Author Spotlight: Shanita Liu, Author of Dear Durga

Image of author Shanita Liu and the cover of her new book: Dear Durga

We are so excited to share an interview with one of our clients who has recently published her first book! We hope you’ll be inspired by her journey to share her lessons about courage with the world. So without further rambling (long intros are the worst, right?), let’s chat with Shanita Liu about Dear Durga: … Read more

A Tour of the Publishing World with Rob Kandell

publishing world

Ready to throw in the towel because you’ve received 3 rejections? 10? Kelly says not so fast. Take a listen to her conversation with teacher, coach, and lecturer Rob Kandell on his podcast Tuff Love. Kelly addresses the real reasons you should–or should not–write a book, how the publishing industry has changed since she got started 20+ … Read more

Approaching a Publisher: You Gotta Have One or the Other

Approaching a publisher

When I started KN Literary, I used to write, edit and coach most of our clients. But as we’ve grown, so have my responsibilities. There was a point about two years ago when I had to stop taking on long-term editorial and writing projects. Why? Because I spent most of my time on projects being … Read more

Three Signs that Writing Is Your Spiritual Path

spiritual path

If you’re anything like me, there’s a gift in the darkest season of the year. At the end of each year, I dive deep within and write myself a New Year’s letter. I look back over the previous year, the trials and triumphs. (The things I’m most proud of are often the quietest, the least … Read more

Good Bones: Crafting a Solid Book Structure

book structure

A great title, cover and concept are often enough to get a reader to pull your book off the shelf. But what keeps her reading until the every end, and gets her to recommend the book to friends? The answer is an amazing reading experience. One where the content of the book flows so seamlessly … Read more

Editorial Tip: How To Write Dialogue That Works

how to write dialogue

Writing dialogue seems like it would be so easy. We talk all the time, right? How hard could it be to just write it down? But it takes a little more than that to make dialogue seem real. Frequently, the dialogue we imagine for our characters sounds stilted or overly formal. That’s partly because, when … Read more

Is a Ghostwriter Right for You?

ghostwriter

One of the first things I learned when I first opened KN Literary arts is that the term “ghostwriter” has a realllllllly bad rep. I would be chatting with prospective clients, and the same publishing obstacles would come up: Not enough time to write a whole book or proposal Not confident in the writing process … Read more

The Importance of Loving Your Book Idea

book idea

So often we hear the phrase “write what you know.” I would take that a step further, to “write what you love.” Many times, a client will ask me to help her choose between multiple ideas. She’ll present me with the one she thinks she ought to write, the one that is more “commercially viable,” … Read more

14 Tips to Love Writing Again

love writing again

When we think of writing, we often think of the sexy parts. The inspiration of the muse! The poetic prose, flowing on the page! The readers whose lives are about to change! While all that’s well and good, the truth is there’s nothing sexy about the butt-in-chair time required to actually write that book. If … Read more

Three Really Good Reasons You’re Not Writing

not writing

Recently I was chatting with a new friend of mine, a teacher and leader in her field, about the fact that I help birth books for a living. She covered her face in her hands and said, in a muffled voice, “Oh dear. I’m supposed to be writing a book!” She was embarrassed to admit … Read more