Tag: writing

How to Set up an Author Table for Maximum Book Sales

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Guest Post by Dylan West

There are many benefits to selling books at in-person, local events, including finding repeat customers, gaining reviews, and selling more books in one day than you can sell in a whole month online! I’ve outlined some more benefits in a previous article: 8 Reasons Authors Should Sell Books at In-Person Events.

But here, I’ll share what I’ve learned from years of successfully selling books at markets, library fairs, and more. Knowing what to do, and just as importantly, what not to do, will ensure you actually make a profit. I’ll explain some vital tips like:

  1. How to select good events
  2. Simple tactics to sell books – inoffensively
  3. How to set up your table for maximum engagement
  4. What to bring
  5. Insider tips

How to Select good events

Ask other vendors or the even organizer what you can expect at their event. They won’t be offended and can give you an idea of the type of crowd to expect, and whether the event is worth your time.

High Traffic Events

The most important element to look for is high shopping traffic. If 10 people come to your event and you historically sell to 10% of the people you speak with, you might sell only 1 book at this event. If 500 people come to your event and you manage to speak to 100 of them, you might sell 10 books.

It’s most likely that the traffic will be high if you:

  1. Table up on a Saturday.
    Saturdays are the very best day for sales events, hands down. Friday evenings are the next best. Sundays are a gamble. Sometimes a Sunday can give you decent traffic and other times the event is a complete ghost town.
  2. Pick an event in a big/medium size city
    that is close to major highways and civilization. If you table up on a farm in the middle of nowhere in a town having a name you’ve never heard of and has a population of < 5,000, you probably shouldn’t expect much traffic, and you probably shouldn’t table up there, unless you know from experience that this event really does draw crowds. And don’t assume that just because a podunk venue draws a moderate crowd on a Saturday, you can expect a decent crowd on Sunday. Sometimes the switch to Sunday kills shopping traffic.
  3. Sell at established markets
    with known traffic instead of inviting friends to your own private book signing event. If you invite 20 people to a signing and only 5% actually show up (which is about the average), you might get 1 person to show up! Many authors end up with NO attendees and get discouraged. Unless you’re a big name author, or you invited over a hundred people, don’t do this! Sell at markets that you know get at least 500 shoppers.
  4. Choose a market that happens every week.
    These are the safest events, because the event organizers typically do much more advertising of the event and the crowds are usually bigger. I make one local farmers market the backbone of my in-person sales—I go every Saturday from 9a to 2p. I do other events on Friday nights/Saturday nights/Sunday afternoons when I find them in addition to my regular Saturday morning market.

Low or no vendor fee

Let’s assume each book you sell nets you $5 of profit and your table fee was $100 for your event. If you sold only 10 books, that nets you $50. After you pay your fee, you just lost $50 to be at that event. On the other hand, if your fee was only $20, you earned $30. If you did a free public library event, you earned all $50.

Organizer doesn’t require vendor insurance

I’ve heard of events that require this, and in many cases that insurance can cost thousands of dollars each year! Avoid those events. Pick ones that only ask you to sign a form saying you accept risk for your own wares.

Close to home

If you have to drive a few hours to the event and a few hours home, you will burn away all your profits in gas expenses. And if you travel far enough, you’ll want to stay at a motel if it’s a multi-day event. If you pay $50 in gas and $100 in hotel fees, plus a $50 table fee for 2 days, that’s a total expense of $200.

How many books would you have to sell just to break even? Assuming from before that you net $5 profit on each book sale, that means you have to sell 40 books that weekend. If you think you can sell at least 20 books each day, you might cover your table fee. If you can’t, then you will lose money.

Simple tactics to sell books – inoffensively

Call out to passersby

If you only smile and wave, the vast majority of people will breeze right past your table. You’d think these people would proactively approach your table because they came to the event to shop, but they have to be drawn over to you.

Often they have dozens of tables to choose from. Even people who love the genre you sell will fail to recognize your books with their very obvious genre-hinted cover art and your large-lettered signage.

What should you call out? I use a variety of lines:

  1. “Free chocolate! Calorie-free books!” while pointing to my candy dish and books
  2. “Science fiction and fantasy!”
  3. “Buy a book and get a free spouse! Erm… I mean a free bookmark!”
  4. “I’ve got chocolate, I’ve got books, I’ve got chocolate books!”
  5. “Free chocolate and dad jokes!”
  6. “You have a sci-fi reader in your family?”

Be funny and relaxed. Many will stop and chat because you got their attention. If you keep it silly and lighthearted, people are less likely to be annoyed that you’re hawking them.

Put your book in their hands

If someone stops and asks what your book is about, don’t answer verbally. Instead, put your paperback in their hands with the back cover facing up and say that the book description says it best. This does several important things:

  • The book has now become real to them. They can feel the texture and weight of it.
  • By reading your back blurb, they’re getting a sampling of your writing style. If you’ve written it well, you can impress them with your writing skill and intrigue them about the book.
  • If the blurb gets their attention, they will often start flipping through the book. And if your formatting is top-notch, they will see how professional the product is and their confidence in you goes way up. If you have interesting chapter titles, they may notice those and be drawn in further. They might even start reading the first page!

Every second they spend examining your book invests them further in it. Now they’re spending time. Once they’ve done that, they are more likely to spend money on it. This has now become an event.

While people are reading your blurb, you get to watch their face and see their visceral reaction to it. If their brows rise and their faces glow, your blurb is doing its job. If you never get such a response from dozens of visitors to your table, you know it’s time to rework your blurb.

While people are reading your blurb, you’re also freed up to call out to other people.

If you explain your book’s plot to each person who asks, your voice will get tired quickly. Especially if you have to shout over loud street musicians.

How to Set Up Your Table for Maximum Engagement

Location is Paramount

It doesn’t take much at all to discourage shoppers from approaching your table. They will never tell you the reason. It’s up to us as vendors to figure out what that obstacle is, and remove it.

If removal is possible. You might have to ask the event organizer if you can shift your table over a few feet to avoid something like a tree stump or a narrow part of a hallway, or to move you to a completely different spot along a street.

If you get to choose your table location, think carefully about possible traffic flow. For example, if your vendor area is divided into 3 columns of tables with 2 aisles, pick a spot on the right-hand column. Especially if that aisle is wider than the other! I learned this lesson the hard way at one of my library events:

Remove psychological barriers

Here’s a list of some I’ve discovered:

Distance

Move your table as close to the flow of foot traffic as you can. If visitors are walking in the middle of a street and your popup canopy is 7 feet away, most people will let their momentum drag them right past. And if your table is near the back of your canopy, such that visitors have to enter the canopy and walk a few feet inside to see your book covers, that’s too far.

It presents a subtle psych barrier that discourages all but the most determined visitors. And if you only talk to the most determined visitors, you will not sell many books at your event. I promise you.

Objects

At one event, I moved my table to the front of my canopy, but due to space constraints, one corner of my table butted up against a canopy pole. And my books were sitting on that end of the table. Could visitors easily avoid the pole? Sure. Did visitors let that pole deter them from approaching? Absolutely. Once I moved my books to the other end of the table, more visitors stopped to check them out.

Flooring

At an outdoor event, the ground was muddy from recent rain and I didn’t want someone dropping my books in the mud. So I laid down puzzle piece rubber waffle boards in a 9ft square and set my table on that. It jutted out a good 4 feet from the front of my table and I remembered thinking people might hesitate to approach for fear of tracking their muddy shoes on my clean waffle boards.

Guess what? The very first couple stood a few feet back from those boards and squinted. I immediately removed that layer of flooring and people started coming up to the table.

Turnaround Point

This is the worst obstacle of all. At one event, my table was near the end of a long street. There was nothing exciting at the very end of the street to draw people to walk the whole length. And so, for the first hour, most shoppers would walk to what I called “the turnaround point”.

About 2 tables away from mine, there was this spot on the road where I saw hundreds of people stop, squint down the road, decide they were at the end, turned around, and walked back the way they came. This was the most discouraging experience I’d ever had as a vendor.

At least until the shaved ice truck came and parked at the very end of the road! And then a street musician started strumming a guitar across from that. Then I had shoppers lining up in front of my table for shaved ice on a very cold day. And only then did I sell books.

Smart event organizers are aware of the turnaround effect and will place attractions at the end of hallways and streets to mitigate it.

Wide lanes

Similar to the point about distance, you want to try to avoid placing your table in a section of a path or street that is wider than the other sections. Shoppers will naturally tend to walk at the farthest point in the path from vendor tables, so if you pick a very wide section, shoppers may be too far away to see or hear you, and may feel the distance to be socially acceptable to ignore you from.

If you are able to relocate your table or move other structures (such as a friend’s tent or table) into the path across from you to narrow it down, you may turn a zero sale night into a big night.

What to Bring

Interactive Materials to Make Your Table Memorable

I bring the video game version of my debut novel for visitors to play:

This big monitor and the gaggle of kids and their laughter draw lots of people over (not to mention the parents). But you might not be able to create your own video game.

There are other gimmicks you can try: set up a gumball machine that dispenses slips of paper containing neat one-liners from your books, and make one of them a coupon for a free book. Or dress up in a costume related to your protag or villain. Just make it visually obvious that something about your table is different.

People should be able to say, “his table is the one with the [blank]!”

Ample Lighting

For outdoor, evening events during fall and winter, bring plenty of lighting, including hand lamps that visitors can hold up to your book. Don’t count on general area lighting and lights you string along the top of your canopy to provide enough light for reading your book’s back cover. At some events, they’ll ask you not to bring a popup canopy because it would block the lighting they provide and take up too much floor/ground space.

two tables

Always bring a small table along with your normal, big one. Sometimes events will let you in without prior notice or give you really juicy spots if you let them know you can fit your stuff on a 4ft by 2ft table and don’t need to use your 10ft by 10ft canopy. Some events promise to provide a table and chair for you. I always bring my own just in case they run out or there’s something about their table and chair I really don’t like.

a card reader

I recommend Square. The small reader is free with your account and the thing is durable—it can survive a trip through the washing machine! And don’t sign up for your account right away. Instead, ask another author who already has Square (like me!) to send you a referral email.

Only sign up with that referral and both you and the referring person enjoys a free $1000 of processing fees waived for 6 months, starting from your first card swipe. Just find a dedicated place to keep your square reader (not your pocket) so you don’t lose it and you don’t send it through the wash. Also, you must keep your smartphone charged in order to use the swiper (if you get the free swiper model, that is).

Make sure to ask about WiFi availability ahead of time!

Insider Tips

Chat with other author vendors

Ask them what other events they’re going to next. Be friendly to them—they just might end up inviting you to awesome events you didn’t know anything about. And they might offer to split their table with you. That lets you pay half the fee and gets you into events for which the submission deadline is long past.

