Site of the Week - Fiction Writers' Mentor

Ooops! Last week got away from me and I didn't post my Site of the Week. So, to make up for it, I will be posting two sites this week. I've decided to do something a bit different here and post a site I do NOT recommend. There are a lot of helpful websites for writers - but there is an equal (ok, probably larger) number that fall short.

After finding Fiction Writers' Mentor which promises advice on fiction writing I went to check it out. The author who runs the site is published (three novels) and I do believe that the information contained on the site is meant to be helpful. However, on two of the three pages I scanned I found spelling and grammar errors. (If you are planning to give advice on creative writing - be sure to double-check your text before publishing.)

But the clincher for me was that the author used the first line of their novel as an example for establishing a sense of place. It was thirty-seven words long, included four -ly pronouns and two hyphenated words. Wow! That's a bit much for me in a first line.

I chose not to provide a link to this site. If you really want to give it a browse, Google it. ;-)

Site of the Week - Ancient Weapons and Armory

So, I've decided to take a slight detour from the classic websites for writers and highlight Ancient Weapons and Armory, a great research site. For those of you who know me, battle scenes are my favorite to write and when I stumbled onto this site my heartbeats quickened. ;-) 

This site is a bit of an unusual combination - an ancient weaponry encylopedia with links to weapon replica suppliers. (No, I haven't placed any orders - yet.) The weapons are listed on the left side of the page. Clicking on the links reveals quick general descriptions of each item, including such useful information as how much a typical suit of chain mail weighs or the basic design of a bayonet. These are the sorts of details that can add depth and dimension to your writing. And you can find them all in one handy little database.

Now for you sci-fi folks, you can just make up your own weapons. But if you are so inclined you can click here for a site which has lists (and pictures) of modern military weaponry of all sorts.

So, pick your poison, grab a notebook to jot down notes and browse until your hearts are content.

Happy researching. :-)

Site of the Week - BookEnds, LLC -- A Literary Agency

Just a little reminder, this review is only my opinion. :-) I hope you find it helpful.

I have promised you all a review of an agent blog this week. So, as not to disappoint you,  I offer Bookends, LLC – A Literary Agency 



Bookends, LLC accepts submissions from just about every genre you can think of including; fantasy, romance (historical, paranormal, and contemporary), westerns, and mysteries as well as non-fiction. However, they do show a strong preference for romance. (If you have a paranormal romance, this looks like a good place to submit.)

But I did not choose to highlight this blog mainly as a suggestion for submissions. The content and advice Jessica Faust, the agency’s co-founder and lead agent, offers is solid and straightforward. Faust blogs on a wide variety of topics; from basic submission technique to making the perfect cranberry daiquiri for the holidays, all you under 21-ers ignore that last bit. ;-)

She also responds to questions from aspiring authors. Her advice on how to tell if your agent is "bad" (a.k.a not helping you achieve your goal of publication) is frank and informative.

I would recommend checking out this blog. Bookends, LLC gets 4 out of 5 keyboards. :-)


K. Looney(writer)

Site of the Week - Duotrope's Digest

For my first website I have chosen to review Duotrope’s Digest.


Duotrope specializes in poetry and fiction. However, they do not offer information on novel markets but cover shorter pieces, from flash fiction to novellas. The site includes a word count guideline in case you aren’t certain which category best describes your piece.

This site is free and does not require a membership to view. But if you’d like to sign up, it only takes a few seconds and is free. As a member you can add your own experiences when submitting to markets. By putting in statistics, such as response time, you help other aspiring writers choose the right market.

The site is updated daily and currently includes information on 2,725 markets for short fiction and poetry. You can browse by title, or search for a certain genre/theme that will suit your work. My favorite feature of this site is the Deadline Calendar. They have an extensive list of contests and compilations that do not charge an entrance or reading fee. The submission deadlines are listed in chronological order and each market title is linked to a page where you can get more detailed information, including a visit to the market’s website.


Duotrope’s Digest is easy to navigate and packed with helpful information. I didn’t have any major issues while exploring the Quick Menu bar across the top of the main page. I would definitely recommend it to other aspiring writers with poetry and/or less-than-novel-length pieces looking for homes in the publishing world.

On a side note; the site is run completely on donations. So if you can afford it, make a contribution or buy one of their fun products for writers to help keep it running.

If you’d like to check it out for yourself, I have added a link to Duotrope’s Digest in my Webites for Writers section.