Have you ever reached a point where the thought of opening Scrivener (or your document editor of choice) filled you with not only dread, but disgust? Have you ever stared at your laptop and silently uttered the words, “I just can’t even…”? It may not have had anything to do with lack of inspiration! It’s just that you couldn’t bring yourself to take another slog through your work-in-progress. If you’ve experienced any of these symptoms, I’m going to show you how to beat writer’s block in 30 minutes.
How to Become An Author
Every once in a while, an aspiring author reaches out to me to ask how I did it. How did I manage to accomplish the seemingly Herculean task of becoming a published author of a series of bestselling novels? While the voices of these authors are different, the sense of incredulity and exasperation are all the same. I can tell, through inference, that they’ve asked this question before of countless other authors. I suspect they’ve also received the very same answer I give them. But, it’s an answer they don’t like.
To become an author, you write, write, then write some more. And when you feel as if you can’t write another single blessed word, write two instead.
“Yes, yes,” they say. “We’ve heard that a million times! But how did you do it?”
Research Is Writing. Stop Berating Yourself.
The most important thing you’ll do for your story is to get the details right. Spending time on research is every bit as important as writing the prose. Why? Because research is writing.
If you’re an independent author who creates your own deadlines, you may want to rethink some things…
Quora Names Russo Top Writer for 2018
I received a truly unexpected honor this morning. Jonathan Brill, Head of Global Writer Relations for Quora, reached out to me to inform me I’ve been named as one of their Top Writers for 2018.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with the site, Quora is a question-and-answer site where anyone can sign up, post a question, and wait for answers to start rolling in. The awesome thing is that many of the people who are waiting to answer these questions are leaders in their industry, so the answers tend to be authoritative.
I’ve been writing on Quora for about a year now, mostly on topics involving software engineering and computer programming. What makes this honor that much more meaningful to me is that the answers I write to various questions are upvoted or downvoted by my peers in software engineering around the world.
Discount on The Mukhtaar Chronicles This Week
Hi friends!
This week only, both Necromancer Awakening and Necromancer Falling, books one and two of the international bestselling fantasy series The Mukhtaar Chronicles, are on discount for $0.99! Additionally, the standalone novella The Road To Dar Rodon, which follows the adventure of a much younger Mujahid Mukhtaar as he journeys across Erindor seeking vengeance, is absolutely free! Sale ends Friday!
Amazon Alleges Violations by KDP Authors, Publishers
Amazon is taking additional steps to fight abuse of the KDP system, including injunctive relief and triple damages. Is it too little too late, or just the beginning? Click the source link for the complete article on Publisher’s Weekly.
Amazon has filed arbitration complaints against five individuals who it claims offered services to KDP authors and publishers intended to help them manipulate the reading platform for financial gain.
Source: Amazon Alleges Violations by KDP Authors, Publishers
Scrivener Auto Completion
Updated on June 19, 2021 to include instructions relevant to Scrivener 3 for Windows.
Have you ever wished you didn’t have to type the same word or phrase over and over again in your manuscript? Maybe you have a tricky-to-spell character name, or you use a lot of technical terms?
What if I told you that Scrivener can automatically type those words/phrases for you with the stroke of a key?
Get The Mukhtaar Chronicles on Kindle Countdown Now
The Kindle Countdown promotion on Necromancer Awakening and Necromancer Falling is still in the early stages, so get over to Amazon and grab copies of each before their prices return to normal!
They’re currently $1.99 and will be gradually climbing back up to $3.99 over the next several days. Click the images or titles and they’ll take you to the appropriate Amazon page.
Cheers!
Nat
The Mukhtaar Estate is Now Open
I’ve been receiving a lot of questions lately about writing, The Mukhtaar Chronicles, music, dogs, books…you name it. And they’ve been coming at me from about 10 different directions all at once. Well, I’ve finally decided to embrace the fact that I live on Facebook most of the time. Yes, I still respond on Twitter, and I always participate in discussions that take place in the comments section here at the blog. But I’m on Facebook ALL – OF – THE – TIME. It’s a sickness. You should feel sorry for me, really, now that I think about it.
Anyway, I’m proud to announce the grand opening of The Mukhtaar Estate, a Facebook discussion group geared towards…well, it’s geared towards discussing anything you’d like to discuss! And the best part is that it’s as close to “real time” as it gets.
So, what are you waiting for? Come join us at The Mukhtaar Estate!
Necromancer Ascending Update
“So, Nat, how about a Necromancer Ascending update?”
That’s the current most-frequently-asked question, not only on social media and here at Erindor Press, but even from my colleagues at my day job! However, in order to actually give you that Necromancer Ascending update, I have to talk a little about process first.

Random image off the interwebz. Not the actual cover art.
I’ve written several articles about my writing process over the last few years, and I’ve been interviewed a dozen times or so by people who are all interested in the same thing: What does the process of writing a novel look like?
My answer? Controlled chaos.