I’ve gone to events that I heard about the day before! In order to capitalize on these last-minute event invites, try to keep your weekends open (if you don’t already have events scheduled, that is).

Sell at the last minute

When breaking down your setup, put your books away last. I can’t remember how many times I’ve sold books to passersby while I was packing away other things. One time I sold books after I’d broken down my entire setup because my backpack has a full sales kit in it, and I pulled books and a card swiper out from that.

At my farmer’s market on 10/12/2024, I sold 10 books after I started breaking down my table! All I did was look up for passersby, point to my books, and say, “I still have books out, if you’d like a look.”

Here’s what I’ve noticed: Many shoppers walking around after the official end of an event are happy when a vendor notices them and gives them something to shop for after all other vendors are closed. The last-minute nature can help nudge them to buy something. This is why I pack away my books last. I even bring down my tent and pack that away before I box up the books. I recommend you do the same.

The First Day of Events is the Most Important

If you sell at an event that lasts 2 or more days (of equal duration), and you can only show up on one of those days, pick day one.

Push for early sales on day one of multi-day events. Many shoppers may not feel any urgency to shop until later in that weekend. Always try to encourage them to buy sooner, because they may not return to you later like they promised! 

As the event wears on, you’ll start hearing shoppers say things like, “I’ve already spent all my money.” And what they really mean is, “I’ve already spent all my money on other vendors’ goods. You’re too late.” The younger the shopper, the truer this is.

My sales and marketing guide has WAY more content like this. Just email me at dylan.west@dylanwestauthor.com if you want me to share that google document with you for free!

Thanks and Book Appetit 🙂

About Dylan West

Dylan West writes faith-based, young adult science fiction and fantasy novels. He is a Jesus lover, web and video game developer, former Navy nuclear operator, foreign language nut, and a nut in general.

While other people are busy thinking normal thoughts, he’s crafting corny jokes. Dylan lives in Chesapeake, VA, with his wife and daughter.

You can play the related game that pairs with his first book, Scribes’ Descent, here: https://dylanwestauthor.com/demo.

8 Reasons Authors Should Sell Books at In-Person Events

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Guest Post by Dylan West

For authors struggling to sell a single book on Amazon in a whole month: how would you like to sell 10 to 20 of them in a single day? When you table up at a local sales event, that’s not hard to do. That’s just one reason to vend at regular, local events. Here are some more:

1. Brand awareness

if you hang a big, clear, beautifully designed banner at your table, you let passersby know that your business exists. Because I table up at a decent-sized event each Saturday, over 50,000 people see my books and banner every year.

2. Fan building

When shoppers walk by or visit my table, people take actions like:

  • Check out my books and ask me questions
  • Buy my books or sign up for my newsletter (often both)
  • Buy the related merchandise. If they buy my t-shirt, they may wear it, providing free advertising
  • Give me donations (sometimes large ones)

In-person events are the best way to increase word of mouth and gain further opportunities. Some people will:

  • Tell other passersby to check out my books and rave about how good they are – this happens to me quite a bit, and it’s driven lots of sales 🙂
  • Tell friends about my books. Some may even buy my book as a gift or haul their friend over to my table
  • Invite me to some other sales event or speaking engagement. One person invited me to speak at a local college, which paid me a $100 speaking fee and bought 3 of my books to display at the front of their campus library!

Seeing you in person will make people remember:

  • To finish the book they bought from me last year
  • To buy more books because they loved the first one
  • To sign up for my newsletter or read the newsletter articles I’ve been sending them
  • That my books exist – that’s a huge thing. If someone buys a book from you a few years ago, it’s easy for them to forget about you if they didn’t sub to your newsletter

3. Sales Practice

Nothing makes you better at sales than getting hundreds of sales opportunities each month. Each shopper that stops is a live-fire practice session.

4. Steady cash flow

The money I make at my sales events funds my next book. I don’t have to pay anything out of pocket after my initial investment. I use sales earnings to pay for book cover art, ISBNs, formatting, software, copyright filings, business licenses, author copies, web hosting, domain names, paid ads, and a lot more I’m forgetting.

5. Newsletter building

The best way to gain new newsletter subscribers is to collect emails from people who just bought your book(s). They are more likely to open and read your emails than people who signed up for a free novella and then unsubbed right after.

6. Fun

I could go on for hours about all the wacky and funny things I’ve experienced at farmers markets and comic cons while vending. I get to meet neat people, pet cute doggies, crack lots of corny jokes, hear corny jokes in return, see really interesting performers, hear live music, and have the thrill of making big sales.

And I have fans hunting me down at events when they learn that my newest book just came out!

7. Identity

Nothing reminds you that you are, in fact, a published author like going to regular sales events. Many indies who published a book long ago have almost forgotten that they are a published author and that they should be selling their books.

Going to in-person events makes your authorship more real than if you lob an e-book onto Amazon and do nothing more.

8. Reviews

You will get more reviews for your books if you table up at sales events. Especially if you remember to ask shoppers to leave a review!

Now that I’ve persuaded you to table up at local events, let me share some tips for how to run them so you actually sell books – based on my years of experience!

Read Part 2: How to Set up an Author Table for Maximum Book Sales

About Dylan West

Dylan West writes faith-based, young adult science fiction and fantasy novels. He is a Jesus lover, web and video game developer, former Navy nuclear operator, foreign language nut, and a nut in general.

While other people are busy thinking normal thoughts, he’s crafting corny jokes. Dylan lives in Chesapeake, VA, with his wife and daughter.

Please sign up for his newsletter to get the geekiest science research tidbits that go into the making of his books: https://dylanwestauthor.com/.

May Our Stories Pass the Test of Fire

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A Prayer by Rev. Rich Coffeen

Thank you Lord,

That you have given so many in our family a gift of creativity. We lay these gifts before you again. We know you will test all things on the last day. Some will be consumed, while others will be shown to be jewels. Some of what we create will survive in eternity. We ask that our creative labors, and our support of others labors, will have a meaningful impact for the kingdom of God. That is what we desire – to create something that you, our Creator, wants to preserve and keep. As we write, help us to ask ourselves honestly whether what we are crafting is something that will please you and have eternal value.

May it be so on that day, Lord Jesus Christ, the wisdom of God, the true Word.

1 Corinthians 3:10-15

“By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work. If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward. If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.”

About Rich Coffeen

Rich Coffeen is a PCA pastor in the North Chicago area, a classical educator, and former missionary to Japan. He is the author of Christian sci-fi books The Discipling of Mytra and City on a Sea. He and his wife share 7 beautiful children and 1 grandson!

Pursuing True Diversity in Fantasy Books

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Guest post by Izaic Yorks

Fantasy as a genre has long captured the imaginations of readers with its thrilling adventures and heroic narratives. But if you’ve spent any time in the trenches of Reddit, BookTok, or even Threads, you’ve likely come across a question echoing throughout the zeitgeist:

Does fantasy suffer from a lack of diversity?

That, however, is the wrong question.

At the heart of this conversation lies a more critical distinction. The real question we should be asking is:

What do we even mean by “diversity”?

Is it simply about including characters of various races and socioeconomic backgrounds? 

Or does true diversity dig deeper? 

This article explores that very question while offering insights into how diversity can (and should) transform the realm of fantasy. Along the way, you might come to love me, or you might come to hate me. But one thing you won’t accuse me of is being a vapid wanderer with nothing but clouds for thoughts.

What Does Diversity Mean in Fantasy?

When we think about diversity in fantasy, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? For many, in a culture increasingly unmoored from classical philosophical foundations, “diversity” is often reduced to outward traits: ethnicity, gender, or socioeconomic status.

And yes, those factors matter.

But they shouldn’t overshadow what truly makes stories vibrant and enduring: diversity of thought. Because a book, at its core, is a well assembled stream of consciousness. A meditation and confrontation with ideas.

Diversity in My Own Career

This subject is actually quite dear in my own author journey and not for the reasons you might suspect. Whenever diversity comes up, it’s often along the lines of: “Hey, Izaic, why don’t you mention you’re Black? That could really help spotlight you or bring money in the door.” Every time I hear that, it feels like an arrow to the heart.

Why? 

Because it screams the bigotry of low expectations. Ideas that stand the test of time are based on merit. To have mine judged by skin tone or assumed hardships might grant me a short‑term dopamine hit but, in the end, would leave me wondering: did I earn X or Y, or was that just the result of someone’s assumption about me?

So, over and over again, I have declined grants or invitations that hinge solely on my skin tone. At times it’s been hard and a challenge to the life of virtue. Undoubtedly I am leaving money on the table, but I have faith that I am more than the base materials of my physical body. What remains, and what is important, is the diversity of my mind and soul, which God made perfectly to His design.

Beyond Biometric Metrics

Reducing diversity to metrics like race, gender, or class oversimplifies a much richer and more vital conversation. Biometric diversity does not automatically guarantee depth or quality in storytelling.

True diversity emerges from exploring nuanced ideas, conflicting beliefs, and different cultural frameworks for understanding universal human experiences.

Imagine a world where fantasy novels challenge readers to see the world differently—to entertain new possibilities and reflect deeply on their own beliefs.

That is authentic diversity.

More Than Skin Deep

Reducing diversity to physical characteristics is a form of tokenism, where characters are included as symbolic gestures rather than meaningful contributors to the narrative.

Instead, let’s consider stories where ideas and beliefs are the defining elements of uniqueness.

For example, a Black author can skillfully craft a European medieval fantasy steeped in knights, castles, and folklore. Likewise, a White author can authentically write a story centered around urban Black youths navigating the challenges of Chicago through the lens of portal fantasy.

The richness of a story stems not from the biometric traits of its characters or creators, but from the depth and clarity of its ideas.

Biological factors ≠ Diversity.

They are merely a potential starting point from which diversity might emerge.

This is not to deny the importance of representation but to elevate the conversation.

Our ultimate goal as lovers of literature should be compelling storytelling that speaks to the human condition. As Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. famously said, what matters most is “the content of their character.”

For fantasy, this means content that challenges, inspires, and transports readers into the vast frontiers of imagination.

The Reader’s Role in Seeking True Diversity

Writers aren’t the only ones responsible for cultivating meaningful diversity. Readers play an equally crucial role in shaping demand for more thoughtful and expansive narratives.

When audiences seek out stories that offer fresh perspectives and complex characters, they help pave the way for a broader, richer literary landscape.

Supporting Authentic Storytelling

Here’s how readers can contribute:

  • Explore New Authors: Seek out voices from various cultural and social backgrounds. But celebrate them not for their skin or heritage—celebrate them for the merit of their thoughts and craft.
  • Foster Conversations: Discuss books with others. Unearth the deeper themes and perspectives within a story.
  • Prioritize Depth: Choose books that offer intricate world-building, moral complexity, and provocative ideas over ones that simply check superficial boxes.

