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Sidekicks & Ensembles: Protecting the Hero and Each Other

Author: Laura Resnick

Sidekicks & Ensembles: Protecting the Hero and Each Other

If you’re writing a story, you’ll need secondary characters to flesh out the world you’re building. Otherwise, it’s a pretty dull world. You need sidekicks! Sidekicks are indispensable for asking or answering questions of your heroes. At the very least, they give your main characters someone to interact with. Are there differences between sidekicks, ensembles, and partners? Do you need them if your hero is the strong, silent type? Are sidekicks worthy of a tale of their own? Defining sidekicks...

characterization, craft, editor advice, tutorials, Writing

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Grief and Creativity

“Grief is the ultimate thief of creativity.” —Sweta Vikram According to the Hospice Foundation of America, grief is “a reaction to loss, and like a fingerprint, it is different for everyone.” The anticipation of or death of a loved one or an animal companion, the loss of a relationship, a job, or your independence, perhaps due to injury or illness, may trigger a grief response. Before my friend Kerry’s death in November 2023, I’d experienced the passing of my parents and brother, but the loss...

creativity, self care, writer psychology, Writing

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Work Smarter: Repurpose Content ~ How Veteran Authors Can Save Time and Sell More Books

The most important thing we can do as authors is to write the next book. The second most important thing is to let readers know about it. One way to do that is through advertising, but it has become rather expensive in recent years. As costs increased, advertising became a larger line item on my P&L, prompting me to search for ways to promote my books without breaking the bank. So I doubled down on free or low-cost options like newsletters and social media. Like me, I’m sure you have plenty...

business, habits, Marketing, organization, productivity, Tools

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I Don’t Feel the Least Bit ‘Mid’ About Being a Midlist Author

Oh, how the industry loves a shiny new debut author! And wasn’t instant success the dream for most of us? And longevity! Don’t we all want to be that author whose readers wait with breathless anticipation for our latest and greatest? But while publishers may fall all over themselves for the fresh face or the perennial bestseller, the fact of the matter is, publishers can’t round out their catalogues without regular contributions from authors who sell but may not be “known” names. A.K.A the midlist What...

business, career, professionalism, Publishing, writer psychology, Writing

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Mapping Your Marketing Plan for 2026

It’s (finally) the end of 2025, and here we stand, with another year of marketing our books behind us … and an empty calendar ahead, waiting to be filled. If you do your planning annually, December seems to be the logical time to plot your marketing course for the next year. While I’ve toyed with the notion of running my promo year from February to February, giving myself the month of January for leisurely planning, the orderly part of me likes a nice, neat 12-month plan that runs through the...

business, Marketing, organization, promotion, sales, Tools

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Overcoming Marketing Roadblocks

Sometimes, I think I might be a little psychic—and not always in a good way. Earlier this summer, I chose our topics for the fourth quarter of 2025. Marketing dread is something I’ve been thinking about for a while as I hear friends and colleagues gripe about how much they do NOT like that aspect of publishing, so that fit for October. Planning for a new year was also a natural fit for December. But as I mulled over what to discuss in November, what popped into my mind was one word: disaster. Authors...

business, career, Marketing, promotion, resilience, social media, solutions

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