CINDY SKAGGS
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        Writing Resources   

Cindy's craft articles

​Skaggs, Cindy. "Personal Reportage: Eyewitness to the World." Medium.com, 12 August 2020.
Skaggs, Cindy. "Writing: Beginnings and Endings." Medium.com, 5 August 2020.
Skaggs, Cindy. "Theme and Symbols as Writing Tools." Medium.com, 29 July 2020.
Skaggs, Cindy. "Genre by Any Other Name." Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers Blog, 21 September 2018.
​Additional writing craft articles at The Write Place.

Writing: Editing & Revision

  • More Coming Soon
  • How to Avoid Unnecessary Filter Words
  • Passive Construction by Zombies
  • Avoid 'to be' verbs
  • Past Tense V Present Tense


Where to submit 

  • www.erikakrousewriter.com/erika-krouses-ocd-ranking-of-483-literary-magazines-for-short-fictionSubmittable: See their Discovery page to find new literary journals and additional markets
  • DuoTrope
  • The Submission Grinder
  • New Pageswww.erikakrousewriter.com/erika-krouses-ocd-ranking-of-483-literary-magazines-for-short-fiction
  • Creative Nonfiction
  • 10 Short Story Submissions
  • Paying Markets 2021
  • Short Story Markets 2022
  • 12 Short Story Publishers
  • The Atlantic​
  • 30 Small and Indie Publishers list​
  • Erka Krouse 500 Fiction Lit Mags: http://www.erikakrousewriter.com/erika-krouses-ocd-ranking-of-483-literary-magazines-for-short-fiction
  • ​


To check the credibility of the magazine, journal, or contest see Writer Beware

How to submit

  • janefriedman.com/writing-short-book-description/Resources & Query Tips ​from Lit. Agent Eric Smith
  • Query Letter tutorial video
  • How to Write a Novel Synopsis from Graeme Shimmin
  • How to write a Killer Logline from Graeme Shimmin
  • A Beginners Guide to Publishing (cover letters, formatting) by Aubrey Hirsch
  • How to write an author's bio from Anna Sproul-Latimer
  • Pitch Basics from Jane Friedman
  • Manuscript Format by Jill Williamson
  • Legal Resources for Creatives from Lawyers for the Creative Arts
  • Writing short book descriptions on Jane Friedman's blog: https://janefriedman.com/writing-short-book-description/

  • ​
https://heatherdemetrios.com/blog/how-to-write-a-writers-artist-statement




Writing: Business

  • Who Pays Writers​
  • Building a 6 Figure Freelance Writing Business by Tom Corson Knowles.
  • Writing Slideshows by Bob Mayer

Writing: Platform

  • Author Platform Worksheets by Jane Friedman
  • Writing Portfolio by ProofreadNow
  • Writing Portfolio by clippings.me
  • Writer's Bio by Scribofile
  • Writer's Bio by Gatekeepers Press

Writing Life

Marketing

  • How to Overcome Perfectionism (for writers)
  • .​
  • Google Alerts

Writing: Craft*

Writing: Flash (fiction and cnf) & Short Fiction

thewritepractice.com/show-dont-tell-writing
  • Worldbuilding and the Iceberg by Brandon Sanderson
  • Dialogue and the Maid & Butler by Brandon Sanderson
  • What is Head-Hopping, and Is It Spoiling Your Fiction by Louise Harnby Fiction Editor
  • How to Craft Immersive Scene Setting by Kristen Kieffer
  • Show Don't Tell by Jerry Jenkins
  • Active Verbs by Constance Hale
  • Write Active Scenes instead of exposition: 
    • https://thewritepractice.com/show-dont-tell-writing/
  • Plot and Aristotle by William Kowalski
  • Storytelling by Lisa Cron (Wired for Story)
  • Character development: Biographical and Psychological lens (video)
  • Mystery Writing Basics by Angela Ackerman
  • The Structure of a Murder Mystery by Karen Woodward
  • 9 Openings to avoid by Kristen Nelson.
  • Writing Emotions​
  • Adverbs (the road to hell) Stephen King
  • ​

  • ​
https://nelsonagency.com/2017/08/all-9-story-openings-to-avoid-in-one-handy-post/





*The writing craft elements are storytelling elements used and manipulated by writers, not including grammar, mechanics, editing, and revision.
  • Flash Fiction at 100 Word Story
  • Flash Fiction by Venita Blackburn
  • History of Flash by Sandra Arnold
  • Lovely Little Fictions by Tara Laskowski
  • Flash Fiction by Sherrie Flick
  • Flash Fiction by Kathy Fish
  • A Short Short Theory by Robert Olen Butler
  • Flash Nonfiction by Sherrie Flick
  • .

Writing: Grammar & Mechanics

Genre


  • He for She in SciFi: Men on Feminism in the Genre (4 min video)
  • Genre by any other name  
  • ​Genre Guide: Women's Fiction, Upmarket, Romance, Lit?
  • .
  • Handbook: Guide to Writing
  • Guide: Purdue OWL Grammar
  • Guide: Purdue OWL Mechanics
  • l


​
© Cindy Skaggs 2015-2025

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