By demanding authenticity and intellectual richness, readers uplift authors and help shape a publishing culture centered on excellence.

Raising the Next Generation of Readers

Creating a culture where diversity of thought thrives doesn’t happen overnight. It begins with nurturing a love for reading in young minds. Exposing children of all backgrounds to a range of high-quality, diverse literature helps expand their worldview and strengthens critical thinking.

How to Foster a Love for Diverse Literature:

  • Start Early: Introduce imaginative fantasy stories that stretch the mind and expose kids to different ideas.
  • Align with Values: Share stories that reflect your core values but don’t avoid those that challenge or stretch them.
  • Create a Rich Literary Environment: Fill homes or classrooms with books spanning genres, cultures, and philosophies.
  • Celebrate Curiosity: Encourage kids to ask hard questions about characters, themes, and conflicts.
  • Train for Excellence: Stop paying lip service to mediocrity. If you’re invested in the future of Black youth—or any youth—invest in their craft. Train them rigorously. Push them to be extraordinary.

A sustained effort to introduce children to rich, diverse storytelling shapes a generation that values both creativity and authenticity. Excellence is the only foundation that ensures diversity lasts beyond trends.

Building a Future of Excellence in Fantasy Literature

Fantasy offers endless room for exploration, creativity, and connection. But for the genre to thrive, it requires intentional effort from writers, readers, and publishers alike.

Christian authors, especially, have a unique opportunity to contribute by anchoring their work in faith and reflecting the boundless creativity of God’s design.

The future of fantasy doesn’t rest on superficial representation. It depends on cultivating excellence and allowing the diversity of ideas to compete in all aspects of storytelling.

And that journey begins now.

With you.

About Izaic Yorks

Yorks spent six years as a professional Track athlete, earning silver in the United States championships, among several other distinguishing awards. Now, he seeks his true passion for authoring fantasy works with a heart for virtues that chase the Good, True, and Beautiful.

​Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, Yorks is now happily lost in Hillsborough, living the small-town life and raising a growing family with his wife Courtney.

Check out his book!

Hi, I’m Caylah Coffeen, a freelance editor and marketer of sci-fi and fantasy books. I love reading and writing and am a follower of Jesus Christ.

I’ve worked for Monster Ivy Publishing and Eschler Editing, and am currently a weekly editor with Havok Publishing. Reach out to chat about books and publishing!

Thanks for stopping by my website! I hope you’ve found some helpful resources about reading, writing, and publishing. If you liked this article, here’s some more free content…

“Toxic Femininity” – Where “Strong Female Characters” Went Wrong

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By Caylah Coffeen

I recently picked up an epic fantasy book I had greatly anticipated reading – it promised unusual worldbuilding, an intricate plot, and a unique authorial voice. I didn’t make it through the first chapter.

In the opening, the main female character gets drunk, breaks into someone’s home to commit adultery, assaults the homeowner when he tries to stop her, and gets thrown in jail. When she wakes up, she bangs on the bars and yells at the guards to let her out, as though she’d done nothing wrong. A stranger, who greatly outranks her, bails her out and gets her acquitted because he wants to hire her. She struts out like she owns the place, doesn’t offer this man a single thank you, and instead mouths off at him, becoming offended that he expects her to work off her debt to him!

That’s when I stopped reading. I was astounded we were supposed to find this character likeable. Or even admire her defiant attitude and the gargantuan chip on her shoulder.

Unfortunately, this is the exact type of character readers can expect to see over and over again, advertised as a “strong female lead.”

I would use another word: cocksure. I’m sorry if you find that crass, but that’s the point – that’s exactly what these characters are.

The Double Standard

How is it that the word I’ve found to best describe these “strong female characters” has largely been used in the past to describe men being jerks? It’s pretty much the old word for “toxic masculinity!” If a male character acted the way these female characters do, that’s exactly what they’d be called! No, if they acted half so horribly, they would never have made it past a publisher’s slush pile. Instead, we would have seen acquisitions editors tweeting about how triggered they felt.

I’m glad that publishing has enacted a higher standard for male characters! So many male “heroes” in books do treat everyone around them terribly, break their word, kill and torture without remorse, look out only for themselves, emotionally abuse their friends, abandon their families, and drink, swear, and fight with impunity. It continues to horrify me that stories like Prince of Thorns were ever published, and I’m relieved that publishers would reject such books today.

But I don’t want to read about hubristic, “antihero” women any more than I want to read about sociopathic, egotistical men. So why is this behavior seen as not just acceptable, but “cool” when enacted by women?

It shouldn’t be, for two reasons. But before I get into why, let’s define our terms.

“Toxic” or “Sinful?”

I’m a Christian, and I’m fine with using the phrase “toxic masculinity” because men are sinners, and like all sinners, glorify their sin as right. The world’s version of a “strong man” is extremely different from God’s version, and yes, it’s often toxic. Greed, rape (jokes), idolatry, and violence are all sins that God condemns. In the Bible, the “men after his own heart,” are faithful, humble, selfless, obedient to his law, self-controlled, and gracious. This is “righteous masculinity,” nothing like the “locker room boasters” which our culture has seen as cool (in the past). And praise God for the men who seek to be made anew in such a way!

When women call out “toxic masculinity,” I feel a lot of compassion for people who are often coming from non-Christian households. They’ve never met a godly man in their life, and they don’t have the words to explain why their relationships feel so wrong. So they use terms given to them by mental health professionals.

However, I know that many modern* feminists also use the phrase “toxic masculinity” to assert that the idea of gender differences and the existence of masculinity are in themselves toxic. I reject that claim and do not use the phrase in such a way.

*Early feminists were wonderfully brave women who championed equal rights under the law and were almost all Christians, so please be careful if you’re tempted to make blanket denigrating statements about feminists. I encourage you to read about the different “waves” of feminism to understand how/when things went wrong.

Our culture also praises the sins of women, glorifying selfish, petty, greedy, cruel speech and actions as “subversive, bold, driven, audacious, or strong.” We could refer to this as “toxic femininity,” and indeed if we are going to call out sinful masculinity, then we should be willing to do the same for sinful versions of femininity.

Though perhaps it’d be much better if we dropped this phrase entirely, in favor of biblical language. The Bible uses different words than “toxic”:

Righteous or wicked
Godly or ungodly
Integrity or crookedness
Alive in Christ or dead in sin
The wise or the fools

What does Proverbs tell us about what it looks like to live a righteous life?

The righteous hate what is false, but the wicked make themselves a stench and bring shame on themselves.
The heart of the righteous weighs its answers, but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil.
The righteous detest the dishonest; the wicked detest the upright.

Proverbs 13:5, 15:28, 29:27

I yearn to read about main characters who are considered heroes because they are righteous, not because they are wicked!

How dare publishers act as though they’ve made a stand for morality, only to turn around and espouse those same evils when committed by people like themselves! And these new heroes aren’t even well written.

Most “Strong Female Characters” Are Badly Written

It wasn’t just a shift in culture that led to a decline in the “toxically masculine” character. Publishers just started pointing out that such characters are often badly written and make for flat stories. Which is true.

Contemporary female leads, like many stereotypical male leads in older books (prophesied farm boy), are often 2-dimensional, cut-and-pasted copies of each other. Handing a girl a sword doesn’t give her a personality, though apparently it gives the author an excuse not to develop one. The most noticeable things about them, aside from their superior talent and skills, are their entitlement, aggression, arrogance, and air of martyrdom. When the story starts, they are the universe’s gift to humanity, and when the story ends, they are the universe’s greater gift to humanity.

Readers see very little character development, with the exception of “healing” from whatever injustice the world has perpetrated against the main character. There are no personal flaws they need to face and overcome. Everything is someone else’s fault. This makes for extremely boring storytelling. It breaks the cardinal rule of character development.

Everyone who’s taken an intro to creative writing course knows the joke about “the frat boy who signed up to get an easy humanities credit”: The guy writes a story about a perfectly handsome, intelligent, desirable young man who breezes through all his problems and gets the girl who wrongly rejected him before. The professor has to explain that a good (and realistic) story needs flawed protagonists (not the same as morally grey) and problems that they can’t immediately overcome. This creates tension in the plot and spurs development in the character. Usually, the new writer resists, because their character is actually a self-insert and they feel personally attacked at the implication that they have flaws.

These points are no less true for female writers and female characters. In fact, these days male writers are much more likely to accept feedback when you tell them their character needs work – I know, I’ve worked with quite a few developing male writers. But female writers are likely to get up in arms if anyone criticizes how unrealistic or entitled their female characters are. Because these authors are often living out their dreams of being able to get away with literal crime, say whatever they want to the men in their life, and be respected and taken seriously for it.

And, predictably, the characters and plot of these stories suffer for it. Yet publishers will ignore these obvious problems when they’re seen in female characters, because they too are fantasizing about walking around like god and being worshiped for it – as all sinful humans do.

Which brings me to the second reason why we should reject “toxic femininity” – the glorification of unrighteous women – in books.

Bad Ideology, Bad Examples

The version of femininity which is portrayed in so many of these stories is not something I want to embody. I don’t find these women strong. They are not good role models. Most of them are angry, bitter, self-absorbed individuals who hate authority, are isolated from healthy community and family, and listen to no one but themselves. They are unrighteous and thoroughly broken.

These characters embody everything that women have called out as wrong in male behavior. At least modern feminists have gotten more honest. Their actual message is, “men shouldn’t play god, but women are god.” I suppose these books sell because fallen people do relate to this desire. I don’t know why anyone is shocked – this is the oldest sin there is.

“You will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Yours truthlessly,
Satan

That’s the message publishers are selling to girls: “you can be like god.” Girls down these books like cheap shots, craving temporary gratification in place of the answer that will truly quench their thirst. Such stories can never satisfy, because they run in direct opposition to the Great Story, which tells of a plain, humble, kind man doing what is right and vanquishing evil at great cost to himself, for the sake of others.

This doesn’t mean I only want to read stories about knights saving damsels in distress from dragons, though the trope is justifiably iconic (pun intended)! This is one major reason why I personally prefer reading about male mc’s.

But I do want Queens who save their kingdom from evil. Yes, give me heroines running around in capes and busting out martial arts moves. I need to read stories about female strategists, inventors, explorers, and more. AND I want to read stories about mothers, sisters, shy girls, bookworms, wives, and any other profession out there.

SO LONG as all these women first and foremost embody integrity, kindness, faithfulness, humility, goodness, and other signs of godly character. So long as her flaws and mistakes are actually portrayed as problematic and she actively wrestles to overcome them!

