The Big List of Posts and Hot Links

A comprehensive list of every newsletter/post that has appeared on Behind the Chapters to date, separated into categories

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With 80+ newsletters/posts and counting on Behind the Chapters, I thought it was time to present them in categories to make it easier for you to find what you need, when you need it. The three categories included are: (1) Writer’s Mindset & Motivation (2) Storytelling Craft & Technique and (3) The Publishing Journey.

I also added tabs for these categories to the top of Behind the Chapters online, with a couple of exceptions: the recent Spark to Story Workshop series and the Creative Settings Challenge workshop series. Although the workshops are listed below under the Craft & Technique category, they will be found under the Fiction Writing Workshops category at the top of the blog page on Substack.

Note: Below you’ll see that I kept the titles and links separate. This seems to make it easier to read a long list of links.

Looking for help with characterization, writing routines, setting, plotting, and more? See the many features under Craft & Technique. Need some good old inspiration or motivation? Scroll down to Mindset & Motivation. And if it’s the business of writing fiction or peeks behind the scenes of my books and writing that you seek, head to the titles listed under The Publishing Journey.

Storytelling Craft & Technique

• "How to Keep Your Writing Flowing With a Trusty Routine" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/how-to-keep-your-writing-flowing
  

• "How to Write Your First Novel While Working Nine to Five" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/how-to-write-your-first-novel-while
  

• "Craft Unforgettable Characters Like a Pro" - 3 powerful questions https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/craft-unforgettable-characters
  

• "Why You Need a Character Spreadsheet for Your Novel" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/why-you-need-a-character-spreadsheet
  

• "Catchy First Lines That Hook Readers" - #3 Creative Writing Prompt
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/catchy-first-lines-that-hook-readers
  

• "The Power of a Name" - How to Choose Names Your Readers Will Never Forget
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/the-power-of-a-name
  

• "Capturing a Sense of Place" - Transform your fiction settings https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/capturing-a-sense-of-place
  

• "Using Suspense To Elevate Tension in Fiction" - Regardless of Genre https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/delicious-deviousness
  

• "Turning Bad Weather into Great Writing" - #2 Sunday Snippets)
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/turning-bad-weather-into-great-writing
  

• "Including Gothic Elements In Your Fiction" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/including-gothic-elements-in-your
  

• "Not All Words Are Equal" - Replacing weak words with strong ones https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/not-all-words-are-equal
  

• "How Well Do You Know Your Main Character?" - A Revealing Fiction Writing Exercise https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/how-well-do-you-know-your-main-character
  

• "Finding a Special Idea For Your Novel" - 10 Inspiring Sources https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/finding-a-special-idea-for-your-next
  

• "Why I Plot My Novels" - The case for plotting before writing https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/why-i-plot-my-novels
  

• "What I Learned in 2023 About Plotting a Novel" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/what-i-learned-in-2023-about-plotting
  

• "Plotting Words" - 18 Tools, Gadgets and More for Plotting a Novel https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/plotting-words
  

• "Private Places to Write Your Novel" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/private-places-to-write-your-novel-421b021903cc
  

• "Two Trusty Online Fiction Writing Venues" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/two-trusty-online-fiction-writing
  

Spark to Story Workshop Series

• "From Spark to Story: How to Turn an Idea into a Page-Turning Concept" - Introduction
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/start-that-novel-now-your-first-step
  

• "Spark to Story: How to Turn an Idea into a Page-Turning Concept for Your Novel" - Week 1
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/spark-to-story-how-to-turn-an-idea
  

• "Spark to Story: Turn an Idea Into a Page-Turning Concept for Your Novel” - Week 2
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/spark-to-story-turn-idea-into-concept
  

• "Spark to Story: Turn an Idea Into a Page-Turning Concept for Your Novel" - Week 3
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/spark-to-story-turn-an-idea-into
  

• "Spark to Story: Turn an Idea Into a Page-Turning Concept for Your Novel" - Week 4
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/spark-to-story-turn-an-idea-into-bea
  

• "Spark to Story: How to Turn an Idea Into a Page-Turning Concept for Your Novel" - Week 5
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/spark-to-story-how-to-turn-an-idea-9a8
  

Creative Settings Challenge Series

• "Let's Bring Your Fiction Settings to Life" - Exercise 1 https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/lets-bring-your-fiction-settings
  

