Lisa Shiroff's Blog

Make Room for Your Book: Essential Steps to Begin Writing

Before you start writing your book, you need room—time in your calendar, a space that supports creativity, and emotional bandwidth to face the page. The Queen of the Rewrite walks you through how to make space in your life so your book can finally exist.

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The Royal Truth About Author Expectations

Learn how to set smart author goals—and why your book will open unexpected doors, from consulting to speaking. The Queen of the Rewrite explains the real ROI of writing a book.

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When Your Manuscript Makes You Sleepy: What Your Brain’s Really Trying to Tell You

Do you get sleep every time you read your manuscript? It’s not boredom—it’s neuroscience. Learn why your brain powers down when you write and how to reignite your creative energy with the Queen of the Rewrite.

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When the Setting Steals the Show: How Atlantic City Crashed My Story

Writers, take note: your setting should not behave. It should talk back, misbehave, and steal the spotlight when you least expect it.

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Overcome Lonely-Writer Syndrome: Reconnect for Inspiration

Feeling disconnected while writing your book? Here’s how to stay inspired, social, and sane while building your literary empire. Writing a book can feel like ruling a kingdom of one. But isolation isn’t a sign you’re broken—it’s a signal to reconnect. Here’s the Queen’s guide to banishing lonely-writer syndrome, finding your creative court, and making […]

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Three Mistakes that Keep You from Writing Your Nonfiction Book

Darling, let’s be honest: you’re brilliant at what you do. You transform lives in your office, in your studio, or on your consulting calls. Clients adore you. Your cohorts and employees trust you. Even your cat gives you a nod of approval, sometimes without you having to ask for it. But when you sit down […]

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Three Mistakes that Keep You from Writing Your Nofiction Book

Darling, let’s be honest: you’re brilliant at what you do. You transform lives in your office, in your studio, or on your consulting calls. Clients adore you. Your cohorts and employees trust you. Even your cat gives you a nod of approval, sometimes without you having to ask for it. But when you sit down […]

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Beware the Book Pirates!

(And Why Copyright Is Your Cutlass) Let’s get one thing straight: when I say “book pirates,” I don’t mean charming, rum-soaked rogues with eye patches and parrots. No, darling. I mean bottom-feeders with Wi-Fi, low morals, and nothing better to do than steal your hard-earned words. And yes—it happens. More often than you think. Pirate […]

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Writing a Memoir: Finding Your Unique Story

Let’s clear something up: a memoir is not your life story from cradle to now. That’s an autobiography. (Or, if someone else writes it after you’re gone, a biography.) A memoir is narrower, sharper, juicier. It’s about a particular change in your life—an era, an event, a transformation. It’s not about every grocery list, job […]

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The Dirty Little Secret About Fiction (Yes, It’s Formulaic)

Few writers like to admit it, but let’s rip off the velvet curtain: good fiction is formulaic, which some refer to as having a narrative arc. Shocking? Maybe. True? Absolutely. Because if we confess that stories follow formulas, it means—gasp—we’re all writing variations of the same tale. And you know what? We are. That’s not […]

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