We have beautiful examples to guide us!

Noah’s wife cared for her family through the ending of the world, Abigail defied her wicked husband, Ruth braved the wilderness and poverty for love, Esther faced the emperor of the known world head on, Mary encountered an eldritch creature with who knows how many eyeballs and sang for joy. Jael and the woman of Thebez smashed open the heads of villains with household implements!

The woman of Thebez wields her deadly millstone

These are strong women, brave women, faithful women – women after God’s own heart.

Don’t believe the world’s picture of femininity. It is toxic. It is the way that leads to death. I urge you not to write self-absorbed, 2D, arrogant female OR male characters, but to look at the truth of God’s word and write stories that would please him and better teach us how to hear his story.

P.S. If anyone wants to make a biblical argument in favor of the descriptor “toxic,” I’m all ears (Matt 16:6). After all, a little Axe body spray goes a long way. 😉

Hi, I’m Caylah Coffeen, a freelance editor and marketer of sci-fi and fantasy books. I love reading and writing and am a follower of Jesus Christ.

I’ve worked for Monster Ivy Publishing and Eschler Editing, and am currently a weekly editor with Havok Publishing. Reach out to chat about books and publishing!

Thanks for stopping by my website! I hope you’ve found some helpful resources about reading, writing, and publishing. If you liked this article, here’s some more free content…

Interview with Jeremiah Friedli – Debut Author of Christian Sci-Fi Novel CORE Deception

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By Caylah Coffeen

CC: Thanks for joining me Jeremiah, and congrats on your debut novel! Tell us about it!

JF: Thanks, and I appreciate you inviting me to join today! Here’s what you’ll find in my novel CORE Deception:

A tyrannical government, a cryptic letter, a devious hacker…

In a world where the government’s CORE systems see and track everyone, seventeen-year-old hacker Seth Alvarez is determined to save his sister from being placed in a reeducation facility. Armed with a cryptic letter, Seth embarks on a search for the valuable incognito devices—cyber master keys that can set his sister free. But with only three weeks remaining, he finds himself wedged between two powerful forces who will stop at nothing to get the devices first.

CC: That sounds exciting! I love books about siblings (I have 6 myself!). And congrats on making it to the finalist stage in the debut category at the 2025 Realm Makers Awards! What do you love most about this story and what are you hoping readers will connect with?

JF: I love stories of espionage, undercover, and page-turning suspense. I also like some level of technology. A dystopian setting offers the perfect venue for teen characters to get into these activities. If you love clean YA read that keeps you turning pages, stories of underdogs standing up to dystopian governments, and plots filled with intrigue and suspense, CORE Deception is for you.

Take codes and ciphers for example. I’d read about them in true spy accounts and liked the idea of incorporating them into the CORE Series. As I learned more so I could write about them correctly, I really enjoyed codes and ciphers. In fact, they play key roles in CORE Deception and its prequel novella Association. I even created a Code and Cipher Guide to go along with my books.

Another reason I like CORE Deception is the primary thematic element, which grew out of 2020 when I faced fears I didn’t know I had. I’ve struggled with fear of acceptance, fear of failure, and fear of incompetence before—to name a few fears. But this was new to me. It was fear that dominated my thinking and tried to control my actions. (And really, doesn’t all fear do that?)

Something told me this wasn’t right—more like Someone. As a Christian, I shouldn’t fear like that, not if I believe the Bible. After all, our future is secure, no matter what happens to us physically. And as Christ-followers, we have more hope than anyone else.

So why was this fear so strong? Later I came across a quote by Max Lucado from his book Fearless. He put it really well: “Fear, at its center, is a perceived loss of control.”

That was me. It felt like I’d lost control of almost every aspect of normal life. Not that I had control in the first place. And that was the foundational deception of my fear. Experiencing this it was painful because it forced me to face a reality—I wasn’t trusting God like I thought I was, like I wanted to think I was. But as painful as that was, it was a gift, growing me as a Christian. And I soon incorporated it into CORE Deception.

CC: That’s such a powerful way to put it. I’ve certainly struggled with that. It’s easy to “trust” God when everything is going well. How else has your faith shaped this story? Could you share what “Christian sci-fi” means to you?

JF: Faith should shape everything Christ’s followers do and think. It’s easier said than done, but that’s what I try to do, including with my writing. This doesn’t mean there’s a Bible verse on every page, but it does mean my writing should reflect a Christian worldview and be done for Christ’s glory.

This reminds me of a pivotal point years ago. I’d been writing it since I was a kid, mainly for enjoyment but with the possibility of publishing eventually. I sensed a challenge from the Lord regarding my time used in writing. If I was going to spend time on it, I should use it for His glory and not just my personal enjoyment. Yes, I want to write engaging stories that whisk readers away into an amazing world of fiction, but I also sensed the call to use my stories to “lay up treasure in heaven” (Matthew 6:20). That includes reflecting biblical worldview and weaving in themes that inspire courageous living for God, regardless of the genre.

I like to think of Christian sci-fi—really any genre—as stories written from a biblical worldview. The Bible should always be the foundation and guide for creators and readers. As 2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells us, God’s word is sufficient for all areas of life.

CC: Amen! What did you most enjoy about writing your book? What was most challenging?

JF: I absolutely love the phase of writing when the spark of an idea grows into something bigger. It’s that phase when I’m exploring characters or a storyworld (or both!), ideas explode, and it seems anything is possible. It’s like receiving a fascinating new toy on Christmas Day—I’m just so excited to play with this new idea and see what it can do! With CORE Deception, it didn’t take long to realize I had enough for more than one novel.

But for all those loose ideas to form a cohesive story, I eventually had to put it into a framework (either before or after writing the first draft). The phase of structuring everything, making my setting consistent, and refining character arcs posed one of my greatest challenges. I’ve polished words before and cranked out many drafts over the years, but pushing a novel through developmental edits (making all the large pieces work) wasn’t something I’d done before and was harder than anticipated. But the story is so much better for it.

CC: Worldbuilding is definitely the fun part! Actually sitting down and writing takes so much discipline! How long have you been writing and how did God guide you into this career?

JF: One of my first stories was a one-of-a-kind picture book I wrote and illustrated myself as a kid. It was four pages long with a grand total of seven sentences (if you include “the end”), put together with construction paper, masking tape, and staples. [optional: insert picture below] The name was Twenty Door Bells. A real page-turner, huh? You can tell I was using cutting edge print-on-demand technology too. But you can see my imagination was already at work.

Mostly, I only wrote creatively when it was required for school. But somewhere along the way, I found I liked crafting stories. Sometimes it was because my siblings were writing stories. Later, it’s more likely that I ran out of stories to read, and so I decided to write my own. I enjoyed it so much I kind of became an overachiever with writing assignments.

For example…

Assignment: 5 pages of fanciful fiction

Completed Project: 39-page story of animals in a medieval kingdom, complete with intrigue and major battle scenes.

Assignment: Short story with dialogue (short, as in, only a few pages)

Completed Project: 35-page mystery with black-cloaked thugs and a pie fight, among other things.

Soon I was writing even when there wasn’t any assignment—short stories, poems, novellas, novels—and sharing them with my family and friends.

I got into westerns, action, mystery, humor, sci-fi, fanciful, fantasy, retellings, and even an interactive mystery-thriller. I did flash fiction, short stories, novelettes, novellas, short novels, novels. Having siblings who wrote helped a lot, offering camaraderie and some friendly competition. I have terrific memories cowriting with my brothers and sisters. Also, it was huge that my mom (and homeschool teacher) fostered creativity.

As time went on, I sensed God calling me to do more with my creative writing, as I mentioned above.

CC: Haha, I love your enthusiasm! And that your mom kept your first story! How would you describe your writing style and how has it evolved since those early stories? Do you have any advice for writers as they try to develop a unique style?

JF: I love stories with high suspense, action, and thriller pacing. I think a lot of teen guys would agree. When I read books in that genre, I’m able to detect a general style, especially for action and suspense scenes.

But when it comes to developing my own style, I’ve largely followed James Scott Bell’s advice on the subject. Keep in mind, both he and I write for the commercial fiction market, not literary or what your high school English teacher taught you. In Revision and Self-Editing for Publication, Bell says, “It’s best to allow voice and style to emerge naturally in the telling of your tale. Attend to the fundamentals of the craft, and voice and style will seem organic. That’s your goal.”

Put another way, don’t think too hard about style. As you write more and more, you’ll naturally develop one of your own. But if you concentrate too much on style, you risk awkward, unnatural prose that jars the reader.

CC: That’s a good point. Sometimes writers can over-plan, rather than letting things develop organically. What was your journey to publication like? Why did you pick the route you did and what kind of challenges did you face along the way?

JF: As mentioned, at some point I pivoted from writing for fun to writing intentionally, like for the purpose of publication. I dedicated myself to the craft of writing and eventually started looking for publishers and agents. But eventually, I didn’t sense any major publisher’s interest in my writing. While a small publishing house might have been, I felt like I’d be doing much of the same work as independently publishing—an idea I gradually liked more and more.

More significantly, as time went on I realized that I would really like to have a say in the final book product. I sensed that God wanted me to influence the story, the editing, the cover, the marketing, and so on. The catch is, I had to learn at least some about all those areas. For example, I knew I should outsource my cover design, but that still requires I understand the norms for covers in my sub-genre and can create a design brief for the designer.

Pragmatically, indie publishing works well in the book industry today. There’s definitely a learning curve if you’re going to do it well, but it’s easier than ever for an author to tackle areas like typesetting and selling directly from their website. And I’ve found I enjoyed the business and marketing parts of writing a lot more than I anticipated.

CC: That must be a relief! It’d be so hard to stick with it if you hated the business and marketing like a lot of authors do!
There has been discussion lately of how few young adult books feature male main characters (outside romance plots). Indeed, it seems like major publishers aren’t interested in these types of stories. Why do you think this is? Are you hoping to reach boys and young men in particular, and how do you hope your book can accomplish this?

JF: Yes, I write for teen guys. Perhaps because as a teen guy, I had a hard time finding books I enjoyed. Thankfully, I did find some, and that’s probably why I ended up writing YA! But more importantly, that’s the genre I sense God calling me to. I still have a lot to learn here, so I’m always eager for resources that help me do this.

It’s no secret to those in the book industry that guys don’t read/buy as many books as girls.

If you look at what the large publishers are producing, the same disparity seems to exist in the young adult genre. Not that there’s anything inherently wrong with that. My guess is they’re publishing what sells. To an extent, it’s a chicken or the egg situation—since not a lot of guys read, few new books get published for them, which leads to fewer guys reading and therefore publishers creating fewer books for that diminishing readership.

