Hi! I'm Karyn.

Hi Reader, At the beginning of last week, I did something very out of character. Even though I had loads of responsibilities (a kids’ dentist appointment, dance performances, and a baseball game on top of regular day-to-day and work duties) I drove three hours up to Yosemite National Park to take part in what was essentially a 2-day reader’s retreat. If you follow along with Reese Witherspoon’s book club, you might have seen her “Camp Unwritten” events publicized. Readers get to go camping in...

Hi Reader, Listen, I love craft books. I am a writing craft book girlie. In fact I bought a new one recently, and have it and another sitting on my nightstand waiting to be cracked open. In addition to my MFA professors, craft books have been some of the best teachers that have helped me learn about story and voice and about the writer’s mindset. I think there is very much a place for them. But—and this might ruffle some feathers—they won’t actually teach you how to write. Not in the way you...

Hi Reader, How do you feel about letting people read your work? Are you gushing with pride, wanting to send it out to the whole world? Or are you more cautious? Nervous even? What if it’s someone who’s close to you? A family member, perhaps, or a close friend? For me, I can send my book out to agents, book coaches, and editors, and be fine (ok, fine-ish) with criticism or rejections, but the second someone I know in my real life wants to read it, I clam up. But last week, the most amazing...

Hi Reader, This week I picked up a book that I haven't touched since November. And I don’t know about you, but I find it difficult to get back into a story that I set aside, whether it's reading or writing. But I think this is a super common thing with writers. When I ask my clients how long they’ve been working on a project, they often give the answer of not months, but years. As in “Well the story idea came to me three years ago and I’ve been working on it off and on since then.” Now, this...

Hi Reader, I hope you're having a lovely April! As for me, I finally did it. I sent out my first round of queries for my revised novel. Eek. Along with revising my manuscript, I also took another look at my query letter and decided to do some revising... If there’s been one big thing that has changed in query letters since I was working as an agent, I’d say it is the all-important one-sentence pitch. Think “elevator pitch” or logline. Not only is it expected to be front-and-center in a query...

Hi Reader, Happy Spring! I don’t know about you, but as soon as the season changes, I feel like a new person! Gone are the winter blues, and inspiration bursts up like new flowers everywhere I turn. I hope it’s the case for you. I am super eager to move on to a different project than the one I’ve been revising since November. Yup, it’s been taking me five months, folks, to re-envision this draft after getting some super helpful feedback. By the end of the month—so, beginning of next week,...

Hi Reader, Two weeks ago, I found myself on a very loud, very crowded Disney cruise in the Bahamas. We booked this trip to escape the winter doldrums and to avoid being stuck at home while the kids were out of school for ski week. We are big Disney fans, so a Disney cruise seemed like an inevitable trip for us. And it delivered on all the magic it promised. Our kids loved the Aquaduck water attraction, the pool with water slides, the unlimited soft-serve ice cream, the shows, and getting to...

Hi Reader, Happy February, writer friends. I, for one, am glad to see January go. It’s got to be the worst month of the year, and this was a brutal entry into 2026. If you’re in the States, as I am, then you’re probably well aware of the heaviness and chaos that has rippled through our country. I don’t know about you, but fraught political tensions, crap winter weather, and all the pressure to suddenly wake up and be a better, newer you, doesn’t exactly get my creative juices flowing. Many...

Hi Reader, I hope this finds you well and, most importantly, writing! I have been a little MIA over here because I’ve been deep in my revision cave, as I work on polishing my contemporary romance before I wade back into the querying waters (gulp!). I mentioned a few weeks ago that one of the things the developmental editor I hired nailed me on was my characters’ backstories, and so I’ve been thinking—and studying—a lot about the craft of weaving in backstory effectively. Some writers weave in...