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55 Funniest Authors and Books Guaranteed to Make You Laugh
TL;DR This guide rounds up 55 of the funniest authors and comedy authors writing today and throughout history, from Mark Twain and Oscar Wilde to Tina Fey and Terry Pratchett. It breaks down the seven core styles of humor writing (satire, slapstick, dark comedy,...
How to Start a Story: 10 Steps to Hook Readers From Line One
TL;DR To start a story that hooks readers, your opening sentence needs to do at least two of four things: connect readers to a character, produce intrigue, elicit an emotion, or paint a vivid image. From there, your first paragraph makes a promise, your last paragraph...
Realistic Fiction: Definition, What to Include, and 12 Examples
TL;DR: Realistic fiction is a genre where the setting, characters, and events could plausibly happen to real people, with no supernatural or fantastical elements. It requires a contemporary setting, believable events, a relatable contemporary issue, and a message...
15 Fantasy Themes for Your Novel: Examples and How to Write Your Own
TL;DR: A fantasy theme is the underlying message your story teaches beneath the plot, characters, and magic system. Below are 15 fantasy themes with book examples (from self-discovery to power corrupts), plus a 4-step process for building a theme from your own life...
Original Little Golden Books: the First 12 and 80+ Years of History
TL;DR The original 12 Little Golden Books launched on October 1, 1942, priced at 25 cents each when other children’s books cost $2 to $3. Published by Simon & Schuster and Western Printing and Lithographing Company, the series became the best-selling...
12 Unreliable Narrator Examples (And How to Write One)
TL;DR An unreliable narrator is a storyteller whose account of events can’t be fully trusted, whether from bias, madness, naivety, or deliberate deception. Classic examples include Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye, Amy Dunne in Gone Girl, and...
Is Spines Publishing a Scam? The Ultimate Spines Publishing Review (2026)
TL;DR Spines isn’t a scam, it’s a real, venture-backed AI publishing platform that does deliver a finished book fast. But it’s a three-year subscription, not a one-time purchase: it takes 30% of your royalties, you don’t control your own Amazon...
How To Write About Nature: 11 Techniques For Vivid, Publishable Prose
TL;DR To write about nature well, pair direct observation with precise sensory detail, a narrow focus, and a clear reason the scene matters to your reader. The strongest nature writing picks one place, season, or creature rather than “nature” in general,...