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The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » Common Questoins

Common Questoins

Writer’s Block Becomes Writer’s Talk

By Steve Laubeon February 3, 2025
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Seth Godin once wrote in a blog post:

No one ever gets talker’s block. No one wakes up in the morning, discovers he has nothing to say and sits quietly, for days or weeks, until the muse hits, until the moment is right, until all the craziness in his life has died down.

What a liberating concept! It reminded me of a great book by Joel Saltzman, If You Can Talk, You Can Write.

Of course, there are times when it feels like the well is dry and you have “nothing to say.” But that isn’t really true, is it? You can sit down with your spouse, your best friend, or your writers group and talk about your lack of inspiration. It may be that in that expression you can find the spark of creativity.

It is the same for writer’s block, if there is such a thing.

The key, of course, is to write something. Anything. Even if it is bad. Kevin J. Anderson suggests you should “dare to be bad and then fix it.”

Still don’t feel like you have anything to write? Just imagine a topic and think of what you would say if asked the question while sitting with a panel of experts. And then write your answer.

It would be interesting to hear what you do to get past any sort of “blockage” in your writing life. Please post your thoughts below.

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Category: Common Questoins, Craft, Creativity, The Writing Life, Writing CraftTag: Writers Block

Secrets of a Successful Author Aren’t Secret

By Dan Balowon December 12, 2024
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Because being a book author is more of a self-taught profession, those who are successful at it are often analyzed by aspiring authors to find out how they did it. Sometimes even asking, “What’s your secret?” If an author responds honestly, they will reveal that their pathway to success is not secret, nor does it contain shortcuts or easy-to-follow checklists. I remember watching a documentary …

Read moreSecrets of a Successful Author Aren’t Secret
Category: Book Business, Common Questoins, Get Published, The Writing Life

Why Does It Take Editors and Agents So Long to Read My Proposal?

By Steve Laubeon October 28, 2024
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Recently, a writer posted this question: I submitted a proposal to a publisher 6 months ago. The guidelines said that a response would be provided at the end of 4 months. At the end of 5 months I sent an email query to confirm that they had actually received the submission–still no response. Now I am at the end of 6 months.…Do I give up? I wish I had a magic wand to solve this problem for …

Read moreWhy Does It Take Editors and Agents So Long to Read My Proposal?
Category: Agency, Book Business, Book Proposals, Common QuestoinsTag: book proposals, Rejection

New Writer Lingo for a New Day

By Bob Hostetleron June 15, 2023
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If you’ve been writing (or hanging around with writers) for a while, you’ve probably seen or heard the abbreviation POV. It’s short for “point of view.” And WIP (“work in progress”), MC (“main character”), and perhaps even NaNoWriMo (“National Novel Writing Month,” which rolls around every November). But those, like many terms we writers use and abuse, have been around for a while. They’re kinda …

Read moreNew Writer Lingo for a New Day
Category: Career, Common Questoins, The Writing Life, Trends

4 Ways to Lose Me Quickly

By Bob Hostetleron June 22, 2022
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As a literary agent, I review a lot of book pitches. A lot. And, not to belabor the point, but a lot. Despite the overwhelming volume of submissions demanding my attention, I try to give each one a fair shake. Sure, if the recipient field of your email has a hundred email addresses in it, it makes it easier for me to say, “No thanks.” But, while that may be the quickest way to disinterest me, it …

Read more4 Ways to Lose Me Quickly
Category: Book Proposals, Common Questoins, Pitching

A Dozen Things to Do While You Wait

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon February 2, 2022
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Have you just submitted your New Year’s Resolution manuscript and now you’re waiting for a response? Do you feel adrift? Are you unsure what to do? Then it’s time to launch another ship! Years ago, I recall reading an article (probably in a writers magazine, and I apologize to the author and magazine for being unable to give proper citation now) suggesting that authors think of each project as a …

Read moreA Dozen Things to Do While You Wait
Category: Career, Common Questoins, The Writing Life

One Writer’s Beginnings

By Bob Hostetleron August 11, 2021
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I am asked often, “How’d you get your start as a writer?” The question has many possible answers. I usually say something like, “Well, I was raised as a reader and writer, more or less, in a family of readers and writers.” The first time I saw my name in print was in Highlights magazine when I was seven or eight years old; it wasn’t exactly a byline, but I knew I was a pretty big deal nonetheless. …

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Category: Career, Common Questoins, Personal, The Writing Life

What Goes on the Copyright Page?

By Steve Laubeon August 9, 2021
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I have an odd habit born of being in this industry for four decades. Whenever I pick up a physical book, I look at the front cover, back cover, and then the copyright page. I know, it’s a rather nerdy thing to do; but you would be surprised what information can be found there and what it means. The copyright page is placed after the title page and should always be on the left-hand side …

Read moreWhat Goes on the Copyright Page?
Category: Book Business, Common Questoins, Copyright Issues, Indie, Publishing A-Z

Preface, Foreword, Introduction. Oh My!

By Steve Laubeon July 26, 2021
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A reader asked, “What is the difference between a preface, a foreword, and an introduction? And do I need them all?” There so much publishing lingo used every day that we forget there was a time when we didn’t know what the words meant. It’s one reason I have a “Publishing Lingo” section in the back of the annual Christian Writers Market Guide. These three pieces of writing (preface, foreword, and …

Read morePreface, Foreword, Introduction. Oh My!
Category: Book Proposals, Common Questoins, Craft, Publishing A-Z

12 Steps to Publication

By Steve Laubeon August 10, 2020
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It takes 12 strikes to achieve a perfect game in bowling. (See last Friday’s video.) It made me think there are 12 things that need to happen in the publication process. Each must knock down all the pins to achieve publishing success. With that simplistic idea in mind, I came up with the following: Idea – A book has to start somewhere Write chapter – if not the whole book …

Read more12 Steps to Publication
Category: Book Proposals, Common Questoins, Editing, Get Published, Marketing, Pitching, Platform
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