Sue Bradford Edwards's Blog, page 189

5 Minutes a Day: Brainstorming Story Ideas

I’m at 198 and counting. I’m one of those writers who keeps a list of story ideas. Some of them are fairly fleshed out and would function as a premise.  Others are much less so.  I may have an idea for a character.  Other times it is a title.  And then there are the “what […]

Research and Outlining: Which Comes First?

This week I started my next project for Red Line.  Next Thursday I have to turn in Chapter 1, an outline, and a bibliography. One of my students wanted to know if I research or outline first.  This is one of those the chicken or the egg kinds of questions.  In most cases I work […]

Competing Titles

It is important to know which books on the market will compete with your own manuscript.  The topic should be a section in any nonfiction proposal you put together.  But it is also something you should know because it can tell you whether or not to pursue a topic. The first step is to do […]

Gendered Reading: What It Is and Why It Matters

I have to admit that I’m not a huge podcast fan.  IMO they tend to be a bit long and I’m not interested in a 30 minute blog that starts with a 10 minute ad. But I love Shannon Hale’s work and Grace Lin’s as well. So when I saw the podcast KidLit Women had […]

Getting to Do Unexpected Research

Things do not always go as planned.  I knew that I would be out-of-town for three days last week.   So I wrote the posts for last week but surely I would get some more done.  If nothing else I would do it when I got home Saturday evening. Bwa-ha-ha.  A storm rolled through as we […]

5 Minutes a Day: Sensory Detail

Bringing your setting alive is often a matter of including true-to-life details. But they have to be more than realistic.  They have to be real. What are the things that you would notice if you were there vs if you simply researched your setting?  I contemplated this last weekend as I took part in my […]

Bulleted Journal

Are you one of those writers who journals merrily each and every day?  Do you write page after morning page, detailing your thoughts and plans?  Joys and sorrows?  Then this just is not for you.  This post is for the writers who can’t seem to journal for more than a week or two. I’ve been […]

The Nonfiction Proposal: What to Include

Of course, one of the agents that I’m approaching requires a proposal for nonfiction.  I’d rather send the entire manuscript than pull together a proposal. I’m not sure why they intimidate me so much.  I think the problem is that every write-up you find has a slightly different list of “things to include.”  Ugh.  I’m […]

Research: Primary vs Secondary Sources

Primary sources are eye-witness accounts.  If you are reading the words of an eye-witness, listening to a tape, or checking out photographs or artifacts, these are all primary sources.  You can find primary sources in museums and archives. But you can also find primary sources in print.  Diaries, letters and even articles written by the […]

Highlights: Changes in the magazine’s submissions policy

For the first time that I can remember, Highlights magazine is closed to submissions.  But don’t panic!  This closure is not permanent.  They have simply closed from 6/16/18 to 9/16/18.  During this time they are reading anything received before they closed their doors.  They should be done reading and reached a decision on all manuscripts in […]