Jennifer's Blog

Plenty of information exists on how to tighten your sentence structure to cut out unnecessary words and trim the fat from your writing, but few resources explain how to increase the word count. And believe me, adding fluff doesn’t count. An editor...

Do you enjoy combing the beach for beautiful and interesting shells? Whether you enjoy shelling to create new crafts, collecting memory pieces for all the places you’ve traveled, or just love finding shells for your collection, our North Carolina...

In these difficult economic times, writers are struggling with whether to write the stories on their hearts or write what the market will buy and sell. If you are depending on your writing income for a living, the pressure to write for a market may...

When people think of an historical Christmas, they typically think of the Victorian Christmas that they have seen in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. However, the Regency period was earlier between 1800-1820, which was part of the larger...

Most literary agents and publishers require an author to submit a 3-5 page synopsis. Some want a longer synopsis, while others want a one-pager or a detailed chapter-by-chapter outline. My advice is to create a 3-page synopsis since that will suffice...

In 2014, my novel For Love or Loyalty was published, but it wasn’t until 2023 when I finally got a chance to visit the Burgwin-Wright House after I had researched it online and used it in my novel. This house is intriguing because it was...

Q & A Q: Can fiction be based on a true story and still be fiction? A: Absolutely Q: When do you know to call it nonfiction or a novel based on a true story? A: That depends I’m sure there are varying degrees of answers to these questions...

While most people are familiar with people wearing black during a period of mourning in the old days, many are not aware of additional customs that society expected of grieving families. Many of these customs were most likely imposed upon your own...

The first time an editor told me they thought they could acquire my manuscript after I made a few minor changes, I was thrilled! The editor sent me a brief paragraph stating that I needed to lighten the sensual detail between my hero and heroine...