10 Proven Ways to Jumpstart Your Writing Career

A few times a year, someone I know - a friend, cousin, neighbor, dental hygienist, etc. -  confesses they’d like to write a book. They mention how they've heard about my upcoming release, The Truth About 5th Grade, co-written by me and Mark Parisi (summer 2024, HarperCollins). 

by Mark Parisi

Or they mention my award-winning books with Chronicle or one of the writing classes I teach.  

All ask the big "H" question - “how”. How do you write books and/or have a successful writing career?

I love sharing goals and dreams with friends, so the question is a huge compliment!

My most recent email sounded like this: 

Hey Kim! I know you are a writer, correct? I am thinking of writing a true life story. Any pointers you can give me? How do I go about presenting to a publisher? Is it best that I get a writer to assist me in my story? Any help/guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Here’s my evolving answer. I hope the following information is useful to you, too:

I'm happy to hear you're interested in writing a book. Good for you to ask questions early! When I decided I wanted to write, I spent a year creating a 60,000 word novel. After I finished, I read a book on craft and talked to experienced writers—that’s when I discovered the one-million things I did wrong, haha—oh well! The best thing I did was sitting my butt in a chair and getting started. Here are my recommendations:

1. BIC (butt in chair). Have a goal of how many words a day you plan to write and do it (by the way, word count is where it's at; not page count). Set aside a time every day to write and commit to that schedule. For me, it is first thing in the morning. One of my friends writes at night after everyone has gone to bed. 

2. Join an Organization. Join a genre-specific organization and participate in activities and events. I write children's books, so I joined the SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators). There are many organizations. It might take a bit of research for you to find the right fit (Romance Writers of America; History Writers of America, Science Fiction Writers of America, etc.).

3. Connect with Other Writers. Research to see if anyone in your area hosts a writers connection event (a writer get-together). When I lived in Colorado, I co-hosted a Connect for SCBWI members who lived in Boulder area. The other co-host and I picked a topic and moderated a group discussion. We covered novel structure, character development, craft book discussions, goal setting, etc. Now that I live in Phoenix, and I co-host a Write Night.

4. Read: Find craft blogs and read, read, read. My blog is geared toward children's book writers and readers. I post book recommendations, interviews with agents and editors, and writing tips. I like the SCBWI blog by Alice Pope, and several others such as Deborah Halverson's Dear Editor. I also like Adventures in Children’s Publishing, and one by Nathan Brandsford.  In addition to blogs, read craft books like SAVE THE CAT by Blake Snyder, or WIRED FOR STORY by Lisa Cron, or SCENE AND STRUCTURE by Jack Bickham, or THE BREAKOUT NOVELIST: Craft and Strategies for Career Fiction Writers by Donald Mass, or Everybody Writes: Your New and Improved Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content by Ann Handley.

5. Find or form a critiquing group. This is crucial! It takes a village to write a great book—your village starts with your critique group. A good critique partner tells you about your glows and grows. I like the sandwich method—that's when you begin by talking about what you specifically like and what works well and even why you think it works well; next you discuss what needs work and why (in your opinion); lastly, close with something specific and positive. If you can't find an in-person critiquing group, there are many on-line forums.

6. Social Media. Find a social media forum that fits your style and “follow” a focused base of people who are experts, consumers, and also novices in your field—through them, you can stay on top of what is relevant—i.e. conference chatter, or when is the so-and-so book award coming out, or when is Dear Editor giving away a free critique, or what's the latest in Publishers Marketplace, or what did so-and-so say this time.

7. Subscribe. Consider a subscription to Writer's Digest, Poets & Writers, or Publishers Marketplace. Subscribe to the free email offered by Publishers Lunch.

8. Attend a conference. The knowledge you'll gain at a conference will close the learning gap quickly (craft, formatting, word count, looking professional, how to, and more). Also attend a writing workshop, one that is craft and feedback focused.

9. Podcasts. Listen to Grammar Girl podcasts and become familiar with The Punctuation Guide, then forgive yourself for how many things you get wrong (but fix them).

10. READ read and read. Reading is important to mention a second time! Be a good literary citizen. Good writers need to be avid readers first, especially in the genre they want to write. It is bananas to me when someone says they want to write a children's book, yet all they read are adult books. The best writers are readers first.

Good luck! I look forward to seeing your name listed under New York Times Bestsellers.

How to Frame Past Perfect Tense: a guest post by Will Limón

A brief word from Kim: I describe past perfect tense as the past of the past. Grammar Girl, Mignon Fogarty, says to write past perfect you use had + past participle. That's excellent information for a line or two, but a bunch of "had's" on a page gets cumbersome. I had to check in with my friends, Will Limón and David Deen, to learn how to introduce past perfect tense in the framework of a story.

Q: Will Limón, friend, critiquing partner, and go-to guy for the rules (other than David )...how the heck do you frame a situation in past perfect tense?

Will:  Here's my understanding of how past perfect works.

You're cooking along in a piece, using past tense consistently.

A character remembers an action that happened in that character's past, and you (the author) want to recount it within the story.

As you begin the character's memories, you use "had" two or three times to begin the past perfect frame. Then, you simply continue in regular past tense, dropping "had."

As you approach the end of the recounting, you pick up "had" again and use it two or three times in the last few sentences. That completes your past perfect frame.

 You continue on with your story, using past tense as before.

Here's a rather overwrought example off the top of my head. Let me know if it's clear for you.

A short excerpt by Will Limón for your past perfect entertainment privilege:

She sat down at her desk and opened the drawer. The ivory invitation stared her right in the face, its fancy letters mocking her like the echo of his voice.

“After all this time you're finally invited,” he had said. “I bet you won't go.” He had slumped onto the sofa, smirking, and daring her to fight.

She hadn’t looked at him. Instead she gazed out the window at the roses. They were just about to bloom. She stared hard as if the bursting buds were the only thing that mattered in the world.

“Well?” he said.

“Well, what?”

“Are you going?”

She turned away from the window and back to the room, avoiding his eyes. But she felt them. They pricked at her more sharply than the thorns on those rose stems. Something had to give. 

“I don’t know.”

He had laughed. Before he had the chance to say anything else, she’d had him thrown out.

She picked up the invitation and dropped it into the wastebasket. There, that's better. Much better.

David Deen, the Research King, recommends the following websites (just click on the link):

Writing Genre Fiction: A guide to Craft

Writing the Flashback in Fiction

Past Perfection at Writer's Relief Blog

Fantasy Fiction Cliche's to Avoid

National Grammar Day

It's a Grammar Free-a-Palooza!


In celebration of National Grammar Day, Grammar Girl is giving out free book samples galore! Feel free to forward them to all the grammar lovers (and to those who, er, need the help) in your life.

From Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

Chapter 1: Dirty Words ("Affect" versus "effect," "less" versus "fewer," "whose" versus "who's," etc.)

Chapter 3: Let's Get It Started (Can you start a sentence with "however," "hopefully," or "because"?)

Chapter 9: Work It (Tips on becoming a better writer)

From The Grammar Devotional

The first ENTIRE month of entries ("Supposedly" versus "supposably," "blond" versus "blonde," and 26 other grammar tidbits)