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• Which comparable works make for the best references?
  When you do a proposal for publishers, you’ll probably have a comparable works section.  Your goal is to come up with similar works that have sold well, so that the publisher can visualize why your book will sell well.  Here are some tips to help you pick references that will go farther in the publisher’s [...] […]
• Disco, leisure suits, dancing monkeys and other 1970s abominations
  GAH. […]
• Thanks, Evil Editor!
  Evil Editor reviewed my query letter for Don’t Forget the Death Ray!, a guidebook about how to write superhero stories. Although he and his readers mostly panned it, I found their comments very helpful and informative. It’s really important for prospective writers to have thick skin, so I’d like you to know what kind of [...] […]
• Don’t Bury Your Story in Science and Realism
  I’d only delve as deeply into science as much as the story and audience warrant. For example, if a villain shrinks the hero, 99% of readers don’t care that a shrunken human body couldn’t function because human cells are designed to function at a particular size. Similarly, most readers don’t need elaborate explanations for [...] […]
• Key traits of interesting jobs
  Many, perhaps most, real life jobs have a fairly narrow and specialized focus.  For example, most people of a company’s employees work for a particular department and newspaper reports usually focus on stories related to their section of the paper. In general, I’d recommend giving your heroes jobs that are more flexible because it [...] […]
• Please take our survey!
  Hello.  If you haven’t taken our survey yet, I would really appreciate if you gave us 10 minutes of your time.  That will help us get published.  You can take it by clicking here or by reading under the fold. […]
• Comic Book Tip of the Day: Use Motion in Your Covers
  In visual media, motion usually makes a scene more interesting.  It’s particularly important in a cover because you have to catch the reader’s eye. For example, let’s say we have two covers that use the world as a soccer ball. (The issue’s title is Americans Don’t Play Soccer, and the issue is about Darfurian genocide [...] […]