I love regularly reading tips and advice articles in certain subjects — particularly writing and publishing. I don’t always need the information right then, but I know that it’ll eventually come in handy. Or at least, I hope it will.
I know there are a lot of other people out there who feel the same way I do, but sometimes it can be difficult to find every useful advice article that’s out there. So I thought I’d bring you a few.
Here are the tips and advice articles that jumped out at me the most over the past week.
1. Character Building: Using Quirks to Reveal Personality, from Jody Hedlund: There are many elements that can make a character memorable; quirks are one of them. And, if done correctly, quirks can do a wonderful job of revealing your character’s personality. Excerpt: “The key, I think, is to give our characters a quality that is admirable, likable, or somehow inspires empathy. Then we’ve got to show this positive attribute in a way that cements it in readers’ brains and leaves no doubt as to why they’re drawn to the hero.”
2. Four Bookish Phrases That Could Use Improvement, from Book Riot: This article is aimed more at book reviewers than at authors. And, to be honest, I’m probably guilty of using a few of them myself. Excerpt: “It’s not that these phrases are wrong, per se. It’s just that, with a little more effort, something much more meaningful could be said.”
And a bonus: 24 Insanely Clever Gifts For Book Lovers, from Buzzfeed: While some of these are a bit… odd, most of them are gifts that I would absolutely love to receive. I’d give you an excerpt for it, but this list is mostly pictures.
Miranda Burski 
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