Some blame the gaming industry for drawing guys away from books, but my counter to that is “what is it about those games that connect with guys?” There are a number of independently published authors who have figured out how to produce stories guys love and are filling the void left by the larger publishers. Because plenty of young men do like to read, even if they’re not looking for reading material in the same places other people are.

This is a big topic, and this excellent discussion on the Christian Publishing Show is a good next stop.

CC: Thank you! That’s a valuable perspective. What’s next for you as an author?

JF: I’m well into the planning phase of CORE Deception‘s sequel. Readers can expect more suspense and espionage while exploring new facets of the CORE Series storyworld and digging deeper into characters like Seth, Krystin, and Jhalak. The next title and plot are a secret right now, though I’m feeding some insider snippets to those subscribed to my emails. Here’s a teaser for the sequel:

A relentless pursuer.
An unpredictable ally.
The opportunity of a lifetime.

Can seventeen-year-old hacker Seth Alvarez survive a daring undercover mission that could change the course of a nation…or destroy everything he’s even known and loved?

After a third novel in the CORE Series, I’m praying about what to write. Several ideas are pushing their way to the front of the line, and it’s too early to say which one will win out. It could be another sci-fi, a modern thriller, kingdom adventure—you get the idea.

CC: Thanks Jeremiah, I look forward to it! And best of luck in the next stage of judging at the 2025 Realm Makers competition!

JF: Thanks so much for allowing me to join the discussion today!

About Jeremiah Friedli

Author of the 2025 Realm Awards Finalist CORE Deception, Jeremiah Friedli is a homeschool graduate, lifelong writer, ice cream lover, and native Texan. He enjoys getting out in God’s creation, whether that’s hiking, camping, running, or just reading quietly on the porch. Otherwise, you might find him seated behind a large screen with one of his beloved spreadsheets or watching a movie with his family. Learn more and connect with him at jeremiahfriedli.com.

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Hi, I’m Caylah Coffeen, a freelance editor and marketer of sci-fi and fantasy books. I love reading and writing and am a follower of Jesus Christ.

I’ve worked for Monster Ivy Publishing and Eschler Editing, and am currently a weekly editor with Havok Publishing. Reach out to chat about books and publishing!

Thanks for stopping by my website! I hope you’ve found some helpful resources about reading, writing, and publishing. If you liked this article, here’s some more free content…

23 Author Moms Share Tips For How to Write a Book While Parenting

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Being an author is a super difficult journey, and so is being a mom! So how can we do both (and well)? I’m not a mother myself (yet!), but I just spent a precious 2 weeks with my newborn nephew, and have been pondering what my future will look like.

So I reached out to over 20 writer moms to hear how they parent and write at the same time! They offered some specific wisdom, compassion, and anecdotes which I wanted to share with you too. Be sure to check out their books or social pages to support author moms!

Dedicated to my dear friend Stephy (who is an adorable mom!): I know you’ll publish your stories one day! I’m rooting for you!

  1. Be gracious to yourself
  2. Dedicate yourself fully to each season in your life
  3. Write while the kids are in bed
  4. Stick to a schedule
  5. Multitask (“drive-by writing”)
  6. Surround yourself with supportive people
  7. Try dictation
  8. Have a backup plan
  9. Include your kids
  10. Take a break from the kids
  11. Take care of yourself
  12. Your stories still matter!

Be Gracious to Yourself (God Sure is)!

“Just rethink what counts as writing, honestly. Absorbing fiction books to store away ideas for later is writing. Reading craft books is writing. Having a newborn is exhausting and time consuming, and a huge learning curve. Be kind to yourself, and remember this is only a season, it will be over way too soon. Also remember that your fellow writers understand. Nobody is expecting a new mom to publish anything right away.”

H. Halverstadt

“This is a verse that came to me back in fall 2023, while I was writing one of my novels. Rev 21:5: “He who was seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new!’ Then he said, ‘Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.'” God renews us. He makes everything new. That meant even on my weariest and most stressful of days, he could still do things with me and my writing. So that’s a verse that has given me incredible hope.”

Christina Kuhn

Dedicate Yourself Fully to Each Season in Your Life

“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to search and a time to give up, a time to be silent and a time to speak.”

Ecclesiastes 3

“I wrapped my identity a little around being a writer as a young woman, but marrying a Marine, having a kid, moving around out of my “safety net” of being close to family so I often had to do things alone… I took a very long break. But when it was time to get started again, when the season was right, and I was just like, “Okay, now,” it rose to meet me. Sometimes we’re not in the season we want or we want it all at once. It’s good to embrace the pauses as well as the progress.”

H.L. Burke

“Invest in your family and marriage. Writing will always be there, but your kids will not. You don’t want to miss out on your little ones growing up, or even worse, your kids believing that writing took you away from them. Find balance. Write during naps, early mornings, or after bed. Limit your words to 500 a day so you can be present with your family. Put off publishing until they are older (I did this).

And don’t forget your spouse. If you want a thriving marriage, don’t put your spouse on the back burner. The worst thing is to achieve all you desired as a writer, only to look around and realize you’re alone. Yes, some sacrifices must be made to become a writer. Don’t let your family be one of them.”

Morgan L. Busse

“I keep telling myself this is a season, and someday I will have more time to write again. Right now, my babies need me more than I need to write, so for now, I am content with that. But I keep writing down ideas and brainstorming and daydreaming and hope that in those moments of writing, no matter how few and far between or close together, that all the mental plotting will pay off as I get words on the page.”

Julie Harbinson

“I have three kids aged 3 and under and I’m still figuring this out. It’s helped me to become okay with being in a season where I don’t write much if at all sometimes. Right now, I write for joy when I can. Lately it’s worked really well to get up early, have my coffee and read the Bible, and then write until the kids wake up.”

Rosemary Johnson

Write When the Kids are in Bed!

“For me, I usually post social media posts before my girls wake up in the morning (I usually don’t get up that much earlier, but it helps me feel productive as a writer first thing). I have a 5.5 and a 2 year old, so my oldest does go to school for half days. When she is at school and my youngest naps, I use that time to write or edit (if im lucky that’s 2 hours every afternoon). Then my girls go to bed at 7pm, so I usually try my best to write or read every evening (usually another 2ish hours).

On the weekends, my husband and I take turns being productive/watching the girls so the other can have a longer period to be productive. I usually try not to work on writing or author stuff while my girls are awake. That’s a personal decision tho haha and it changes and depends on the age of your babies. I get a ton of writing done with a newborn, but I know that’s not the same for others haha.”

Taylor Pence

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.

Ecc 9:10

“I’m going to come back and edit this comment once I’m done cooking dinner, lol!
EDIT: I am finally back (made/cleaned up dinner, chasing kids, getting ice cream with my bro who is in town for work, and feeding a baby…phew!).

I have two kiddos, one is 2.5, the other is almost 4 months. It’s hard to get anything done. My toddler likes to follow me everywhere, and while my baby is amazing, she is still a baby. I don’t know that I have any of this figured out yet, but right now, I typically write at night once they’re in bed, so my writing time can range from 10 min – 2 hours depending on how tired I am. It’s very slow going right now, but I’m trying to get back into typing on my phone while putting the baby to sleep.”

Julie Harbison

“Do you see someone skilled in their work? They will serve before kings; they will not serve before officials of low rank.”

Proverbs 22:29

Stick to a Schedule!

“I’m a homeschooling mom of three kids, ages 12, 8, and 3. I’ll be fully honest. It was pretty overwhelming to be pregnant or dealing with a younger baby and write at the same time, so I took a lot of breaks during those seasons. Otherwise, my older kids would buddy up to play outside, and I wrote while my youngest napped. I keep my kids on a routine/schedule so that they sleep roughly about the same time every night. This allows me to do at least 1-1.5 hours of writing/editing every morning before anyone else is up.

I used to live near my parents, who could provide childcare, and that allowed me to get even more writing done. But now that I’ve moved across the country, my writing time is pretty scarce. All the more critical that I stay on my schedule.”

Christina Kuhn

“For me, early mornings are non-negotiable if I want to get anything done. I go to bed early and get up around 4:30 or so. I struggle with brief sprints, so I really treasure having a solid 1.5 hours or so to sit and focus on writing. I can get a decent amount done, and it makes me feel so “free” throughout the rest of my crazy mom/homeschooling day.

Proverbs 31 is a great chapter to look at for moms who are also writers! We can be industrious while still taking care of our homes and families. It can be tough to balance, but I’m thankful Scripture makes it clear that it’s possible to do both well.”

Kendra Warden

“She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come.”

Proverbs 31:25

Multitask or “Drive-By Writing”

“Our dining room was in the exact center of the house. I put my laptop on the table and made a rule for myself that I had to write 1 sentence every time I passed it. That got me to my 1000 words a day goal and I never stopped to work for more than a minute or two.”

E. A. Comiskey

“I first started writing seriously again when I had a nine month old and a 4 year old. Now they’re 17 and 14 and … usually are ignoring me. I basically just wrote whenever I could. As they got a little older, were sleeping through the night, and had a said bedtime, I’d usually put them to bed at 8 and then write for an hour every night. I also wrote waiting for their gymnastics class to end, in doctor’s waiting rooms, on park benches… You just have to grab the time you’re given and go for it.”

Heidi Lyn Burke

“lol I do drive-by writing. I usually have google docs open on my phone and will work on a scene through the day. Most of my writing time is with kids on me or near me. I usually keep my goals low at around 500-1000 words a day. It all adds up.”

Cara Ruegg

“I do drive-by writing! My kids are older (8+), but my laptop and charger live on the counter. If I can squeeze in 15 minutes a few times a day while they’re awake, I call it a success. After food and conversation works best! That goes for all ages.”

Stacey Yaroszeufski

“I did a lot of world building and brainstorming while doing dishes. Especially when listening to inspiring music. 🥰 And while nursing I’d read, critique, chat with other writers, or check social media on my phone. And once the kids were in bed I’d sit with my laptop and type, next to my husband while he played video games or watched a show.”

Elle Wither

“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

Phil 4:8

“I always keep notes on my phone whenever the muse strikes so that when I do get to my writing time, I’ve got a list of ideas ready to go. I find I get more done in short focused bursts than when I have a whole day to write. I’m more creative when I’m forced to do it quickly. Driving time is also great to think through scenes or identify plot holes.”

A.E. Dinsmoor

Surround Yourself with Supportive People

“I have a 14, 11, and 9 year old at home, and most of my writing these days is done on my weekly writing nights with RJ Conte—basically we do word sprints for an hour or two and check in with each other to share word counts and snippets of what we’ve written. At the end of the evening we call and read each other what we wrote (if we feel ready to share it). It’s the best!! Doing it once a week is very low pressure but I still get some consistent (slow) progress on projects, and sometimes it gets my momentum going so that I want to keep working on it for days afterward!

