Category Archives: Tips

How not to get me to buy your book on Twitter

Posted on August 31, 2011 by joelyblack

Typically, I dislike writing posts like this. Posts that are 1. a tad negative and ranty and 2. could be seen as trying to grab readers with a headline. I languish happily in internet obscurity right now but this… this … Continue reading →

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Hands-on Research

Posted on August 19, 2011 by joelyblack

For the longest time, I’ve been privately nagging myself about my (lack of) knowledge when it comes to combat and physical violence. Not for lack of reading, she says, glancing at a pile of books that range from Stalin’s Great … Continue reading →

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Comparing is for meerkats

Posted on August 4, 2011 by joelyblack

Alexander Orlov has, judging by the adverts, struck gold in the concept of comparing meerkats. I’m not sure why meerkats need to compare each other, or themselves, or how one makes money from this, but it’s all the rage over … Continue reading →

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Writing Diary: The real secret to writing pain

Posted on April 22, 2011 by joelyblack

Book: The Impostor Words: 10,170 A while ago I wrote a post about how to write torture, back when I thought I could write these authoritative posts on writing technique. I’m over that now, but something has come back to … Continue reading →

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Writing Tip: Seven tips for creating a super-hot hero

Posted on March 7, 2011 by joelyblack

Arandes Nashima changed the whole nature of Amnar. Although Io is popular, nobody divides or ignites my readership like Arandes. I’ve sat at dinner tables watching debates rage over his behaviour, his attitudes, and what it all means. And the … Continue reading →

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Writing Tip: Six tips for writing torture and suffering

Posted on March 4, 2011 by joelyblack

This post was inspired by a conversation I had with Ali Luke of Aliventures, about the problems of writing really good torture scenes. The very topic makes any decent person squirm, but writing something like Amnar, scenes where one or … Continue reading →

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Anxiety and the Author II: The drama of being “a writer”

Posted on October 15, 2010 by joelyblack

Earlier this week, I wrote a post talking about how anxiety and insecurity have affected my life as a writer. I thought it might be worth following up with a few thoughts on identity and “being a writer”, and how … Continue reading →

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Anxiety and the Author: Dealing with Fear

Posted on October 12, 2010 by joelyblack

In the last few days, I’ve had a lot of conversations with authors and writers, all saying the same kind of thing. They might be great writers, have produced a lot of work, but they’re terrified of promoting it, even … Continue reading →

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The Impostor: Adventures in Structure

Posted on October 11, 2010 by joelyblack

Last night was my birthday. We held a party at a friend’s restaurant, complete with infinite dim sum and a lot of birthday cards. On the last card, I carefully slipped open the packet and held up the prize. Everybody … Continue reading →

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A Little Trick For Nanowrimo

Posted on October 6, 2010 by joelyblack

I might have announced that I’m not doing Nanowrimo this year, but I have had a few friends ask me for advice on how to survive it. Or at least, to write the words. I don’t have any huge advice … Continue reading →

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