author

Recommended Books on the Craft of Writing

Recommended Books on the Craft of Writing

Often when I teach a writing workshop, my students ask for my favorite books about the craft of writing. So here’ s my odd list—a combo of books about writing prose, screenplays, and even musicals to help you find the kinds of books you want to read to improve your craft.

Learn to Be Unreasonable: Lessons from Artists

Learn to Be Unreasonable: Lessons from Artists

At 42 years old, I feel I’ve spent my whole life being very reasonable. Perhaps it’s time for an era of unreasonableness. In honor of this, here are my top 10 favorite unreasonable artists. May they inspire us all to be a little less reasonable.

Bibliography for Oil and Marble

Bibliography for Oil and Marble

A lot of people ask about the research that went into my art historical novel, Oil and Marble. I’ve been obsessed with Michelangelo, Leonardo and the Italian Renaissance for over 20 years (I’ve read every book I could find, crawled into …

First Draft Done. Now What?

First Draft Done. Now What?

I’m a novelist, so I know the feeling: You conquered your fear and started your novel. You wrote for months or maybe years. You survived the long desert known as “the middle.” You wrote your favorite parts; the parts that made you want to write the story in the first place. And then, you wrote the last sentence. Added the last period. The End.

The Question That Inspired Oil and Marble

The Question That Inspired Oil and Marble

The most common question I get about my art-historical novel, Oil and Marble: a novel of Leonardo and Michelangelo, is: “What inspired you to write it?”

For five years, from 1501 – 1505, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo Buonarroti both lived and worked in Florence. Leonardo was an aging master, the most famous of his day. Michelangelo was a young, up-and-coming sculptor.

Writing a Successful Query Letter

Writing a Successful Query Letter

Bestselling author Stephanie Storey’s top 5 tips for writing a killer query letter. If you follow this advice, I can’t promise that you, too, will get your first choice agent, but I can promise that you will write a better query letter… And increase your odds of getting someone to read your manuscript.