Once upon a time…. Beginning a book is often fraught with a series of questions and decisions. How do you know if you have enough of an idea for a […]

A one-month online only class that offers hands-on help revising a manuscript. We will work on chunks at a time, with feedback and critiquing from New York Times bestselling author […]

Want your book to be more powerful? Do you want your characters to do more than just talk on the page? Join multi-published, best-selling author Shirley Jump for an interactive […]

If you’ve always dreamed of writing a book, stuck in the middle of the one you are working on, or looking for some structure and support for your current novel, […]

Scenes are the building blocks of your book, and sequels are the glue that bring those scenes together. The trouble is knowing how to create an effective sequel that keeps […]

Romance novels comprise nearly half the mass market paperback sales, according to Romance Writers of America. If you are interested in becoming a part of this happily ever after industry, […]

Capitalize on this technique marketing gurus have used for years to find the "thought not thought of yet" and avoid duplicating a plot line, character quirk or other idea already […]

This class covers the basics of Goal, Motivation, and Conflict, but also helps you develop a powerful plot that creates a strong, memorable novel. Participants will take an idea, or […]

Laugh and cry—or make your characters do it during this two-week intensive class on Upping Emotion. Learn how details can make a big difference between a scene that falls flat […]

Stuck on your plot? Trying to figure out unique twists for your story? This fun, interactive class, using three paper bags, gives you all kinds of ideas to apply to […]

Increasing the emotion in a novel is about a lot more than just adding a character death or a shocking family secret. Writers need to first create compelling characters who […]

Editors love books that are character driven and have layered plots. Learn how to create novels with plots created by the characters themselves, using Shirley Jump’s Brainmap Technique, giving a […]

For first-time authors, the biggest hurdle to selling is learning how to craft a book that is better than good. Good wins contests. Good gets requests for partials. Good sometimes […]

This hands-on class helps writers understand how POV works, which POV to use based on the book, characters, and their author goals, and how to take a blah POV and […]

This hands-on class helps writers understand how POV works, from the basics of knowing which POV you are in, to the more in-depth technique of using POV to build stronger […]

Are you struggling to increase the conflict and tension in your scenes? Is your book feeling flat, or editors and readers are saying there isn’t enough conflict? This interactive workshop […]

Back cover copy. Synopses. Query letters. They are all used to sell your books, to readers and to editors and agents. But they’re not the easiest things to write, not […]

A mini-version of the longer month-long Revision class. Online only class that offers hands-on help revising a manuscript. We will work on chunks at a time, with feedback and critiquing […]

How many times have you heard this…and not quite known how to do it? Or gotten this comment back in a critique? This most basic of writing concepts can also […]