The Picky Pen
How to Punctuate Dialogue
Whether you are writing fiction or nonfiction, you will likely use dialogue in your work. Let’s have a little…
January 22, 2026-
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The Picky Pen
Common Apostrophe Mistakes
Apostrophes are small and barely noticeable punctuation marks, but without them the reader would have a difficult time deciphering…
September 22, 2025 -
A Lighter Look at the Writer's LifeLet’s Do It Again!
“That was good! Let’s do it again!” A few years ago, I was a cast member in a community…
May 13, 2025 -
The Picky Pen
Creating a Story Title
Do you have difficulty coming up with a title for your article or story? This is sure to be…
February 22, 2025 -
The Picky Pen
Varying Sentence Structure
Do all of your sentences begin with “I,“ “we,” or a proper noun? Do all of them start with…
November 22, 2024 -
Writers ChatWriters Chat Recap for October,Part 1
Writers Chat, hosted by Johnnie Alexander, Brandy Brow, and Melissa Stroh, is the show where we talk about all…
October 17, 2024 -
Writers Chat
Writers Chat Recap for August, PArt 2
Writers Chat, hosted by Jean Wise, Johnnie Alexander, and Brandy Brow, is the show where we talk about all…
August 31, 2021 -
Guest PostsSculpting a Masterpiece
The beautiful prose that came to mind in the shower somehow transformed into clunky sentences by the time I…
May 8, 2021 -
Proofed and PolishedWhy Can’t We Just Agree? Subject-Verb Agreement
When I was teaching English Learners in high school, we spent A LOT of time studying subject-verb agreement. I…
March 10, 2021 -
Proofed and Polished
Short and Sweet: Avoiding Run-on Sentences
Each author has their own unique voice. Likely, you’ve spent a lot of time developing the tone and style…
February 10, 2021 -
Magazine and Freelance3 Reasons to Disagree with an Editor
You might be surprised to read the title of this post. Aren’t editors always right? Won’t you doom your…
December 14, 2020 -
Proofed and Polished
Cat Got Your Tongue? Tricky Idiomatic Expressions That Get Us Bent Out of Shape
Let’s Cut Ourselves Some Slack Adding a little flair to your writing with idioms can be confusing, but hang…
December 10, 2020 -
Proofed and Polished
Proofed and Polished: Tips on self-proofing for a flawless product
A Scenario… Finally! You sit back in your chair and breathe a sigh of relief. The project is done,…
September 10, 2020 -
Guest Posts8 Things to Do Before Your Self-Published Book is Released
It has never been easier to publish a book thanks to the rapid advancement of technology. Goodreads and Amazon…
August 18, 2020 -
The Picky Pen
How to Edit Setting
As we continue this editing series how we can develop a great story, I hope you’re able to see…
May 24, 2020 -
Kids LitWhich Hat Shall I Wear Today?
In January, I had the privilege of speaking about being a writer at a large private school near…
April 21, 2020 -
Courting the MuseWhy Reading Bad Prose Can Make You a Better Writer
A quarantine isn’t a writing retreat. Sure, some of the greats managed to transmute epidemiological panic into excellent prose…
April 13, 2020 -
The Picky Pen
How to Edit Point of View
As we continue this editing series how we can develop a great story, I hope you’re able to see…
March 22, 2020 -
The Picky Pen
How to Find the Felt Need
This is the first post in my editing series in 2020 for how to develop a great story by…
January 22, 2020 -
The Picky Pen
Punctuation Series: How to Edit Modifiers
Presentation is everything, especially when it comes to the publishing world. And your presentation of punctuation is crucial to…
March 22, 2019 -
Blogging BasicsHow To Polish Your Blog With A Little Help
When meeting first time bloggers, I am often asked about hosting, web pages, and behind the scenes technical issues.…
January 24, 2019 -
The Picky Pen
How to Edit Your Character
We’re heading into a New Year. Perhaps you’ve finished a novel during Nanowrimo. Maybe you’re plotting a new story…
December 22, 2018 -
The Picky Pen
Five Ways to Edit Dialogue
When thinking about the dialogue in our story, whether fiction or nonfiction, we must consider perspective. With each story,…
November 22, 2018 -
The Picky Pen
Editing Like a Director
Hello! How’s your editing been going for you? I hope you’re seeing great improvement, but if you’re at a…
September 22, 2018 -
SongwritingSongwriting: Learning by Listening to The Masters
If you take a songwriting class, the first thing you will learn is to read the top 40 charts…
August 28, 2018
