July started off with a bang!

and the noise just keeps coming…. What else is new? Fireworks, thunderstorms, and overall my writing life has been thundering along. I spent the better part of Saturday, July 9th pitching to agents at an online workshop. It was truly a learning experience. Agents are just super nice folks with a job that carries them to all sorts of events and online things. I really felt sorry for the ones with early calls, as it was done via Zoom. At least my lady was very put together and attentive. I was ever so grateful to all of them for their
Elden Ring and George RR Martin together?

I don’t get excited about epic or high fantasy too much these days. But Elden Ring caught my attention. You have to admit the trailer is stellar. And when I discovered that George RR Martin is one of the world-builders, ie. contributors to this new venture, I had to take a longer look. The question was raised, what exactly does GRRM have to do with this new game? Well, on my first run of research for this blog post, I found that he is, in fact, creating the world that the game revolves in and giving the other contributors or
The Whiteboard, part nine

PART NINE of the WHITEBOARD by KIM SMITH Welcome to the next installment of The Whiteboard, my short story that is being written on the blog. I seriously didn’t know what was going to come of this story when I began it. I am pretty happy with how it is going though. I hope you are too! If you missed PART EIGHT you can read it HERE THE WHITEBOARD (part nine) by ©KIM SMITH Anne strode to her bedside table to call the police. Abusing her whiteboard might not be a crime but this was far beyond that. She could
Weekly Linky List

Welcome to THE LIST – my once weekly curation of sites for writers of all stages. I hope this is helping you guys. Be sure to look for my books under the tab up above, and please remember to fan, follow, and subscribe to my PODCAST SITE on iTunes and Youtube. Here is the latest in new and tips, tools, and things you can use in your writing life. THE LIST LIVE WRITE THRIVE – Using Archetypes http://www.livewritethrive.com/2016/10/31/using-archetypes-to-create-powerful-characters-in-your-fiction/ PETER REY – Using Sterotypes http://peterrey.com/stereotypes-in-books-writing-myths-debunked/ BOOKWORKS – 5 Great Word Processing Tools https://bookworksblog.wordpress.com/2012/11/19/5-great-word-processing-tools-for-writing-your-novel/ KATE TILTON – Writing and Emotion http://katetilton.com/writing-emotion-swaying-readers-dose-real-life/ FIX MY STORY
The Top 5 Marketing Tips for Your Book

Self-published authors know that the biggest row to hoe ahead of them is marketing their book. The writing is hard, the editing is harder, but the marketing of that book is certainly the hardest of them all when it comes to this self-publishing journey. I know. I have been there. But I also have a few tips for you to maybe give you food for thought. First, some people might just want to know what marketing your book MEANS. In my honest opinion, it’s just telling folks about your book. It’s getting the word out. Secondly, some people want to