I’m by no means a full-time writer. I consider myself more of an artist-hobbyist. But I’m glad to keep creating anyway—I couldn’t create as much as I do without supportive friends! 🥰 So my advice is to pick a consistent day/time and have an accountability partner or two to team up with. It’s satisfying to at least have some progress each week even in the middle of busy parenting and work!”

Bethany A. Jennings

“My husband is very supportive of me and helps so much! Find a couple good friends to cheer you on and champion you. It makes a world of difference.”

A.E. Dinsmoor

“I rely on my husband or outside help like occasionally my mom or one of my brothers to take the kids so I can get more time. I’m lucky that my husband works from home 7-3 and gets the full government parental leave offered here in Canada. Things are a bit hectic right now with a newborn and three other little kids but I fully anticipate lots of writing time later on over the course of his leave.”

Selina de Luca

Try Dictation (Voice to Text)

“Out of desperation I tried something totally different. Voice to text has been a big help. Then I take 10 to 15 minutes at night to organize it into sections, but I’m still in the planning stage. I have the story outlined, specific dialogue for important scenes, extensive world building, and character sketches. I should be ready to start compiling and do the actual writing next week.
It’s far different than the ways I’ve written before, but I’m in a much better place than I’ve ever been. I’m feeling confident that I can actually finish a WIP for the first time. This is working for me, but you do what works for you.”

Naomi Talitha

“I know a lot of moms who use dictation and get a lot of writing done while they’re doing chores around the house! I’ve done that a little bit, I’m dictating this comment right now while pumping breast milk, haha. It will take practice for me to use it more for my actual drafting! But I know others who have had success doing that. I have definitely done it here and there though, a few times dictating for example while making supper in the kitchen or something. Multitasking!”

Selina de Luca

Have a Backup Plan

“Try to have a backup plan to help get around especially chaotic days. For example, I identify my writing time for the day, as well as two potential backup options. This way, if my plans go sideways, I know I have another opportunity waiting for me (even if that’s after they’ve gone to bed). Then I just aim to write for at least 10 minutes, which usually goes a bit longer.”

Erin P.T. Canning

Include Your Kids in the Journey

“I’m a mom of three under 7 and all have varying special/medical needs as well. It is very overwhelming, but also an enormous joy. I try to incorporate the kids in whatever I am doing, from acting out scenes, to listening to a passage, to working on artwork. They are so excited and proud to “help mommy write.” I actually just gave each of them a copy of my latest and signed a message to them thanking them for being my helpers.

They have taken that honor so seriously. And coffee. Coffee is amazing. 😅“

A.E. Dinsmoor

“I homeschool my 10 yr old son and (since he’s full of stories too) we have a section of his school day that is writing a story. I squeeze some words into a notebook then along with him. We also attend a local writer’s group together. “

Jaymi Mozeak

“Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a book! That they were engraved on a rock with an iron pen and lead, forever! For I know that my Redeemer lives, And He shall stand at last on the earth.”

Job 19:23-25

“It’s been really great writing with kids. They are my inspiration. I warned them anything snarky they say can be used in a book. My teen daughter writes too now. She’s working on her third novel.
The theme of my book is Psalm 42:11–“Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God…” And it’s an especially important truth to remember when raising children.

There’ll be times when you’re overwhelmed and need wisdom. So even though the book is fantasy, there are elements of truths I’ve learned along the way in my own life.”

Leanna Rapier

Take a Break From the Kids

“For the first time ever, I am spending the night in a hotel room to get some writing done. I checked in at 3 PM, wrote for about three hours. Drove to band practice because it’s not far from the hotel I’m staying at, and then when I got back, I wrote for another three hours. The time went by so fast it’s already after midnight. I wrote over 6,000 words in two sittings. I have no one to worry about but myself.
I really needed this break because my kids have special needs (they have autism and genetic deletions). I think maybe I need to do this every year for NaNoWriMo. I am astonished at how much I wrote and how the lack of distractions worked on me. Now I must admit, most of the writing is painfully bad but at least I’m writing!”

Alexandra Owen

“My daughter is nearly four. What I have learnt to do is if we do something fun (like lunch out), the deal when we get back is we both get “calm time.” This means she can watch cartoons or play in her room for an hour. I’ve phrased it as part of the deal of getting a treat out.
I’ve found if I say I’m doing work, she’ll want my attention for everything. If we are both having calm time, then she seems quite happy to amuse herself.”

Rachael Marie

“I focus on teaching independence to my kids to give myself extra breaks.”

Christina Kuhn

Take Care of Yourself

“Personal nutrition is key for having the brain/energy capacity to write. I absolutely have to make sure I eat enough protein if I’m going to have the brain power to write and be creative, which surprisingly at this stage, I often do. I have to take care of my body to take care of my mind…”

Ellyn Franklin

Your Stories Still Matter (Hugely)!

“One bible verse I like to reflect on is Matthew 13:34: ‘All these things Jesus spoke in parables to the multitudes: and without parables he did not speak to them.’ Jesus was the ultimate storyteller and this verse proves the value of storytelling!”

Cara Ruegg

“My kids are 2 and almost 4 and writing makes me feel sane, and healthy, and more myself which makes me a better wife and mother and more balanced person. I love that!”

E.A. Winters

“Truly loving what I do keeps me going. It is a calling for me that I really see the Lord blessing, so writing brings me joy — even when I’m dead tired. My goal is that when someone is reading or hearing something I write, ‘many will see it and fear, and will call upon the name of the LORD.’ This is the desire and motivation that keeps me going, even through the little years of parenting. Whether I’m penning fiction, gospel encouragement, or anything else, I want it to be for His praise, and so that others see Him reflected in whatever I write.”

A.E. Dinsmoor

What are your writing/momming tips?

Comment below with your own advice to support fellow writer moms! Or message our team if you’d like your suggestions and book to be featured!

Hi, I’m Caylah Coffeen, a freelance editor and marketer of sci-fi and fantasy books. I love reading and writing and am a follower of Jesus Christ.

I’ve worked for Monster Ivy Publishing and Eschler Editing, and am currently a weekly editor with Havok Publishing. Reach out to chat about books and publishing!

Thanks for stopping by my website! I hope you’ve found some helpful resources about writing and publishing. If you liked this article, here’s some more free content…

Character Development Questions – Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced

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A character has popped into your head, and now you want to write them! How do you develop this character to feel realistic and make readers care about them? Imagine yourself sitting down in a tavern to get to know your character. What kind of questions would you ask them?

To help you get started, I’ve listed beginner questions that go over the basics like appearance, skills, and backstory. Then, some intermediate questions that further examine who your character is and why they behave as they do. Finally, if you’ve been writing for a long time, feel stuck, or are looking for some questions you might not find on other character development sheets, we have some advanced questions that dig further into the psychology of your character.

Use this as a brainstorming resource, but don’t force yourself to answer everything! I encourage you to write down your answers as mini scenes – just listing traits gets boring pretty fast. You can download an editable Word document with all the questions here. Or I like to start a Pinterest/mood board to “collect” my character’s outfits, weapons, and castles! The first rule is have fun!

  1. Stage 1 – Beginner character development questions
  2. Stage 2 – Intermediate character development questions
  3. Stage 3 – Advanced character development questions

Stage 1 – Beginner Character Development Questions

These are the bare bones that you need to know as a writer in order to craft a compelling story.

Defining Features

What is their name and what does it mean? (Are their parents actually the type of people who’d give them a profound/unique name?) How do they feel about their name?

What are their physical features? What do they like and dislike about their own body?

How do they dress and groom (makeup, tattoos) and is this important to them?

What are some of your character’s favorite things (foods, clothes, activities, romantic types)?

What are some of their dislikes (phobias, allergies, irritating childhood acquaintances, pet peeves)? What are their dealbreakers?

Status Quo

What does their everyday life look like (job, school, social life)?

What is their socioeconomic status and how does this affect them? How large of a role does money play in their mindset?

What do they like about their current life?

What do they wish they could change?

“Stats”

What’s something your character is good at? Do they like this about themself?

What’s something they’re bad at? Do they dislike this about themself?

What’s their highest level of education or training (in a skill or craft)? How quickly do they learn new things?

Social Circle

Who are their closest friends and family and how healthy are these relationships?

Who are your character’s enemies (or rivals, or people they dislike)? Why?

What are some defining features (traditions, mannerisms, habits) of their culture of origin?

Do they like or dislike their culture (hate big family gatherings, like greeting people with a kiss, chafe under strict hierarchies etc.)?

How do other characters perceive your mc on average (e.x. the town clown, the teacher’s pet, the eccentric recluse)?

Inner Life

What is your character’s driving goal, desire, or need?

What makes your character laugh?

What makes them cry?

What makes them angry?

How do they demonstrate intense emotions (lash out, suppress it, talk it out)?

Stage 2 – Intermediate Character Development Questions

Here, we start to get into greater detail, fleshing out what you already know. The reader doesn’t need to know all of these facts, but they will affect how you write the character. In fact, many of these details will enhance a story most if they are not explicitly stated, but shown over time as a pattern of behavior. Don’t tell the reader your mc will start a fight with someone who makes them feel stupid, but remains calm when hangry – show us and let us draw our own conclusions.

Environment

What is their dwelling place like and what makes them feel most at home (luxurious, homey, full of people, quiet, near nature, etc.)?

How important are possessions and ownership to them (are material items important, do they keep heirlooms and collections, are they a minimalist)?

How in tune are they with their surroundings? Do they notice shifting details?

Personality (Behavioral Patterns)

What is their personality type (use any common personality test or get started with the questions below)?
How comfortable are they around strangers and do social interactions drain or enliven them?
Do they make decisions based primarily on emotion or logical reasoning?
Are they rule abiding or free spirits?
Do they perform better in structured settings or with flexibility?
Are they better at street smarts or book smarts?
Are they a motivated worker and curious learner?

^TIP: Be aware of how your own personality affects how you write characters. I’ve read characters who were supposed to be outgoing, but spent most of their time (even in group situations) internally thinking about what was going on around them – that’s an introverted behavior which the author likely defaulted to out of familiarity.

What’s your character’s love language?

How do they behave when pushed to the brink (exhausted, grieving, in pain, hungry, trapped)? Do they have differing responses to varying threats?
– E.x. some people respond well to an intellectual challenge, but cave under physical pressure, and vice versa.

Relationships

How do they form relationships with others?
– Do they have a lot of friends, or a few deep ones?
– Do they take a while to open up to people, or strike up a conversation with everyone they meet?

What are the requirements for joining their inner circle?

How much weight do they put on how other people view them? How much are they motivated by external social pressure?

