The Renegade Writer Blog

I’m a blog addict, but yikes, it can be hard to keep track of all my favorite places. Many moons ago I discovered Bloglines. Once I set up my (free!) account, I subscribed to all my favorite blogs and haunts, including the Post’s Page Six, Miss Snark, Chocolate and Zucchini, and Romenesko. One stop shopping [...]

Stephanie has published over 400 non-fiction pieces, including articles, interviews, essays, columns, profiles, features, and reviews.
Q. Can you tell us a bit about your writing career? How (and when) did you get started as a freelance writer?
A. I have been a freelance writer for about a decade now. I started out doing book reviews because [...]

There are some good tips over at the Never Eat Alone blog this a.m. about overcoming shyness in social situations. Like the author, I’m in the “dread going but glad I went” camp — even for stuff like vacations! I’m criminally shy at heart but over the years I’ve learned to work with my hermit [...]

Folks, July 1 is coming up fast, and we want to make sure you get your chance at 500 buckaroos and assorted swag by entering our publisher’s “Ultimate Renegade” Freelance Writer Contest.
Entering the contest costs nothing — well, except time. One “Ultimate Renegade” and two runners up will be chosen. The Ultimate Renegade will win:
* [...]

During my morning dose of snark, I learned that our friend Jenna’s site Absolute Write had been shuttered. Seems that one Barbara Bauer took offense being included in a list of the 20 worst literary agents on Absolute Write’s watercooler board.
Check out Bauer’s website here. The author matching form was especially humorous. Yeah, I’m [...]

Linda wrote a reported essay in a recent issue of Women’s Health about being a self-help junkie. I’m one, too, and have been one since I was a tot. (My mother claims she found my first list of personal goals when I was around six or seven. I’m sure many of the goals involved candy [...]

I’ve been getting so many inquiries from writers who missed the start date of my May 1 eight-week e-course on getting published in magazines that I’ve decided to start another session on Monday, June 5. I may be going on a week-long writing-related trip in mid-June, in which case I’d extend the course dates by [...]

**Update** Due to a family emergency, we’ve had to reschedule the chat. Keep an eye on our blog for the new date. Thanks! ***
On Wednesday, May 24, from 10 pm to 12 am ET, Diana and I will be the guest authors at The Writer’s Chatroom. Join us in the chatroom and ask your pressing [...]

Linda and I will be at Canyon Ranch in Lenox, MA, the weekend of June 9-10. Oy, this job sometimes — it’s going to be tough to wrench ourselves away from our computers so that we can spend the weekend conducting writing workshops at one of the best health spas in the world. Sigh. We’ll [...]

Here’s an excerpt from The Renegade Writer’s Query Letters That Rock, which is to be published in November:
QUESTION: Should I buy some query writing software to give me an edge?
ANSWER: Hey, we’re all about saving time when it comes to writing queries, so we checked out a Web site that sells “Instant Query Letter Software.” [...]