by AnnSheybani | Oct 8, 2018 | Writing
It was Dennis Lehane, author of Mystic River who admonished us fledgling writers to knock off all the research when working on our books. He’d just gotten a huge movie deal, Clint Eastwood was directing, so there he was at Harvard telling us all how he got to... by AnnSheybani | Sep 29, 2018 | Life, Reading, Writing
This is precisely what will happen to you once you have a polished book out in the world. I’m telling you, it’ll blow your mind. I received an email from one of my writing clients the other day. I adore Alex because her mind is so expansive, so... by AnnSheybani | Sep 25, 2018 | Writing
Lately, I’ve had my head in manuscripts just rife with purple prose. Purple prose, for those of you unfamiliar with the term, is writing that’s so extravagant, ornate, or flowery, it breaks the flow and draws excessive attention to itself. Purple prose is... by AnnSheybani | Sep 17, 2018 | Writing
It’s been one of those weeks. And by one of those weeks, I mean, the kind of week that makes you want to dance like a fool, throw back a few green smoothies, crow from the rooftop, whatever one does to celebrate. Because a number of wonderful projects have... by AnnSheybani | Jul 22, 2018 | Life, Reading, Uncategorized, Writing
Several months ago, I was presented with the opportunity to doctor a book manuscript. Michelle Cully, the author, is this high-powered chick who owns a courier company in the metro-Boston area. If you saw her, you’d laugh, because she looks more like a... by AnnSheybani | Jul 2, 2018 | Writing
You may be really excited about the prospect of writing a book for your business, but let’s take some time to strategize before you go sinking all that time and effort into such a project. First, you’ll need to pause long enough to consider the outcome...