.
Writing on the Ether by Porter Anderson via Jane Friedman’s blog. Excellent look at the week in publishing.
On the Craft of Writing
Antagonists – The Alpha & The Omega of the Story by Kristen Lamb. Excellent, must read article for fiction writers.
From Joanna Penn (The Creative Penn): How to Make Sure Your Book is the Best it Can Be.
From Jeannie Campbell: Subtext Revisited.
From DIYMFA: Plot Archetypes: Where Does Your Story Fit?
Creating Secondary Characters by Marie Lu guest posting on Janice Hardy’s site.
From Janice Hardy: Inserting Plot Pieces Into a First Draft.
From Elizabeth S. Craig: Help for Dragging Plots.
On the Writing Life
One of my fellow ROW80 sponsors, Vicki Keire, posted an excellent and insightful piece this week on 5 Ways to Fail at Writing.
From Jami Gold: What Writing Skill Do You Suck At? We all have strengths and weaknesses. We have to know both to improve.
Donna Newton brings us a new installment of Competitions & Writing Opportunities.
From Sarah Baughman posting on Write It Sideways: 5 Reasons to Sign Up for a Writers’ Conference.
On Signings by Elizabeth S. Craig.
How & Why To Write With Power by Larry Brooks.
Writing…Like Decorating a Christmas Tree by K. B. Owen.
Dreamers vs. Goalers: Writers Need to be Both by Sarah Callender via Write It Sideways.
Fun & Interesting Links
The Cloisters Museum is a magical place that now features the Lewis Chessman which were the inspiration for the chess set in Harry Potter. From Mary Jo Gibson.
Holiday Pet Advice from award-winning Amy Shojai: Christmas Tree Doggy Safety & Cat-Mass Trees (cat safety).
Paranormal Museums by Catie Rhodes.
Via Shea MacLeod: Indie Chicks: The Phoenix and The Darkness by Lizzy Ford.
Do You Enjoy Fantastical Stories? by Jami Gold.
Charms to Soothe the Savage Beast by Marcia A. Richards.
10 Creative Ways to Express Your Inner F-Bomb by Jen Hansen.
Books: Review of “Initiation” from Susan Bischoff. Books I’m Thankful For (4 reviews) from Jess Witkins. “Come Back To Me” from Jen Bennett. Deserted Island Books from Fae Rowen.
Recipes: Cathy’s Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies from Myndi Shafer. Chocolate Zucchini Cake from Jen Bennett.
TV & Movies: What I’d Like To See From NBC’s Grimm by Kait Nolan. Return of the Two Hour TV Mystery & Unforgettable (CBS) by Tiffany A. White. Muppet Mania & What Muppet Are You? by Clay Morgan.
Gene Lempp ~ Writer 
So love these, Gene. Every week I say, “I’m not going to look until I have time.” — then start digging in, and surface hours later. Thanks for the WITS mention!
I’ve really gotta get some discipline….
I’m only going to read one – that one about . . .
Holy Goodysauruses Gene! I love all these links you have bestowed upon your readers. More importantly, bestowed upon me! I already subscribed to one of them (Roz Morris).
I did complete NaNoWriMo and did start revising (Doh!). So I will now stop. Instead, I am going to read all these wonderful links and go back to my manuscript saying, “wow, what’s this? Hmmm, let me give it a read.”.
Thank you!
Okay, Gene, you did it to me again. Just spent two hours browsing/reading all the goodies packed inside this post–thanks for the shout out, too. The furry wonders appreciate it. *s* Oh, the 4-leggers do too. *eg*
Thank goodness you’re paying attention to what’s going on in the blogosphere! There are so many I missed. Visiting these links will be my reward after walking on the treadmill. Thanks for including me in your amazing line-up! Your work is done here…now, go walk! 🙂
Thanks Gene. I’ve got about 17 tabs open now to read because of your suggestions.
Wow, fabulous collection this week…again! 🙂 Thanks so much for including me!
Another awesome round-up. Thanks, Gene.
Thanks for the awesome links! Needed some stuff to read while I gobble lunch before returning to the Term Paper of Doom. Definitely brightens my day.
I’m with Clay! I don’t think I can open Twitterific tomorrow cause I’m going to be busy diving into all these. THANKS for the mention – you know I need serious help on the creative clean swears front (everyone please give me some!)
I missed all but six of these amazing posts, so I’m off to read. Thanks, Gene. 🙂
p.s. LOVE the new blog masthead!!
Great links, Gene! Thanks so much for the linky-love, too! By the way, my last name has no “s” in it: K.B. Owen
Thanks,
Kathy
There are so many great links here, Gene, I don’t know where to start! Thanks for another dynamite mashup!
Your link roundups just keep getting better and better! I don’t know how you find the time, but I’m certainly glad that you do! Thanks again for including me Gene!
Sorry I’m stopping by so late, Gene. I’ve been a bit under the weather and was looking for a few great blogs to read today before taking another nap. Where did I look first? Here of course! You always have the best weekly mashup…seriously – you do.
Thanks also for the link love. You’re the best. Have a great week!