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Alina Wells

Welcome to Writing It Wells, a writing blog dedicated to providing tips, resources, and inspiration for writers at all stages.

Blogger, Author, Creative Entrepreneur

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Hello Friends!

Welcome to Writing It Wells. Here I share my thoughts on all things literary.

Tune in every Tuesday for a new blog post and connect with me on social media for nonstop writing fun!

Feb 9

14 Compelling Novels Written By Black Authors To Read Next Month

Searching for your next read? Look no further! Here are 14 new releases written by Black authors that are hitting bookshelves near you. Open Water Summary: In a crowded London pub, two young people meet. Both are Black British, both won scholarships to private schools where they struggled to belong, both are now artists―he a photographer, she a dancer―and both are trying to make their mark in a world that by turns celebrates and rejects them. Tentatively, tenderly, they fa

Feb 2

How I Wrote 20k Words In Two Weeks (& You Can Too!)

Ever wonder how published authors churn out so many novels in a five month period? If you've watched them carefully enough, you'll notice that not only are they successfully producing books but that they seem to be constantly writing in large doses. For those of us with publishing dreams this type of writing schedule can seem insane. Most of us have jobs on top of pursuing our writing, children who need our attention, and lives that need living alongside our fictional ones. I

Jan 5

27 Writing Prompts For January

Happy January writers! We're so proud to be entering our second year of blogging here at Writing It Wells. We're dedicated to bringing you resources, tips, and advice to help you better your writing and get you one step closer to your goals. We've got exciting changes coming so make sure you subscribe on our homepage to never miss an update. Inspiration may be around every corner but sometimes when the holidays come to an end and the new year begins we find ourselves falling

Dec 31, 2020

How To Make Writing Resolutions For 2021 (That You'll Actually Follow-Through On)

New Years is a time to reflect back on the past year and refocus our goals for the future. It's a time to be simultaneously grateful whilst also turning to the hope that will carry us forward. We can all collectively agree that we're happy to see 2020 come to an end. We have all struggled and faced unexpected challenges. 2021 offers new hope but also a prolonging of certain pandemic challenges. While we all eagerly await the vaccine, we will still have to live in the current

Dec 22, 2020

How I Built A Creative Business In Chaotic 2020

Last December I made a decision. A terrifying, riveting, exhilarating decision that changed my lifestyle and my perspective of what's possible. I quit my day job and started a creative business...without experience, know-how, or a clear idea of where I would end up. Crazy right? Absolutely. Certifiably nuts. As an organized, Type A, planner this kind of dive-in-and-go-with-the-flow approach has never been natural for me. In fact, if you had told me two years ago that I would

Dec 17, 2020

Are These Editing Mistakes Costing You Readers?

Writing It Wells is here to help you learn the in's and out's of writing. Today we look at 6 editing mistakes that could cost you your next reader. We all know that the physical act of writing a book is only one part of writing. As writers we tend to wear several different hats, one of which (and arguably one of the more important ones) is that of an editor. Even if we end up hiring someone to edit our book, self-editing is still inevitable. Whether we're scanning for copy ed

Dec 8, 2020

5 Myths About Self-Publishing You Shouldn't Listen To

When it's time to consider what publishing direction you should go in, there are two paths: traditional and self-publishing. While traditional publishing has been labeled as the respectable route, self-publishing still carries the stigma of being less professional. This simply isn't true! Self-publishing bears no influence upon the quality of a book and there are many benefits from self-publishing (mainly more creative and financial control). Today we're going to myth-bust 5

Dec 1, 2020

Are You Making These 5 Book Marketing Mistakes?

Writing a book is only a 1/3 of the writing process. While many writers are familiar and enthusiastic about writing and publishing their books, few give thought to how marketing said book will affect them in the future until they find themselves waist deep in mistakes. If you've recently published or are planning to publish by the end of the year, check your strategy for these 5 marketing mistakes! 1. Thinking Your Book Will Sell Itself For some writers, writing the book is t

Nov 24, 2020

How To Boost Holiday Book Sales On Social Media

Every year you've got an excellent opportunity to boost your book sales during the holidays. Whether you're a newly published Indie author or a long-time pro on your tenth book, you'll want to take advantage of the buying frenzy that takes place between mid-November and Christmas. How do you do that? By hopping on social media and marketing your butt off! Whether the challenges of social media have held you back in the past, or your lack of know-how on where to start have kep

Nov 19, 2020

8 Fun Ways To Celebrate The Holidays With Books

Are YOU a book lover? Sure, anyone can say they love books. But when you're the ultimate book lover, you're going to want to take it to the next level and that means incorporating books into your holiday fun. While most of these can be found on places like Etsy and Amazon, some may require mild crafting skills. Overall they make excellent projects for writers to do when they're not writing, but also are a fun way to bring bookish joy to children. Here are 8 fun ways to celebr

