Resources, insights, and inspiration for writers at every stage of their journey.
From the instructors who have helped over 100,000 aspiring authors learn their craft.
Recent Articles
- Genre Conventions Are a Promise — Break Them at Your Peril
Subverting genre conventions is the most common mistake I see in ambitious first novels. The intent is to be bold. The result is usually a confused, disappointed reader. When someone picks up a romance, they’ve… - How to Use Flashbacks Without Killing Your Scene
Most writers insert flashbacks at the worst possible moment. A character has just made a discovery. Stakes are high. The reader is leaning in. And then the scene cuts to six years ago to explain… - Where Your Writing Voice Actually Lives
Writers spend years trying to “find their voice.” Most are looking in the wrong place. Voice doesn’t live in adjectives or sentence length. It lives in what your narrator notices. Pick a room. One writer… - Your Antagonist Should Be the Hero of Their Own Story
Your antagonist is the hero of their own story. If you don’t write them that way, they’ll come out flat. The weak antagonist is one of the most common problems in first novels. The villain… - Why Your Subplot Might Be a Sideshow
Most subplots in first novels exist to fill pages. The writer adds a love interest with a job problem, a best friend going through a breakup, a mystery at the office. Each gets a few… - The Missing Ingredient Most Writers Ignore: Internal Conflict
Most writers spend 80% of their energy on the external plot and almost none on the internal conflict. Then they wonder why readers finish the book and forget it. External conflict is the story’s skeleton—it… - Stop Ending Your Scenes with Success
Every scene you end with a success is slowly killing your novel’s momentum. I’ve seen this pattern hundreds of times. A student with clean prose and characters readers actually care about. People quitting halfway through…. - Memoir Isn’t About What Happened to You
Most memoir writers think the interesting part is what happened. It’s not. The real material in memoir is the distance between who you were and who you became. The event is just the container. What… - The Editing Trap That Kills First Novels
Most writers don’t finish their first novel. The reason is almost never a bad idea. It’s editing while they write. I’ve taught over 100,000 students. The pattern is the same: you write a chapter, you… - Tension Doesn’t Require Danger
Most writers think tension requires danger. It doesn’t. You can have a character in mortal peril and produce zero tension. You can have a character waiting for a phone call and make a reader’s stomach… - Show Don’t Tell Is the Most Misunderstood Writing Advice
“Show don’t tell” is the most repeated writing advice in existence. It’s also the most misunderstood. Telling isn’t bad. “She was exhausted” works fine if exhaustion is background the reader needs to move forward. Spending… - Romance Dominates Kindle: 5 Stats Every Fiction Writer Should Know
55% of top-selling Kindle books in 2025 were romance — and 75% of those bestselling authors went indie. Five eye-opening stats about the hottest genre in publishing.
About Writing Academy
Writing Academy offers comprehensive video courses for aspiring authors. Whether you’re writing your first novel, exploring screenwriting, or ready to publish, our self-paced courses provide the structure and guidance you need.
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Your Instructors
Steve Alcorn
USA Today bestselling author of twenty novels and non-fiction books, including mysteries, young adult novels, children’s books, and the acclaimed writer’s guide How to Fix Your Novel. Steve also founded Alcorn McBride Inc, which provides audio and video systems for theme parks worldwide.
Dani Alcorn
Author, instructor, editor, and mentor. Dani trained in screenwriting at Northwestern University and the University of British Columbia and worked as a professional medical writer. She is the author of screenplays and a science fiction novel.