24Mar 2015 by Dianna L. Gunn

The first page of my novel — Care to critique?

Editing: The Hard Part, Novels
I was having a hard time coming up with a blog post for today, then I remembered that I haven't posted any of my personal fiction or poetry here in a long time. I debated sharing some of the background work I've done for the novel I'm editing right now, Moonshadow's Guardian--I've actually shared some of the work done on my main character--but then I had a brilliant thought: Every writer needs critique, preferably from writers with varying skills and experience. And my readers happen to be writers, all with different skills and experience levels. So today I'd like to ask you, my loyal readers, to critique the first page of the YA fantasy novel I'm editing right now in the comments below. If you want, I'll even critique the…
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25Sep 2014 by Dianna L. Gunn

What Nanowrimo 2014 will look like on The Dabbler

Blog Stuff
As you might have guessed from Tuesday's post, I've got some pretty big plans this Nanowrimo--for both myself and this blog. My goal for this blog is simple: I want to create the ultimate resource for anyone participating in Nanowrimo who needs some help along the way. I haven't chosen an actual word goal yet--I'm working on some outlines right now and I want to finish them before deciding how far I want to push myself--but I promise you, it will be massive. This is a big year for me, and I'm determined to make this Nanowrimo suitably grand. It might also be my last time aiming for a massive word count, at least for a few years. I really need to focus on editing, and it's hard to edit a…
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16Apr 2014 by Dianna L. Gunn

Getting your first guest post published

Blog Stuff, Writing
If you've never gotten a guest post published before, this week's article about a guest post strategy might have felt a little overwhelming. Once you've gotten the hang of it you'll find it's actually pretty easy to get yourself published on other people's blogs, as long as you have something valuable to say. In fact, the first three guest articles I pitched were all accepted by the first blogs I pitched them to, and that wasn't by chance. It's about getting the process right. Grab the list of blog post ideas you created on Monday. If you didn't, you should probably go do that. Like right now. Done? All right. Now pick a blog and a pitch idea and follow me. Prepare a query Most blogs want you to submit…
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13Dec 2013 by Dianna L. Gunn

Winter break

Blog Stuff
Christmas is almost upon us, and whether or not you celebrate the holiday itself, odds are that you have some vacation time coming up. For those of us caught in the daily grind of work or school, vacation time often means extra time for your writing projects. It's always a good idea to take one or two days completely off to relax your mind and spend time with family, but it's also a good idea to make the most of your vacation. After all, we all want more time to work on our writing, right? Personally I'm planning to use my vacation time to focus on book length projects. I'm almost finished my Nanowrimo novel now, but by the time January first hits I want to not only have finished…
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19Aug 2013 by Dianna L. Gunn

Focus in on what really matters

Blog Stuff, Novels, Short Fiction, Writing
As a writer with a limitless imagination and an interesting life, it's easy to get caught up in too many projects at once and to end up abandoning things you really want to work on. It's something I do all the time, and this summer I've done it yet again, and realized that I need to change course to truly create the future I want. When you know exactly what you want, it's tempting to try to force it all at once, but life doesn't work like that. You need to choose two or three projects to focus on at a time, no more. You might even want to try focusing on one project at a time depending on your schedule and the kind of person you are. I don't…
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22Jul 2013 by Dianna L. Gunn
Monetization

Monetization

Blog Stuff
Part of the transformation of Dianna's Writing Den into The Dabbler is creating a website that is more than just a blog. I'm changing my focus from actual freelance writing to website consultation, helping online business owners, freelance writers and authors recreate their websites and tighten their copy in order to become more successful, and there are several other changes I'd like to bring your attention to, some of which are still in the works. These changes can be applied to any blog to start bringing in a cash flow, and this list is a great place to start if you've been struggling to figure it out. Monetization Strategies 1. Ads. You'll notice two ads--one picture and one link--for the Blogelina writing courses in the sidebar, and at the very…
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20May 2013 by diannagunn

Happy Victoria Day!

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I'd like to wish all you lovely people--at least all you lovely Canadian people--a happy Victoria day. In keeping with my rules of productivity, I will be taking the day away from Dianna's Writing Den to work on other things: editing my novel and working on other long term projects. You might have noticed that I didn't manage to reach 400 subscribers in two weeks, but that's okay. When I do reach 400 subscribers, I'll still be hosting a massive giveaway. I am still working on my ebook, Ten Commandments of the Serious Writer, and I'm planning to release this when I hit 400 subscribers--with the very first copy being given away to one of you. Now, off to writing! Have a wonderful day, and thanks for being a loyal…
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06May 2013 by diannagunn

Three Hundred and Fifty… Two!

Blog Stuff
Today I was going to wrap up my series on disturbances in your writing, but then something very exciting happened: the number of people subscribed to Dianna's Writing Den reached three hundred and fifty. In fact, it reached three hundred and fifty-two. Usually I don't make a big deal of these markers, but three hundred and fifty seems like a really big deal. So today I'd like to say a few things about Dianna's Writing Den. The first is that I appreciate every single one of you, and that I'm thrilled to be forming such an amazing community of writers here at Dianna's Writing Den. I'm really proud of the work I do here and I'm glad to be helping all of you. I hope you'll stay with me on…
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14Jan 2013 by diannagunn

The Reality Blog Award

Blog Stuff, Writing
It would seem that my dear friend Matthew Kirshenblatt over at Mythic Bios has nominated me for the Reality award. I'd actually never heard about this award before, but it's pretty cool. Here's how it works: 1.) Visit the blog of the person who nominated you, thank them, and acknowledge them on *your* blog. 2.) Answer the five questions listed below and nominate up to 20 bloggers whom you feel deserve recognition. Visit their blog to let them know. 3.) Cut and paste the award to your wall. If you could change one thing, what would you change? If I could change one thing about the world, I would get rid of money and instead create a system where all the goods were distributed evenly and people were appreciated based…
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