Writing for Women

Tips on Writing for Women
Resources for Writing for Women on the Web

Tips on Writing for Women

"Real writers understand that writing isn't about the writer. No matter how exciting or unusual our personal experiences, they don't matter if we can't broaden those incidents and make the universally appealing and practical." - Julie Scudder Dearyan, The Christian Communicator, July 2006

“My tip under writing for the women's market (or any fiction market, really, whether historical or contemporary) would be that the book has to be about the characters, not issues. This sounds simple enough, but I've seen writers, especially new ones, attempt to write a book highlighting an issue they're passionate about. They have an agenda and try padding a story around it rather than the other way around. Stories sell, characters with interesting lives appeal to every reader but issues by themselves do not. If a writer creates characters who are dealing with an issue (say, abortion, the state of the public school system, social issues, a health problem, etc.) then you can still get your issue 'out there' but it must be done through a compelling story with fascinating characters. Let the issue come out through the characters with a real story to tell rather than try forcing through a weak story so that all you see is the issue. I'm passionate about issues, too, but the best way to get anything across-from something as profound as our faith to something as mundane as the best way to cook a meal-is bound to be much more successful if it's told through the eyes of a character we fall in love with.” - Maureen Schmidgall - aka Maureen Lang, Pieces of Silver, Kregel Publications

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Resources for Writing for Women on the Web

The Story Circle Network

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