NOTE: PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED ON MY SUBSTACK at accooperwrites.substack dot com.*** I made a note here in my Substack about a topic I wanted to discuss at a later date. Welcome later date!And that note said [minus the typos]…“Why rules for writing should be more like suggestions that you consider. Toss what doesn’t work for you, as long as it creates a story that you love.” I stand by that idea for two reasons.1. I’m a pantser and find it SO HARD to write an entire story without editing before r...

NOTE: PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED ON MY SUBSTACK at accooperwrites.substack dot com.*** I made a note here in my Substack about a topic I wanted to discuss at a later date. Welcome later date!And that note said [minus the typos]…“Why rules for writing should be more like suggestions that you consider. Toss what doesn’t work for you, as long as it creates a story that you love.” I stand by that idea for two reasons.1. I’m a pantser and find it SO HARD to write an entire story without editing before r...

My first published book was a short story titled Murder in Blue Lake and was the result of a “first line” writing prompt. I’d like to share what that prompt was, however as I published the story in 2016, I cannot recall it. But, just for fun, here are the opening paragraphs. "No shit, there I was, standing in front of the body...the one I'd made love to every night in my dreams. She was still beautiful, in a creepy sort of way. I couldn't believe she was dead. Her body didn't seem real...

My first published book was a short story titled Murder in Blue Lake and was the result of a “first line” writing prompt. I’d like to share what that prompt was, however as I published the story in 2016, I cannot recall it. But, just for fun, here are the opening paragraphs. "No shit, there I was, standing in front of the body...the one I'd made love to every night in my dreams. She was still beautiful, in a creepy sort of way. I couldn't believe she was dead. Her body didn't seem real...

There's no shortage of writing tools out there, and two of my favorites are Scrivener and Atticus. While it may seem redundant to have two tools that offer similar features, I'm all about making things easier whenever possible.ScrivenerI've had Scrivener for a while now, and while I'm a pantser, it took me a while to figure out how to incorporate it into my workflow. I say that, because so much of the writing advice out there in regard to Scrivener is from people who plot. I also plot, howeve...

There's no shortage of writing tools out there, and two of my favorites are Scrivener and Atticus. While it may seem redundant to have two tools that offer similar features, I'm all about making things easier whenever possible.ScrivenerI've had Scrivener for a while now, and while I'm a pantser, it took me a while to figure out how to incorporate it into my workflow. I say that, because so much of the writing advice out there in regard to Scrivener is from people who plot. I also plot, howeve...