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Crazy Few Months

Been pounding away on the site for a while now, and we’re finally ready to show it to a select few people. No public showing yet, just a few trusted industry friends to get their opinion. We’ve got three full genre guides done, which is north of 35,000 words on just those few genres. With the essentials guides on novel writing, advertising, and digital tools; and 20+ other articles on a variety of subjects, we’ve already got more than a novel’s worth of material online—and not a short novel. And we’re just getting started. I couldn’t be more excited about …

Should I Write Erotica?

Back to erotica guide So you want to write erotica? You’re not alone. Most authors have tried their hand at writing on the wild side at some point in their career. And with the advent of the kindle and the success of Fifty Shades of Grey, erotica is mainstream now.  Most erotica writers start off by reading an article or two and typing out their favorite fantasy. And almost all of them fail. Because sex is a very personal thing. And most people who write about it end up writing about what they like. If you are writing for fun,...

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Erotica Story Builder

For this exercise, you should have a document open where you can write. Now copy the text in the box and paste it into that document. This will be the blueprint for your story. You'll fill it in as you go through the exercise and end up with a basic outline for your erotica story. The good news is that no matter how formulaic you are, if your scenes are hot, many readers will read everything you have for sale once they discover your first story.

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Erotica Blueprint

Please note that there are a number of erotica stories that don't follow this blueprint exactly, and most don't follow it perfectly. If your story will still be thrilling and sexy for readers without one of these pieces, or with some of them done differently or in a different order, feel free to do your own thing. This blueprint is just so that you can understand the basic format that your readers will expect from the genre. 

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Should I Write LitRPG?

LitRPG is an exciting new genre, but it breaks a lot of the rules that speculative fiction was built on. If you find traditional spec-fic stodgy and old-fashioned, then litRPG should appeal to you. It is also very specific to gaming. If you're not a gamer, it will likely be difficult for you to get inside this genre.

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LitRpg Study Materials

If you want to write in a genre, you have to read that genre. Experts in the industry are consistent with their advice that you must be an avid reader of a genre to write well in it. There are only two books here, as I have not read widely in this genre.

With so few books here, it is incredibly important for you to do your own research. Search for litRPG books...

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Why Writing is Different

Good art—of any kind—contains three things at a high level: concept, composition and technique. Writing is unique in all the creative arts in that there is no physical element to the technique part of that equation. Sure, there’s typing—or handwriting if you’re one of those mad folk who write their first draft longhand—but it has nothing to do with the final representation of the work. Probably won’t even be in the same font it was written in. Dance, painting, sculpture, music—all need good physical technique to complete the triumvirate required for good art. Being entirely cerebral has some weird repercussions...

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Series and Speed: The Keys to Self-Publishing Success

Writing fast, and in a series, offers the best chance of success as a self-published author. It isn’t the only chance—there are other paths—but it is the most reliable. Because if you write fast, and in series, you can make a living without ever having a hit book. A hit book—or at least a moderately popular one—is a requirement for the other paths. And a hit book is far more dependent on luck, and hitting the right mark at the right time, than your skills as a writer. Readership trends are notoriously hard to predict. Even if you write a...

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LitRPG Guide

LitRPG is a very new genre, the term only being coined in 2013. As such, it doesn't have an official category on Amazon, and unlike grimdark, I don't think it has enough mainstream support that it will get one. However, you will find plenty of self-published fantasy books with litRPG as part of their title or subtitle. It's a sought after keyword, and you'll find litRPG titles in high spots of other fantasy genre's

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Worldbuilding: How Much is too Much?

There is no such thing as too much worldbuilding. The greater the depth of the author’s knowledge of the setting of their book, the better. There is no detail too small or universe too big to be fully fleshed out in the author’s mind—or more likely, in extensive notes, maps, timelines, character bios, Plottr portfolios, and whatever else the often chaotic mind of the author chooses to store this information in. Unless you put it all in the text of your book. Hemingway said, “The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one-eighth of it being above...

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