Welcome to Blog Treasures! Here you’ll find the best of the blogsphere from the past week. So, grab your coffee, sit back and above all – enjoy *smile*
Featured
We all hit slumps. Drifting between projects. Or in a sea of self-pity. Or lost beyond hope in a scheduling maelstrom that leaves no time for writing. There are many reasons for slumps but there are also many ways to climb out of them and find oneself in fair seas once again. Jess Witkin’s shares her experiences from DFWcon and the lessons she’s learned over the last year and from the conference on how to beat a slump senseless. Be sure to read to the end of this post, it is full of writerly goodness!
Celebrating My Writing Slump by Jess Witkins
On the Publishing Industry
Revisiting the Fevered Egos of Self-Publishing by Chuck Wendig. Must read post!
AAR, DOJ and the Agency Model by Bob Mayer.
The Business Rusch: Time and the Writer by Kristine Kathryn Rusch. Interesting, tip-filled post!
Pricing Books and Ebooks by J.A. Konrath. Also from Konrath, Unconscionability – note that this is a (very) long post discussing traditional book contracts in detail.
On Aspects of Publishing
Updates to Amazon’s Book Ranking Algorithm’s: The Death of 99-Cent Ebooks and KDP Select? by Lindsay Buroker.
What Will Make An Agent Gong Your Pages by Roni Loren.
What Makes a Good Book Cover? by Shannon Donnelly.
Yes, Email Still Works for Book Marketing by Jane Friedman. Also from Jane, Starving Artist vs. Slimy Marketer: How to Strike a Balance.
On Social Media
6 Social Media Platforms – Which is Best for You? by Lisa Hall-Wilson.
5 Ways to Connect with Other Writers – Which one is best for you? by Joanna Penn.
How to Get On Well with Twitter by Roz Morris.
Enlarging Our Twitter Audience by Lonny Dunn guest posting on Piper Bayard’s site.
Keep Momentum Moving with GoodReads by Tamara Ward.
The Bodacious Bloggers Essential Ingredients by August McLaughlin. Also from August, Mastering Your Author Headshot (includes interview with photographer Ken Dapper).
You’ll Look Like a Spammer If… by Jami Gold.
On Writing Craft
The Best Plotting Advice I’ve Ever Heard: Two Tips That Will Make Plotting Easier by Janice Hardy. Also from Janice, Trimming Words From Too-Long Manuscripts.
Developing a Story Idea by Elizabeth S. Craig.
Writing a Novel via the Musical Approach by Billie Jo Woods.
The Stealth Power of Sequencing – a Hunger Games deconstruction by Larry Brooks.
4 Ways to Take Your Character from Typical to Terrific by Khaalidah Muhammad-Ali guest posting on Janice Hardy’s site.
Get Thee To An Editor! 7 Reasons You Need One by Sarah Baughman.
Dialogue is King by Tiffany Lawson Inman, a.k.a. The Naked Editor.
Nine NO’s of Dialogue by Gabriela Pereira, a.k.a. DIY MFA.
On the Writer’s Life
Savoring Every Step: The Happy Road to Writing Success by August McLaughlin.
10 Tips for Writers: Managing Your Time by Carrie Mumford.
6 Habits to Help You Write When You Don’t Have Time by Tyler Braun guest posting on Jeff Goin’s site.
Following Your Own Advice by Natalie C. Markey. Excellent, thoughtful post!
Writing Dangers: Shiny New Idea Syndrome by Ava Jae. Also from Ava, Would You Write If You Were Never Getting Published? (Yes, I would).
25 Reasons You Should Quit Writing by Chuck Wendig.
Focusing on the True Goal. Why Write? by Mhairi Simpson. Includes a link to the Neil Gaiman commencement speech that is a must see for creatives of all types.
The Difference Between Art and Entertainment by Jeff Goins.
Movie Reviews
Gloria Oliver reviews Battleship. Jillian Dodd reviews The Dictator.
Peaceful Journeys!
Gene Lempp ~ Writer 
Your best mashup so far, Gene. This post is packed with great links. I’ll be reading for some time.
Ooh this treasure chest of a blog post is filled with so many good links, you should see the tab list at the top of my screen right now! Thank you Gene for featuring my post, and more importantly your kind, and as always, thoughtful comments. I consider myself very lucky you stumbled onto my blog and stuck around, paranormal stories, circus accidents, and oh yah…writing slumps 101. Have a fabulous memorial day weekend!
Such fabulous links, Gene. Dang, I’ve got some serious catching up to do! Too many awesome bloggers, too little time.
Fantastic resources, Gene. Thanks! I’m eager to check out Chuck W.’s post and see a few I enjoyed big time–Jess’s, for one. 😉
Thanks for including my links! Hope you’re having a super weekend.
Gene, I so heart your blog! Thank you for this mashup…they’re always great, but this week I’ve been offline for the better part of 12 days so it’s vital!
I love Sunday mornings reading your mashup and exploring all the amazing links! August’s on head shots and Shannon Donnelly’s on book covers were top of my list since that’s where my focus is right now, besides finishing the last 1st draft chapter of my novella. Jess’ post was so fun and I was happy to see her featured. Have a fantastic Memorial Day weekend, my friend!
Wow, this is a jackpot full of helpful links. Thanks so much, Gene. I’ll tweet it tomorrow when it’s not so late! Hope you have a nice Memorial Day.
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