Are they aware of their reputation? Is their self-image in line with their external one?

Past

What’s a part of their upbringing that they have rejected?

What’s something your character is truly proud of?

What’s something your character deeply regrets?

What’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to them?

What’s something/someone they miss?

Quirks

What’s a unique physical quirk of theirs (birthmark, can or cannot roll their tongue, weirdly flexible in a certain part of their body, fingernails grow super fast)?

What are their physical advantages (5 senses, looks, stamina, great at power-naps)?

What are their physical disadvantages (weak knees, prone to headaches, jittery, natural sprinters – just terrible at long-distance running)?

What are their mental advantages and disadvantages (mental health disorders, intelligence, memory, focus, creativity, problem-solving capacity, executive function ability)?

Habits

Night owl or early bird?

Heavy or light eater?

Do they partake in intoxicating substances? What kind of a drunk are they (flirty, weepy, loud)?

What are their opinions and preferences about sex?

What’s a habit or mistake your character just can’t seem to shake (being late, forgetting things, picking toxic partners)?

Beliefs

What are their deepest beliefs and convictions?
– This could refer to religion, ideology, and political alignment, but also to internal codes like “family first,” or “no good deed goes unpunished,” or “every man paves their own way.”

What is their mindset toward death? How was this shaped (personal experience, upbringing)?

What’s something they could not live without? Do they know this about themself?
– Many people think they can’t live without their career or a certain part of their identity, only to discover what “truly matters” the hard way.

Has your character ever committed a crime? What is their attitude toward the law?

Stage 3 – Advanced Character Development Questions

Many stories do not take their characters further than stage two. People are more than a list of personality traits, features, and needs, and are certainly more than what we can see in a plot. We learn, but then regress, change, and then change again. People are complex and demonstrate inconsistencies in both thought and behavior. This round of questions seeks to go past “what” and “who” your character is and ask “why?” Digging deeper into your character’s psyche can push your story to become more meaningful, enhancing themes and character arcs.

But sometimes a story is richer for the things the author knows, which take place off the page, but which aren’t necessarily resolved in the book. These are the type of things you might wish to keep as secrets from your readers. Or never fully show – there’s nothing quite so tantalizing as a half-revealed backstory. A great story will spark additional levels of imagination in your readers, because they can sense that your imagination went to greater depths. They’ll chase after you if you give them the seeds for thought.

What is the nature of their character (ethos), and more importantly why?
– In the past, people might have asked if a man or woman was of “good character,” referring to the level of integrity, honor, or virtue a person displayed. Today, we might instead ask after a person’s “true colors,” in an attempt to see if someone acts morally or immorally.
– Is your character honest or do they lie easily? Do they keep their word or are they flaky? Do they treat others respectfully or degradingly? Do they have a strong work ethic or are they lazy? Are they magnanimous or self-centered? Are they fair and consistent in their dealings with others?

What are some internal inconsistencies in your character’s behaviors, thought-processes, or belief systems?

What does your character get wrong about themself?
– People think they understand themselves, and often they don’t. Some people will switch jobs, partners, or homes, only to realize they preferred their old one, but didn’t understand why.

Is your character deliberate about their relational boundaries? How did they learn them? If they have not, are they a pushover, emotionally codependent, callously indifferent to others?

Do your character’s hobbies actually affect how they think and interact with the world on a daily basis?
– For instance, if your character is a musician, they’ll likely hum a lot, notice sounds and voices more than others, and make metaphors based around music. An artist will see color and shape in unique ways and go out of their way to see pretty things. An engineer or handyman might collect odds and ends and tinker with things as they sit and talk with friends. It’s not enough to state that your character likes something – it has to actually visibly impact their life and behavior.

How in tune is your character with other peoples’ inner lives?
– Are they a good judge of character, sensitive to emotions, and know the right thing to say at the right time, or do they miss the mark, guess at peoples’ motivations, or act on instinct rather than insight?

How well does your character understand themself?
– Are they aware of their own capacity for self-insight, or deluded by their vision of themself?
– Do they want to understand themself better and actively reflect upon themself?

How do they reconcile with others?
– For instance, do they need time to cool off after an argument, or do they want to clear the air right away? Do they want a detailed breakdown showing the other person understood why they were angry, or do they want the other person to make a gesture to make up for it?
– How do they make amends when they were in the wrong?

What’s their style of conversation?
– Authors can fall into the trap of making all their characters converse in a similar style (to them). But different people converse in a variety of ways. Do they love or hate small talk? Love deep discussions or not want to touch anything personal with a 10 foot pole. People have conversational quirks like: telling the same story over and over again even though people are sick of hearing it, info dumping a lot at once about a topic they find interesting, saying very little for a while and then stunning everyone with something powerful and profound, asking a lot of questions in response to what others say, asking no questions about others but instead replying with a similar anecdote of something that happened to them.
– Some people are good listeners, while others won’t shut up about themselves. Some people pause a lot between words, while others talk a mile a minute. Lean into these unique idiosyncrasies! The way people talk (or don’t) to each other can be a huge barrier in relationships and an interesting point of conflict in a story.

How do their unique traits bring out different qualities in their companions?
– People respond to others in different ways. Not everyone will love, hate, or laugh around your character. Sometimes a main character comes across as boring not (just) because they’re a reader insert, but because everyone in the story responds to them in the exact same way. In a single group, your main character might bring out courage in one individual, belligerence in another, and attraction in a third.
– The best stories are ones that don’t have only strongly developed characters, but also strongly developed character dynamics. Do these individuals bring out the best or worst in each other? Stories are formed when people clash and bond in unique ways that evolve over time.

Download the Word Doc to Start Writing!

Character Development Questions – Beginner, Intermediate, AdvancedDownload

Hi, I’m Caylah Coffeen, a freelance editor and marketer of sci-fi and fantasy books. I love reading and writing and am a follower of Jesus Christ.

I’ve worked for Monster Ivy Publishing and Eschler Editing, and am currently a weekly editor with Havok Publishing. Reach out to chat about books and publishing!

Thanks for stopping by my website! I hope you’ve found some helpful resources about reading, writing, and publishing. If you liked this article, here’s some more free content…

10 Editors of Christian Fantasy, Sci-Fi, and More!

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Christian speculative fiction (sci-fi, fantasy, supernatural, horror, etc.) has grown in popularity in recent years! But as an author, you might still encounter difficulty finding professionals who specialize in both niche markets. So we’ve researched 10 Christian editors, with ranged experience and specialties, who work with sci-fi and fantasy!

This is a list of independent/freelance editors who could be a great fit if you’re looking to self-publish or refine your manuscript before submitting it to publishing houses. If you’re ready to start querying publishers, check out our list of the best publishers of Christian SFF. You can find information about their in-house editors on their websites.

NOTE: Editing rates are not fixed, but change to reflect experience, inflation, and the needs of each manuscript.

1. Caylah Coffeen – Creative Cornerstones

I’ll introduce myself first! I’m Caylah, the founder of Creative Cornerstones, a Christian, and an editor of sci-fi and fantasy. I don’t have as much experience as some of the other amazing editors on this list, so my rates are quite affordable.

The authors I’ve worked with have left wonderful testimonials for me, which I invite you to check out. I’d be delighted to partner with you on your project, but if I’m not the right fit for you, I hope you find another editor here who will bring out the best in your story!

Years of experience: 4
Has worked with: Havok Magazine, Monster Ivy Publishing, Eschler Editing, indie authors
Editing specialty: developmental editing ($0.02/word) and manuscript assessments ($0.005/word)
Primary audience: adult
Favorite sub-genres: epic and lyrical fantasy, myths, diverse worlds, space opera
Additional services: digital marketing, discount & support program for authors with disabilities
Fun facts: I’m a pastor’s kid and missionary kid (Japan!) and have 6 siblings and a brand new nephew! I love sushi, puzzles, cosplaying at conventions, and reading SFF books about bromance and rivalries.
Portfolio: https://creativecornerstones.com/about/team/about-2/

2. Gina Kammer – The Inky Bookwyrm

Years of experience: 16
Has worked with: Capstone Publishers, Amicus, Black Rabbit Books, Meredith Corp. (now Dotdash Meredith), Reedsy
Editing specialty: developmental editing ($0.033/word)
Primary audience: adult
Favorite sub-genres: epic, medieval fantasy, romantasy, paranormal, mythical/fairy tale retellings, space opera, dystopian, steampunk, cyberpunk, bureaucratic witches, and snarky robots!
Additional services: group coaching, story planning, and writing, querying, and self-editing courses
Fun facts: I met Sirs Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart while studying in London. My more mundane proclivities include tea, traveling, oil painting, archery, and snuggling with my grumpy bunnies. I live among piles of books and antiques in Minnesota with my husband and daughter.
Website: https://www.inkybookwyrm.com/editing

3. Katie Philips – Katie Philips Creative

Years of experience: 10
Has worked with: Uncommon Universes Press, Realm Makers Award winning authors, The Author Conservatory
Editing specialty: developmental editing ($0.04/word)
Primary audience: YA
Favorite sub-genres: space opera, fantasy, diverse cultures and characters
Additional services: intermediate-advanced authors, coaching
Fun facts: I’m an INFJ and devoted plant mom. My husband and I are big foodies and live in Kansas with our daughter and son. I’ve visited over 25 countries!
Website: https://www.katiephillipscreative.com/fiction-editing

4. Sara Lawson – Sara’s Books

Years of experience: 15
Has worked with: Inheritance Magazine, indie authors
Editing specialty: line and copy combo edits ($0.02/word) – includes 2 rounds of edits
Primary audience: YA
Favorite sub-genres: fairy tale retellings
Additional services: indie publishing coaching and networking support
Fun facts: I grew up in rural California (yes, that is a thing). I also spent a year and half doing a graduate program in Jerusalem, studying and walking the land of the Bible.
Website: https://www.sarasbooks.com/rates-and-services

5. Kimberly Huther – Wordsmith Editing

Years of experience: 17
Has worked with: York Publishing and Zondervan
Editing specialty: proofreading ($7/page in Word)
Primary audience: adult
Favorite sub-genres: fantasy, paranormal, sci-fi, YA
Additional services: copy and line editing (same rates)
Fun facts: I’ve been an avid reader since the age of FOUR, and I’m a huge supporter of the Oxford Comma!
Website: https://www.wordsmith-editing.com/

6. Pam Halter

Years of experience: 20
Has worked with: Fruitbearer Kids, Halo Publishing International
Editing specialty: developmental editing for children’s books – $200 per book for under 1,000 words, including a second look after rewriting within 2 months.
Primary audience: picture books
Favorite sub-genres: picture books don’t have sub-genres the same way
Additional services: workshops with illustrator Kim Sponaugle for picture books
Fun facts: I’m a mom and grandmother! Cooking, sewing, baking, and playing the piano all boost my creative side. I love to create my own recipes and am in three Gooseberry cookbooks and got runner-up in a Taste of Home magazine for my tomato fritters.
Website: https://pamhalter.com/editor

