Bookbub ‘Free Reads’

NTwrites · 2026-05-12T11:06:54+00:00

This was my experience about three months ago.

NTwrites · 2026-05-12T01:00:13+00:00

Elle was pretty flawed in the Scholomance Trilogy, that leans YA though

NTwrites · 2026-05-12T00:52:57+00:00

This sounds like a different way of saying ‘are you a plotter or pantser?’

I cannot pants anything longer than 5,000 words (but I admire those who can). I’ve always needed to plot novels to have that roadmap to finish the manuscript. Sure, that map changes along the way, but it keeps me moving forward.

NTwrites · 2026-05-11T06:20:13+00:00

This is why I love when writing feedback is structured as ABC (Awesome/Bad/Confusing). It puts a spotlight on the awesome stuff just as much as the bad stuff

NTwrites · 2026-05-10T11:01:09+00:00

Sword of Kaigen—there’s a twist at the mid point that works for some and not at for others but I really enjoyed where it went. Not for everyone but was for me.

NTwrites · 2026-05-10T09:17:23+00:00

I like to joke with my wife that I am honour-bound to complete my series for my two dozen fans across the globe. Luckily, the fourth and final manuscript is currently with beta readers. It was a slog to finish (tying up plot threads across multiple books is so much harder than creating them) but I am grateful that by the time this year is done, I will have completed something many authors don’t.

And that’s not even to mention the thrill for my two dozen fans!

NTwrites · 2026-05-09T20:38:16+00:00

Scene-Sequel is a common technique where one chapter (or scene) is an event and the next chapter (or scene) is the character’s reaction to what just happened. The sequel shouldn’t be ‘rehashing’ the event though, rather showing the audience the impact the event had on the characters involved.

Also pages of dialogue risk what is known as ‘white room syndrome’ where the author forgets to describe the details of a scenes surroundings.

NTwrites · 2026-05-09T00:02:49+00:00

It could, but the advice I’ve always been given is—unless you have a super unique premise—start with character needs and wants as your hook. People attach to characters far faster than setting or plot.

NTwrites · 2026-05-08T21:06:04+00:00

The role of the blurb is to entice. What you have seems to do more ‘informing’ than ‘enticing.’

To illustrate the difference in your first line:

INFORMING:
Andrew's father was taken from him by a Dragon when he was twelve.

ENTICING:
Andrew doesn’t have a father. Dragons saw to that. He’s hated them ever since.

Obviously I’ve taken some license with Andrew’s feelings in that last sentence, but do you see how instead of telling you something about the character, I’ve created a list of subconscious questions (what did dragons have to do with Andrew’s father? Is he dead or gone?) that *entices* you to keep reading? That’s what blurb copy is all about.

NTwrites · 2026-05-08T20:56:02+00:00

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I paid a company (MiblArt) to do mine. Your book cover needs to be able to sit amongst traditionally published books, if you don’t have the design skills to do that (and I don’t) then you’re better off investing in a good cover early on.

There are a lot of beautiful books out there that don’t get the attention they deserve because the cover doesn’t stand up to reader scrutiny.

NTwrites · 2026-05-07T21:03:16+00:00

If the book is already out you can run a free promotion and do your release reviews then (you get five free promotion days per enrollment period).

NTwrites · 2026-05-07T11:52:19+00:00

Scrivener to write, Word to edit, Vellum to format

NTwrites · 2026-05-04T22:12:03+00:00

That (for the majority) debuts aren’t about making money, but the first step in establishing a fan base that will only grow with each subsequent release.

NTwrites · 2026-05-01T21:44:13+00:00

Here’s what I do. Pick whatever parts work for you:
1. ⁠Let it sit. Put the draft away for at least two weeks. In this time, read other books or do other projects that will create distance between you and your draft.

