I know there are a lot of debates whether it is right to plan a book, or write it with a flow of it's own, with no previous structure. But that is not my question ( nor one I think we can come to a reasonable 'end all' answer to ), my question is, when you sit down to write, do you have a specific goal in mind for what you want to acomplish during that session, or perhaps in this week, month, etc. I have recently started insisting on having some 3 hours a day to my writing, and when I sit down, I simply try to pick up where I left of yesterday in a general effort to "finish editing" that chapter, though that is a goal which strechees over multitude of days. I understand a more productive/effective approach would be to have a specific goal, but I don't think I am that far into my writing journey to know how much I can acomplish during a set time. The only real, but very loose goal I have is to finish editing by some February 2028 ( leap year goals haha). Do you have specific goals, or plans for when you write? What are they and do you manage to acomplish them? ( Mostly making this discussion for fun, and thought I might give us all a break from marketing posts )

Quick question for everyone here Which part of the writing process challenges you the most right now? A) Starting the manuscript B) Finishing it C) Editing & polishing D) Formatting & publishing E) Marketing & getting reviews I’m curious to see where most writers struggle.

Hi all! I was lucky enough to attend an Agent led event last night, discussing queries, pitches and the editing process. Here's a couple of (hopefully helpful) things that came out of the discussion: 1. Make your query letters as short and professional as you can. You might want to fill it with loads of lovely detail, but they find it refreshing and attractive when one is brief. 2. Lead with your "comp" books. Don't start by getting into the plot or characters, show that you know the market and have an idea of where your book sits by comparing it to successful, well regarded (recent if you can) books in that area. Then tease the plot in two or three sentences, then end on a question or note of suspense. 3. Don't bother trying to "hide" your genre. People are tempted to claim a different genre because they're worried their novel isn't currently marketable. The agent will know immediately when they start reading the sub, so why bother hiding it? 4. (In the UK) Avoid querying in March or October. The London and Frankfurt book fairs pull a lot of agents away from reading at those times. 5. Agents give EVERYTHING a read... But bear in mind they have existing clients and an inbox of up to 20 subs a day. They also then let some of us pitch to them and get live feedback (which was heartening and super useful), so do keep an eye out for similar events. Even if it's not stated, there might be a similar learning opportunity offered.

I had high hopes for this excellent idea to create a writers’ forum. But disappointingly your idea has provided yet another promotional platform. I guess that is what the authors’ ecosystem has become. Shame.

When editing a novel (say a document of 75,000 words ) do you prefer to edit on the screen or print out the entire thing and get busy with pencils and red pens?