7. Lyndsey Smith – The Editing Forge (Horrorsmith Editing)

Years of experience: 4
Has worked with: Eerie River Publishing, Turner Publishing
Editing specialty: developmental editing ($0.038/word)
Primary audience: adult
Favorite sub-genres: horror, thriller, epic fantasy, urban fantasy, reimagined fairy tales, and romantasy
Additional services: book coaching and ghostwriting
Fun facts: My assistant is a midnight-black 23-pound Norwegian Forest Cat named Poof. I’m a military spouse of thirteen years, and we’ve lived in multiple states and countries (including three years in South Korea).
Website: https://www.theeditingforge.com/

8. Kristen Stieffel

Years of experience: 24
Has worked with: Havok Magazine, indie authors
Editing specialty: line editing ($0.035/word)
Primary audience: adult
Favorite sub-genres: light fantasy, steampunk, and science fantasy
Additional services: coaching, page design
Fun facts: I was raised by parents who were Trekkies before anyone coined the word Trekkie. I’m an avid knitter, despite living in Florida, where most sweaters are worn indoors.
Website: https://kristenstieffel.com/services/

9. Andi L. Gregory – Author Services

Years of experience: 6
Has worked with: End Game Press, indie authors
Editing specialty: copyediting ($0.02/word)
Primary audience: YA
Favorite sub-genres: fairy tales and the complex worlds of high fantasy
Additional services: Proofreading services ($0.01/word), proofreading and copyediting combo packages
Fun facts: I love being in the great outdoors, where I never fail to find an adventure. I write for the downhearted, the friendless, and the self-critic, and I’m always up for making new friends, even if I’m the introvert in the corner (with a book, of course).
Website: https://www.andilgregory.com/author-services

10. Jessica Boudreax – Refined Pen Edits

Years of experience: 2
Has worked with: So far, I have been purely freelance!
Editing specialty: Developmental Editing ($0.02/word)
Primary audience: Adult
Favorite sub-genre: epic fantasy
Additional services: line and copy editing
Fun facts: In elementary school, my teacher told my mom I had a talent for creative writing, and it kind of stuck. I’ve been writing in some way ever since. I can get very geeky over many things. Fiction is one of those things, and I am quite happy to be called a geek.
Website: https://refinedpenedits.com/services/

Authors Who Edit on the Side

A number of successful Christian sci-fi and fantasy authors also work as editors on the side, including Steve Rzasa, Janeen Ippolito, and Angela R. Watts. If there is an author you particularly admire, you can look up their website to see if they also offer coaching or editing services.

But good authors do not necessarily make good editors (and vice versa), so in this list I tried to emphasize those who work primarily as editors (though some of the above do write and publish). But every author needs something slightly different on their publication journey – trust your instincts!

And best of luck!

Hi, I’m Caylah Coffeen, a freelance editor and marketer of sci-fi and fantasy books. I love reading and writing and am a follower of Jesus Christ.

I’ve worked for Monster Ivy Publishing and Eschler Editing, and am currently a weekly editor with Havok Publishing. Reach out to chat about books and publishing!

Thanks for stopping by my website! I hope you’ve found some helpful resources about reading, writing, and publishing. If you liked this article, here’s some more free content…

How Do Publishers Decide to Accept or Reject a Manuscript?

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Are you struggling in the query trenches? Some authors receive hundreds of rejections and spend years querying before they achieve publication. But why do publishers actually reject your manuscript, and what does it take to get an acceptance?

I trained as an editor with Monster Ivy Publishing, including with their acquisitions team, and learned how publishers choose which manuscripts to accept. I read through submitted stories and helped the team decide whether to reject, invite revisions, or accept each book. Let me share some of these insights!

  1. Top 3 Requirements for Acceptance
  2. Additional Elements of a Publishable Manuscript
  3. Press-Specific Reasons to Reject a Manuscript
  4. Rely on the Reading and Writing Community

Top 3 Requirements for Acceptance

These are the top 3 necessities in a manuscript! Each of the manuscripts our team rejected fell short on one of these elements. They are the most common reasons a story won’t be accepted.

  1. Is there a strong opening hook? Do the first few pages make readers care about this particular character and their situation?
  2. Does the author write actively, with strong verb choices, or overuse passive voice (forms of “to be”)?
  3. Does the main character have a strong goal or need and a mix of strengths and weaknesses which will drive the story?

Additional Elements of a Publishable Manuscript

Publishers regularly receive thousands of submissions. Yours really needs to stand out. Here are additional elements editors will look for when reading your story.

Unforgettable Characters

  • A cohesive character arc that takes the mc through ups and downs and make them change by the end of the book
  • A main character that has a personality and life outside the main plot – hobbies, loves, and quirks that actually affect their day-to-day behavior and thought process.
  • A diverse cast of characters
  • Rounded side characters that bring out the best and worst in the mc

Story Elements

  • Intense emotion – laughter, anger, tears – cause it all!
  • Strong pacing, with a balance of high-energy and lower-energy scenes
  • A well-structured plot that doesn’t leave readers lost, bored, or overwhelmed
  • A powerful, perhaps surprising ending that ties up both plot points and character threads

That Spark

  • A unique author voice that adds an additional perspective to your story
  • A distinct writing style that adds flair to your story

For Sci-Fi and Fantasy Manuscripts

  • Original worldbuilding that develops with the story – not too much exposition or a potentially confusing heap of names up front
  • A twist on popular tropes – perhaps satirical, perhaps a fresh spin
  • An intricately developed magic system – hard magic is all the rage these days!

Editors keep a mental checklist as they read through submissions. The more key elements of a strong story that you hit right off the bat, the higher the chance they’ll keep reading or request the full manuscript! I know it’s frustrating, but editors are overworked and underpaid, and really don’t have the time to dedicate to a story that doesn’t catch them right away.

Press-Specific Reasons to Reject a Manuscript

Sometimes a publishing house looks like an absolutely perfect fit for your story! You’ve followed them on social media, have looked up the work of their editors, and can tell you’re a great match! And then you receive a standard form rejection. Devastating!

If you’ve wondered, why, why, WHY, here are some of the private reasons a press might reject your work.

Over-Saturated Market

A press may have recently published a book quite similar to yours.

  • This book may be doing well and they don’t want to compete with their own sales.
  • This book could be doing poorly and they don’t want to take another risk with yours.

Or, there could have been a recent huge surge of books like yours. After Twilight, there was a flood of vampire romances. After Dresden, a ton of supernatural detectives. If you submit your book after the trend’s peak, publishers may already be looking ahead to the next trend. After all, depending on the size of the press, it can take between 1-3 years for your book to hit the shelves after you sign.

It’s also possible that a publisher has already hit their quota of acceptances for the year. Each team can only publish so many books in a year.

Money

If a publisher doesn’t think they’ll be able to make back their investment and also profit on sales, they won’t accept your work. Books make pennies and publishers are businesses. Smaller presses in particular have to be very careful of where they invest their funds.

Your book might have the potential to sell well, but if it caters to a niche audience rather than appealing to the mass market, it still might not be enough.

  • A Trade publisher could sell a few thousand copies of your book and consider it an abysmal failure, while an indie house could sell a few thousand copies and consider it a huge hit!
  • Try to be objective about your book’s audience. Unless you think the absolute average reader of your genre would love your book, it’s not likely a trade publisher will accept it. Indie houses are much more interested in unique stories these days.

Check out our list of pros and cons to publishing traditionally vs. indie.

Subjective Taste

The managing editor might not personally resonate with your story. Some books aren’t for everyone, and the people reading over your submission might not click with your story, even it’d be a great read for others.

  • It’s a great use of your time to research the acquisitions and managing editors of a company you’re interested in. Look at their portfolio, their manuscript wishlist, and any books they may have published to see if they’re actually a book match for your book.

Planning Ahead for Marketing

If you have little to no online presence (website, social accounts, following), it will make promoting your book that much harder. Many publishers expect authors to do a lot of their own publicity and marketing. Some even ask for your number of followers on their submissions forms.

  • Other presses will do the majority of marketing for you, so research each company to determine if the size of your brand is important to them! The more famous the press, the more important it is for you to be visible online to be considered.

Beliefs

Your story could be rejected if you as an author aren’t in line with a press’ political, religious, or social messaging. In the age of cancel culture, publishers don’t just look at your story but also at YOU.

  • Few people in the industry will admit to this one, but you’ll be one of the faces of their brand if they publish you, and they want to make sure your private life and beliefs line up with theirs. Many presses specifically list their vision and agendas on their “about” pages so research them before submitting.
  • It is absolutely possible that your book could be rejected because of an opinionated blog post or heated FB comments you left years ago. Publishers are terrified of having another J.K. Rowling.

Dicey Topics

The more content warnings your book will require, the harder it can be to find an interested party. If you handle sensitive topics like sexual assault, diversity, historical abuses, gender, disability, and more, be aware of possible roadblocks.

  • The publisher may think your depiction of the subject was problematic, not well-researched, or just too dicey. Consider investing in a sensitivity reader.
  • They may think you shouldn’t write from the POV of a demographic unless you are part of it.

Rely on the Reading and Writing Community!

Your book is your baby. Rejections hurt! It’s hard to be objective about your story when you believe in it so much. And you should!

But publishing is a business, and it can save you a lot of time and heartache if you ask the hard questions of your community before you try to publish.

Try asking your beta readers and critique partners questions like:

  • What star rating would you give this book right now?
  • How wide of an audience do you think exists for a story like this (a select niche, an average crowd, or almost every reader in this genre)?
  • Do you think this story is ready for publication? If no, what do you think most needs to change?
  • Would you spend money on this book?

If you think your friends and family would feel uncomfortable answering truthfully, you could send them an anonymous feedback form. It’s difficult, but not impossible, to determine whether you’re receiving rejections because of in-house reasons that are out of your control, or writing reasons, which you can control.

You may be sitting on a 5-star book, and just haven’t found the right fit yet. Have you heard how many rejections Brandon Sanderson received at first? Don’t lose hope, but always keep your eye out for ways to improve the quality of your work!

Good luck and happy writing!

Hi, I’m Caylah Coffeen, a freelance editor and marketer of sci-fi and fantasy books. I love reading and writing and am a follower of Jesus Christ.

I’ve worked for Monster Ivy Publishing and Eschler Editing, and am currently a weekly editor with Havok Publishing. Reach out to chat about books and publishing!

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