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The essential resource for writers

Join thousands of successful writers when you subscribe to The Writer magazine. Each month The Writer is full of features you can use to improve your writing, including before-and-after examples of improved writing, more literary markets than ever before, practical solutions for writing problems, selected literary magazine profiles, tips from famous authors, and hands-on advice. Here’s what’s in our current issue.

Safe haven

By Tammy Cullers

Writing cozy mysteries in a not-so-cozy world.

Features

10 questions

By Jen Glantz

What writers need to ask before pitching an agent.

Second-career agents

By Ryan G. Van Cleave

Are they the right literary match for you?

The big thrill

By K. L. Romo

Prolific thriller author Jon Land gets real about mentorship, storytelling, and staying relevant in the current publishing climate. 

Writing magical realism

By Jack Smith

How modern writers seamlessly blend fantasy with reality.

Judging a book by its cover

By Kerrie Flanagan

Tips for making your design stand out on the shelf.

Thin skin

By Susan Breen

How to deal with criticism as a writer.

Departments

WRITING ESSENTIALS

Double duty dialogue

By Gail Radley

The do’s and don’ts of rendering speech on the page.

FREELANCE SUCCESS

Choose passion

By Pete Croatto

A new take on the generalist-specialist debate.

LITERARY SPOTLIGHT

Analog Science Fiction and Fact

By Melissa Hart

This historic magazine puts the science in sci-fi.

CONFERENCE INSIDER

Left Coast Crime

By Melissa Hart

Six hundred mystery writers gather each spring to talk about craft – and murder.

Also in Every Issue

From the Editor

Take Note

Featuring Tammy Cullers, James Atlas, gifts for Poe fans, and more.

Markets

Niche magazines

How I Write

Stephanie Powell Watts: "I could write 30 pages of how a character meets another character and not wind up using any of it, but I’ll get to know that character. No writing is wasted."