Mary, thank you for this huge contribution of a post. With Substack you never know where it might land and it landed with me this morning, as I’m about to start a sabbatical and begin the journey of writing a book. There was so much goodness and essentialism in here. I will return to it time and again.
dear Mary, I have to tell you that this piece is Exactly what I need at this moment of my writing! I revised the opening of my book (again) yesterday, using your tips. And oh, it is SO much better! Thank you for your generosity in sharing your expertise. Mae
Hi. This is a very thorough list. I loved what you said about continuity. That's my pet peeve in books too. I read a story once where one woman was not with a man earlier in the series and at the end, that woman who was only a friend to that person was suddenly pregnant by him. My mom and I watch a lot of movies and we always look at these kinds of details. Thanks for sharing.
Yeah, and the crazy part was the man that was she now pregnant by was deceased, so it wasn't like there he was there to say hey, you are not who I was with.
Mary, thank you for this huge contribution of a post. With Substack you never know where it might land and it landed with me this morning, as I’m about to start a sabbatical and begin the journey of writing a book. There was so much goodness and essentialism in here. I will return to it time and again.
Deep thanks. 🙏
This is why I write the newsletter. This comment, and the idea of helping someone write their first book, made my week--thank you!
dear Mary, I have to tell you that this piece is Exactly what I need at this moment of my writing! I revised the opening of my book (again) yesterday, using your tips. And oh, it is SO much better! Thank you for your generosity in sharing your expertise. Mae
Mae, thank you for sharing this. I’m just thrilled for you!!
Thank you. I'm still learning sooo much and you are one of the authors who helps to make substack such an exhilarating experience!!
That's such a joy to hear, Jill! Thank you.
Hi. This is a very thorough list. I loved what you said about continuity. That's my pet peeve in books too. I read a story once where one woman was not with a man earlier in the series and at the end, that woman who was only a friend to that person was suddenly pregnant by him. My mom and I watch a lot of movies and we always look at these kinds of details. Thanks for sharing.
Oh, that's a great example! Yikes.
Yeah, and the crazy part was the man that was she now pregnant by was deceased, so it wasn't like there he was there to say hey, you are not who I was with.
Such good advice, as always. Thank you!
So glad, Nancy--thank you for reading!