On Twitter the other day, (as writers do), I came across a writer who had ChatGPT write ten tweets in her style, just to see what it thought of her voice. They were hilarious. Moments later, another writer I followed did the same thing. (Also hilarious.) I won’t lie, I have never used ChatGPT before,… Continue reading What ChatGPT Taught Me About My Author Brand
Tag: writing community
I Write Because I Want My Mom’s Death to Mean Something
March 16 marked the twentieth anniversary of my mom’s death. It’s a strange fact to realize how much time has passed, how much my life changed, how much she is missing. I’ve spoken about her many times on my blog and across other social media channels, most recently in the context of writing a middle… Continue reading I Write Because I Want My Mom’s Death to Mean Something
My Average Day as an Author, Librarian, and Mom
After my last post - My Postpartum Writing Life: Working-Writing Mom with a 4-Month-Old - I received a few questions about where I fit my writing in, so I thought it was time for another "average day" post. I've actually written a handful of these over the years. The last time I wrote one was… Continue reading My Average Day as an Author, Librarian, and Mom
My Postpartum Writing Life: Working-Writing Mom with a 4-Month-Old
My baby turned four months old yesterday, which is both mind blowing and incredibly exciting. (It really does go by so fast.) Now that we’ve officially made it one month of her going to daycare while I work full-time (and write novels), I thought it was time for a writing life update. And honestly? This… Continue reading My Postpartum Writing Life: Working-Writing Mom with a 4-Month-Old
How Three Different Rounds of Critique Partners & Beta Readers Help Me Revise
“How do you revise?” is a question I’m often asked when talking about novel writing, especially if I’m giving a speech to a group of writers who are approaching the end of their first draft. Writing a first draft is hard enough. But perfecting it? Well, that can feel so daunting that many writers freeze.… Continue reading How Three Different Rounds of Critique Partners & Beta Readers Help Me Revise
Should Young Adult Books Teach a Lesson?
I was working on my WIP recently when I started talking about my book with a librarian friend. Specifically scenes where my main character fixes up an old sports car and starts racing around her country town. To my surprise, my friend assumed she would crash the car and eventually learn that this behavior is… Continue reading Should Young Adult Books Teach a Lesson?
My Writing Life During Maternity Leave
I'm heading back to work this week. Between that and starting 2023, I've been reflecting a lot on how the last twelve weeks went since my daughter was born. It was tough. That's the easiest way to summarize all my emotions. Of course I knew going in that newborns require a lot of energy and… Continue reading My Writing Life During Maternity Leave
2022: My Complete Year
At the end of every year, I write a reflection post about where I’m at, not just in my writing life, but also in my personal life and how it all correlates. I’m calling 2022 My Complete Year because it coincides with how I called 2021 the Year of Unfinished Change. Last year, I got… Continue reading 2022: My Complete Year
I’m Now Represented By…
ICYMI! I am so excited to announce that I am now represented by Marietta Zacker at Gallt & Zacker Literary Agency! From the beginning, Marietta understood the importance of my middle grade novel-in-verse about losing my mom to the opioid crisis when I was 11, and I cannot wait for us to share it with… Continue reading I’m Now Represented By…
Writing (and Working) While Pregnant: Third Trimester
I am 37 weeks pregnant, which means I am full-term, but have a few weeks to go and, honestly, I didn’t want to wait any longer to write this blog post. Why? Because I’m tired. If I wait any longer, I’m not sure I’ll be able to get the blog post out on time. (Not… Continue reading Writing (and Working) While Pregnant: Third Trimester
Shannon A. Thompson 