Nov 17, 2020

How To Write A Fantastic Book Synopsis

Does the word synopsis make you cringe a bit? If so, you're not alone! Writing your book synopsis can be the most difficult (and despised) document you'll ever have to pen. Unfortunately not only is it useful, chances are that somewhere down your book publishing journey someone, be it an agent or publisher, will ask to see it. What is a synopsis? For anyone who's brand new to writing, you may be confused or unfamiliar with what a synopsis is. That's okay! We're here to clarif

Nov 12, 2020

5 Social Media Tips For Writers

Social media has a lot of benefits for writers. It connects us directly with our fans, help us raise awareness for our novels, and allows us to actively promote sales within the comfort of our own home. For indie writers especially, social media has opened doors that were previously a lot more challenging. Whether you traditionally publish or are self-publishing keeping your readers in the loop is vital. To do that you have to have a basic understanding of social media and ho

Nov 10, 2020

A List Of Book-Selling Ideas For The Holidays

The holidays are an opportune time to increase your book sales and generate more excitement for your next one. People are out looking for the perfect gift- for others and themselves! The great news is that books make excellent gifts. Now it's up to you to make the sale. Boosting your promotional efforts and getting more eyes on your novel are exactly what's in order for this season. Here are a list of ways that you can gain more out of this holiday season. A key point to reme

Nov 5, 2020

10 Steps For Staying On Track With Your Writing This Holiday Season

To say that writing during the holidays becomes a lot harder is an understatement. Not only are there the distractions of every day life, but with holiday traditions, events, family gatherings, and a to-do list a mile long our writing tends to get pushed to the side in the wake of all that fun and stress. Don't let your writing suffer during the holidays- with these 10 tips you can stay motivated and on track during the festivities. 1. Be Honest With Yourself: It's important

Nov 3, 2020

10 Tips For Succeeding At NaNoWriMo This Year

It's that time again! NaNoWriMo. If it doesn't make you want to run away screaming, it means you're attempting to climb the literary Everest. Whether you've been putting off your story for too long or you want to challenge yourself to see what you can achieve, NaNoWriMo has a way of bringing writers together. Writing a book in 30 days is the goal, but the reality can prove to be much more challenging than expected. Set yourself up for success this year with these 10 tips. Pre

Oct 29, 2020

5 Steps For Enhancing Horrific Scenes In Your Story

Whether you're writing a horror story or your book has scenes that horrify, every writer can benefit from a few tips on how to weird people out. Here are 5 steps for enhancing the horrific scenes in your story in honor of Halloween week. Establish your characters No matter what type of story you're writing, invest in your characters first and foremost. Too often writers forget to fully develop their characters and it shows. They place more emphasis on the plot and suspense el

Feb 25, 2020

5 Signs You're Writing A Bad Romance

We all love to watch a bad romance unfold across the screen. We love to gossip about them in reality. It's the hatred of these "bad romances" that keeps us enthralled, just like Lady Gaga's song implies. But what happens when you write a romance that you intended to be the next Jack and Rose from Titanic, but wind up with the awkward Bella and Edward pairing from Twilight? I think we can all agree that romance is either a hit-or-miss and that there's no such thing as in-betwe

Feb 13, 2020

Inhale Love, Exhale Words (Using Yoga to Strengthen Your Muse)

Recently I've been exploring new methods of self-love and relaxation as tools to help the muse. While I've always known that my muse responds best to a balance of positive and negative, it's taken me years to find a practice that helps me refresh both my mind and body. The introduction of yoga into my life has opened my mind to the possibilities. Yoga is the practice of combining simple meditation, breath control, and specific bodily postures for the purpose of health and rel

Feb 6, 2020

Falling in Love (or Back in Love) with Writing

Valentine's Day can bring about mixed reactions. It often divides us into two groups- those in love and those who aren't. But what happens when you're a writer who's fallen out of love with writing? You may start feeling resentful, isolated, nostalgic, and jealous of others who still love the craft. You may have dozens of ideas piled uselessly in a notebook that you're now trying not to think about, yet you can't help but let it sneak back in. It may be something that you thi

Jan 21, 2020

Character 101: Types of Characters

You're probably familiar with the old African adage: "It takes a village to raise a child". While a child needs the nurturing and care of an entire community to grow up well, so does your writing project. The nurturing and caring comes from you, the writer. The community is the cast of characters who support your protagonist. No matter what genre you write in, we all need a strong cast to move our narratives along and keep our readers intrigued. The best way to start building

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Alina Wells is a writer, blogger, and poet. She studied at the University of West Florida and received her degree in Journalism and Creative Writing.

She started Writing It Wells as a way of embracing a new creative career while pursuing her first novel Star-Crossed.

When she's not writing she's spending her time reading fantasy or fiction, cooking, hanging out with her husband, wrangling her miniature pinscher Ranger, and collecting more gnomes.

TESTIMONIALS

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"I would highly recommend working with Alina to anyone who wants a comprehensive and professional review of their book for critiquing. In the future, as I write more books, I will definitely be asking for her professional opinion again. She was a pleasure to work with and anyone would benefit extremely well from her knowledge. Thank you Alina!"

Charli West, author of To Catch The Wind

See her website here

"Life is a book. We fill the pages." -Victoria Valentine