Longtime editor & former agent Mary Kole has written a highly informative post about how she handles clients who use AI to generate substantive portions of their manuscript. She generously offers sample contract language other freelancers can adapt for their own purposes.

After Editing Two AI-Assisted Manuscripts, I Rewrote My Client Agreement | Jane Friedman

Inexperienced authors may believe generative AI use improves their manuscript, but there’s a cost—extra fees charged by freelance editors.

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In queries & book marketing copy, authors often introduce their protagonist with a list of facts: “Mark is a retired FBI agent with PTSD from New York City.” While this offers information, it lacks emotional punch. Instead, try leading with desire, fear, contradiction, or an unusual circumstance.

Why Your Book Description Feels Flat—and How to Fix It | Jane Friedman

Even though promotional copy (aka blurb) for your novel or memoir is necessarily brief, effective ones can take readers on an emotional journey.

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Lessons learned by the author: — Begin earlier. Six months of pre-launch marketing was valuable, but a year would have been better. — Spend more time building relationships with indie bookstores and historical fiction communities before launch. Learn more from @ashlioc.bsky.social.

How a Debut Self-Published Novel Earned Five Figures in 10 Weeks Without Kindle Unlimited | Jane Friedman

With no platform and no publisher, one author built a six-month pre-launch plan around a single question: what is your goal?

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For indie authors, the narrator you cast for your audiobook and the terms you agree will follow your book for its life. Get the narrator right to avoid diminishing returns later. Insight from professional audiobook narrator Hannibal Hills.

Choosing the Right Voice for Your Audiobook | Jane Friedman

Choosing your audiobook’s narrator has a bigger impact than you might think. Here are casting tips from a veteran narrator and producer.

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Sometimes an author gets so excited by his premise that instead of turning it into a plot, he simply takes the reader on a guided tour as the premise plays out. This tends to be a mistake. Insight from editor Peter Gelfan.

Your Premise Is Not Your Plot | Jane Friedman

A premise is the seed of a story, not its structure. Learn how to turn a what-if into a plot.

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Authors too often overlook local marketing. But the best way to secure national reach is to start in your own backyard. Insight from longtime marketer and publicist Penny Sansevieri.

Why You Should Focus on Local Book Publicity First | Jane Friedman

People take pride in supporting someone from their communit, and readers are far more likely to buy a book if they feel a personal connection to the author, even a small one.

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The professional association of literary agents (AALA) has modified its Canon of Ethics to allow agents to earn money in additional ways while still retaining membership. For those seeking an agent, it is more important than ever to critically evaluate the people you're submitting to.

Agent Business Models May Be Shifting: What I Fear Will Happen | Jane Friedman

When the new AALA Canon of Ethics goes into effect, authors must be more diligent and sharp in evaluating who they partner with.

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I would call this the agent issue if it weren't for the continual drip-drip of AI dramas that require commentary. (Sending today at noon EDT as usual, free & paid editions: janefriedman.com/subscribe-pa...)

"I ask readers what resonated with them and who they think would enjoy GUARDED. Their answers have become my best marketing research. They continue to surprise me." First-time author Debbie Friedman discusses what's worked.

How I Sold 1,000 Copies of My Self-Published Memoir in Five Months | Jane Friedman

This debut memoirist kept asking one question: What’s the next thing I can do that puts this book in front of readers?

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The audiobook edition is now available, narrated by Erin Grassie! I know some of you were asking when this would release even before the print edition came out. It's now here. 🥳

It’s not uncommon for writers to unconsciously align their main character’s perspective with their own. When this happens, protagonists react and make choices not because of the experiences they’ve had, but because that is how the writer would react. Insight from Erin Radniecki.

Don’t Leave Your Reader Searching for Meaning: The Importance of Protagonist Context | Jane Friedman

Any element of a story has the potential to be positive or negative, helpful or harmful. Your character’s context provides the frame of reference.

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Your memoir may focus on a significant relationship in your life. But if this person looms so large (for good or not-so-good reasons), the book could end up centering them instead of you. Jennifer Landau explains how to avoid that.

How to Center Your Story When Writing About the People in Your Life | Jane Friedman

When writing about a significant relationship, here are some tips to make sure you don’t end up a supporting player in your own story.

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If you're editing or publishing an anthology, here's how to make it as easy as possible for contributors to market and promote. You can reduce the friction between their desire to help and their ability to actually help. Insight from @patricegopo.bsky.social.

Working With Contributors: The Power of Many in Anthology Promotion | Jane Friedman

When editors share ideas and provide resources to support that work, they can help activate contributor engagement in ways that matter.

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A New York Times bestselling author who writes books about popular TV shows offers guidance on how to sell these books in an increasingly challenging market. Here’s Jennifer Keishin Armstrong.

How to Sell a Book About Your Favorite TV Show in 2026 | Jane Friedman

The TV-book subgenre has grown harder to break into as rewatch podcasts and celebrity memoirs crowd out journalists.

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“He got dressed, brushed his teeth, grabbed his keys, and drove to work.” Meanwhile, the reader grew bored with such tedious, empty details, put the book down, and chose another off their shelves. @tiffanyyatesmartin.bsky.social helps you avoid clunky and meaningless transitions.

Why Your Story Feels Choppy (Even When the Plot Is Solid) | Jane Friedman

Transitioning from one scene to another may seem trivial, but it’s crucial to help orient readers and conduct them smoothly through the story.