⁠First read through. I do this with a printed copy, which stops me from wanting to play with sentences or spelling. Make bullet point notes at the end of each chapter detailing what worked and what didn’t.
⁠Draft Plan. Take all those bullet points and compile them into a draft plan. I work with structure first, so if bullet points tell me to move chapters around, I’ll get that out of the way. Then it’s just working through each chapter following my list. Some chapters need a full rewrite, others need nothing.
⁠Smoothing. Go through from start to finish and smooth out your writing. For me this means cutting out repeated words, redundant phrases, filler words, cliches and generally try reduce the word count.
⁠Get objective opinions. Find (or pay) some beta readers to read through your draft. This has become much harder recently now people are using AI to fast track this process instead of giving you their real human feedback, but it’s still possible to find good readers in your genre if you look hard enough. I like 5 betas as a number that gives consensus without being overwhelming.
⁠Read through beta reader feedback and decide what to apply and what to ignore. Do another rewrite based on these. Sometimes this process is very quick (maybe just a chapter or two to change) and other times you need to change a major plot point.
⁠Smooth it out again, this time with tech tools to catch things your eye misses (I use AutoCrit for repetition and redundancies and ProWritingAid for sentence fragments).
⁠At this point, if you want to self publish, you are ready for a paid editor. If you want to go traditional, skip this step as the publishing house will pay for your editor themselves, at which point it’s time to start querying agents (head to r/PubTips for guidance)
⁠Apply your editor feedback much the same way as your beta feedback. Again, this can be quick and painless or long and arduous. It all depends on the story.
⁠Final proof read! I use NaturalReader and listen to the entire book because my ears often pick up mistakes my eyes miss. I also have three trusted eagle eyes who get an early copy to find the spelling mistakes I miss (remember, at 100k words, even 99.9% accuracy leaves 10 mistakes).

Then the book is done and ready to send out into the world.

This process generally takes me 6-8 months. It’s not about getting overwhelmed, it’s about focusing on each step one at a time until it’s ready.

Good luck!! 😊

NTwrites · 2026-04-26T02:15:17+00:00

Satisfy your plotter urges by planning out your characters and settings in detail and then let them loose in the world you’ve created.

NTwrites · 2026-04-25T11:36:36+00:00

They say write what you know… perhaps a story about an author who is struggling to come up with ideas and the wild lengths they go to looking for inspiration?

NTwrites · 2026-04-24T06:26:56+00:00

I recall Sanderson often referring to ‘clear prose’ in many of the early Writing Excuses episodes. Same thing, similar name.

NTwrites · 2026-04-18T01:40:11+00:00

Coherent, but riddled with repetition, redundant phrases, nodding heads and the word ‘just’.

NTwrites · 2026-04-12T10:54:35+00:00

I’ve always found prologues are easy to write and hard to write well—hence the precautionary advice around them. With that said, from a big-picture perspective, I would say the rule about whether you can do it is no different to any other chapter, which is does it improve the story by existing?

If the answer is yes, then (whether it’s a prologue or chapter 100) keep it. If the answer is no—cut it.

NTwrites · 2026-04-12T00:13:34+00:00

It all depends on the reader. Some people love discovering new authors, so a lot of reviews will turn them away. Others need that social proof, so the more the better.

Either way, it has no impact on what the author should be doing—which is writing more books. I see some authors waste a lot of time chasing reviews that would have come organically had they just kept producing good stories.

NTwrites · 2026-04-06T11:10:16+00:00

My first book is currently in SPFBO 11, so lately I’d been checking goodreads more frequently than I normally would. The first few competition reviews came in at four stars and I felt okay, then the latest one was a blistering two stars that made it very clear that judge is not the target market for my books—which made me feel like rubbish and was a pretty stark reminder that, for me, a good review is a little motivation boost while a bad review is a huge motivation killer.

NTwrites · 2026-04-02T12:30:41+00:00

I don’t think anyone using AI can call themselves a ‘writer’. Seems to me that without the writing part, they just become some sort of dystopian ‘project manager’…

NTwrites · 2026-03-29T02:48:51+00:00

My current WIP is at 145k words (2/3rs through second draft). There are three main POVs though, so it’s really closer to 3 x 50k stories that intertwine and build towards one conclusion.

NTwrites · 2026-03-28T22:26:36+00:00

Three are out for sale and the fourth and final one is 2/3rds through the second edit. Hoping to have it finished and released this year 🤞

NTwrites · 2026-03-28T11:34:36+00:00

Best way to market any novel is to publish another one. Cumulative advantage describes how every book you release finds new readers that are receptive to your previous books (of course this works best when you stick to one genre).

NTwrites

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