• "Fiction Settings From the Character's Viewpoint" - Exercise 2 https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/fiction-settings-from-the-characters
  

• "Creating a Sense of Place Using Your Own Imagination" - Exercise 3 https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/creating-a-sense-of-place-using-your
  

• "Crafting Vivid Worlds" - Exercise 4 https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/creating-a-wider-world-for-your-stories
  

• "Story Setting Challenge Wrap Up" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/story-setting-challenge-wrap-up
  

Writer’s Mindset & Motivation

• "Words Unblocked" - Breaking Through the Barrier of Writer's Block
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/words-unblocked
  

• "Your Inner Critic Can Get Loud But Write Anyway"
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/your-inner-critic-can-get-loud-but
  

• "The Creativity Void Between Novels" - Shushing the Negative Voices That Intrude on Our Writing
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/the-creativity-void-between-novels
  

• "Write Everyday... Or Don't: 8 tips for finding your rhythm" - #1 Sunday Snippet
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/1-sunday-snippets
  

• "Breaking Free from the Social Media Treadmill, Part 2 of 2" - The Middle (or Sane) Ground
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/breaking-free-from-the-social-media
  

• "Breaking Free from the Social Media Treadmill" - Part 1 of 2 https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/the-novelists-new-clothes
  

• "The Magic of Happy Places in Life and Fiction" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/the-magic-of-happy-places-in-life
  

• "How I Deal With Writer's Block" - Five Tips to Help Reignite Your Imagination
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/how-i-deal-with-writers-block
  

• "How I Deal With Writer's Block" (2023 version) https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/tips-for-dealing-with-writers-block-49a1b4da723c
  

• "Step Away From the Keyboard" - Every Writer Should Take Time to Recharge
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/step-away-from-the-keyboard
  

• "Between the Words" - Where a writer's creativity is born . . . and nurtured
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/between-the-words
  

• "From Adversity to Creative Writing Success" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/from-adversity-to-creative-writing
  

• "7 Tips I Use to Boost My Writing Confidence" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/7-ways-to-boost-your-writing-confidence
  

• "Ten Ways to Boost Creativity" - And Avoid Those Frustrating Writing Slumps
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/ten-ways-to-boost-creativity
  

• "The Empty Page" - After THE END: Finding My Next Novel https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/the-empty-page
  

• "When Creativity Strikes" - How to make the best of it https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/when-creativity-strikes
  

• "Don't Forget to Water Your Brain This Summer" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/dont-forget-to-water-your-brain-this
  

• "Get Your Creative Juices Flowing With a Walk in the Woods During These Last Days of Winter"
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/get-your-creative-juices-flowing
  

• "On Writing a Novel: Begin, or It Will Never Get Done" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/on-writing-a-novel-begin-or-it-will-never-get-done-40f74bf35c0d
  

• "Fears Lying in the Dark" - The truth about writing distractions https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/fears-lying-in-the-dark
  

• "On Insomnia and Plotting a New Novel in 2024" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/on-insomnia-and-plotting-a-new-novel
  

• “Writers, Release Your Creativity: Try This Free Association Writing Prompt”
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/unleash-your-creativity
  

The Publishing Journey

• "My Film Deal: Why this one feels different—and what's next" (#4 Sunday Snippet)

  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/my-film-deal-why-this-one-feels-differentand
  

• "Four Substack Gems on the Business of Fiction Writing" - #9 Sunday Snippets
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/four-substack-gems-on-business
  

• "My Latest Novel Chloe and Other Creepy Things" - #3 Sunday Snippet
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/my-latest-novel-chloe-and-other-creepy
  

• "My Conversation With Karin Slaughter" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/my-conversation-with-karin-slaughter
  

• "Behind the Chapters: Celebrating a Milestone" - #7 Sunday Snippet https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/we-made-the-top-10-and-i-need-your
  

• "From Cozy to Chilling" - The Thrilling Transition from Women's Lit to Domestic Suspense
  https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/from-cozy-to-chilling
  

• "A New Excerpt From My Upcoming Suspense Novel YOU NEVER KNOW" https://conniebriscoe.substack.com/p/a-new-excerpt-from-my-upcoming-suspense

Whew!

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Thanks!