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Ironically, fiction has to be more credible than real life. Anecdotes tend to say, “You’re not going to believe this one,” and we’re not entirely sure we do. We believe stories b/c they go deeper and don’t end neatly. Insight from @lesleykrueger.bsky.social on turning real life into fiction.

How to Turn an Anecdote Into a Story | Jane Friedman

For an anecdote (“You won’t believe what I saw!”) to grow into an impactful story, a surprise element isn’t enough—real change needs to occur.

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Is it OK to have a prologue? How many points of view are too many? Is my work literary, suspense, horror? Is it allowed to be more than one thing? Am I allowed to tell this story the way it wants to be told? Alexandra Burt discusses the problems with permission seeking.

Why Artists Owe the Work and Not the World | Jane Friedman

The artist’s responsibility is not to repeat what’s been done, but to become fully themselves by following wherever the work leads.

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I address the biggest question I get from writers these days.

Should You Use Substack for Your Email Newsletter? Or Something Else? | Jane Friedman

Should authors use Substack for their newsletter? It depends on your purpose—strengthening ties with existing readers, or reaching new ones.

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Should authors pitch themselves for podcasts? Self-pitching often works best when the author already has a relationship with the host. Otherwise, the risk is that the author pitches the book rather than the topic or conversation inside the book, which is what podcast hosts typically care about.

Podcast Publicity for Authors and Publishers: What's Working | Jane Friedman

Industry experts share pitching strategies: start early, target niche shows, research hosts, build relationships first, and prepare authors thoroughly.

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When you tell a story from a distance, it’s much harder to convey the full emotional impact of it. But when you become an expert observer of emotions and can stay with them long enough to capture them in words, there’s no story you can’t write, says April Davila.

How Stillness Can Help Us Write Powerful Scenes | Jane Friedman

Sitting still with minor physical discomforts builds mental strength that, applied to your writing, helps you write emotionally difficult scenes.

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This interview with Yahdon is required reading for publishing people: lunch.publishersmarketplace.com/2026/06/ask-...

I know how tempting it is to play designer, especially if it’s an enjoyable distraction from the writing. Why you should resist, from @sandrawendeleditor.bsky.social and @paulnylander.bsky.social.

Your Creative Team Wants You to Stop Formatting and Just Write the Darn Book | Jane Friedman

Learn how to prepare clean Word manuscripts and mark PDFs for book production—avoiding unnecessary formatting and using styles correctly to save time.

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If you don’t know your “why me, why now,” then using an LLM can do more harm than good, advises author Tawny Lara.

Finding Your Voice as a Writer in the Age of AI | Jane Friedman

Life experiences are what create your voice, brand you as an author, and make your writing worth reading.

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Deciding how to start and end your novel is not as simple as picking a starting point and an end point at will. The same is true for memoir, I'd argue. Insight from Miranda Keskes.

Start With the End: A Simple Bookend Structure for Novelists | Jane Friedman

Before writing your novel, imagining just the first and last scenes can help clarify the story’s point and the reader’s emotional journey.

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According to Jake Bauman at Sony, the biggest trend in book-to-screen adaptations is the self-publishing and fan-fiction pipeline. “Everyone’s trying to harness the power of those fandoms,” he said. Here's my full coverage from a US Book Show panel, featuring agents, scouts & buyers in Hollywood.

From Online Fandoms to Blockbuster Films and TV Shows: What Books Get Optioned Now | Jane Friedman

Hollywood scouts and studio execs reveal why book sales don’t always matter, BookTok rules, and how YA isn’t really YA.

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Scenes are great for what Andre Dubus calls vertical moments, or the pivotal moments where change occurs. Insight from @lisacooperellison.bsky.social.

How Scene Writing Helps You Lose Control (and Find Your Memoir’s Story) | Jane Friedman

Pay close attention to any surprising details or patterns in your memoir’s scenes—they often point to the story that really wants to be told.

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Some authors of children’s books are primarily motivated to create something meaningful for a child they love. Author @barbaraleary.bsky.social suggests not worrying whether the market wants your story and whether there is a child in your life who might treasure it.

The Value of Legacy: Encouraging the Heirloom Picture Book Author | Jane Friedman

If you’re writing for an audience of one, not thousands, creating a picture book for the child in your life is a goal within reach.

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The lack of story resolution doesn't have to be a bug—it can be a feature. An open ending can lead readers to engage with the story’s main theme, question or dilemma. Insight from Karmen Spiljak.

Resolution Isn’t the Only Payoff: What Short Stories Teach Us About Endings | Jane Friedman

With other essential elements in place, short story writers can consider leaving an ending ambiguous, with room for the reader to ruminate.

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Character likeability and story relatability are two entirely different things. Important insights here especially for children's and YA authors from Christina Wyman.

Not All Main Characters Need to Be Likeable | Jane Friedman

Discomfort with “unlikeable” female characters may reflect readers’ own biases and have little or nothing to do with the quality of the writing.

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If you spend enough time talking to publishing service providers, you will hear the same phrase repeated again and again: “We have distribution.” Sometimes that statement is misleading or inaccurate.  Learn what meaningful distribution is about from Tanya Hall, CEO at Greeneleaf.

One Way to Tell If a Publisher Actually Has Distribution | Jane Friedman

When working with a small press or hybrid publisher, it’s crucial to understand the difference between mere availability and true distribution.

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