Schenectady Today Interview: Pete Seeger, The People’s Singer
Host Ann Parillo interviews me about my book “Pete Seeger, The People’s Singer”. Always a great time — and check out all the cool photos of Pete, Woody, Toshi, and… … Continue reading
Creating Your Book’s Title
Have you ever read The Last Man in Europe? How about Fiesta or Trimalchio? Or First Impressions? How about Something That Happened? I bet you have. Those are the original … Continue reading
5 Steps to Making Your Minor Characters Exciting
Keep your characters from blending into the background. (This is the second part of a two-part post. Click to read 5 Steps to Making Minor Historical Figures Exciting.) I’ve known … Continue reading
Why I Wrote Pete Seeger, The People’s Singer
The importance of making your own hero relevant to a new audience. When you write biographies, you get used to the question, “So, why did you write about so-and-so?” For … Continue reading
5 Steps to Making Minor Historical Figures Exciting
(This is the first of two parts. The second focuses on fiction – Five Steps to Making Your Minor Characters Exciting) Everybody has a story to tell, but some stories … Continue reading
What’s Your Motivation to Write?
Psychologists say there are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsically motivated people do it for the satisfaction; extrinsically motivated people do it for the reward. Both approaches work, … Continue reading
Keep Your New Year’s Writing Resolution
Is it really all about commitment to the craft of writing or is there another way? There’s this image of the writer slaving away at the computer for endless hours … Continue reading
Schenectady Today Interview: Judy Garland: Little Woman, Big Talent
Host Ann Parillo interviews me about my book Judy Garland: Little Woman, Big Talent. Fun time. (By the way, they shoot the show Tuesday mornings at Proctors Theater. My book … Continue reading
Mary Dyer Interview
A fun father-son project. My son — a member of the target audience — interviews me about my book Mary Dyer, Friend of Freedom. A blatant promotion, but we had … Continue reading
Making a Book Safe for Children When the Subject Matter Isn’t
Making a sordid adult tale safe for young readers. You should have seen the looks on my friends’ faces when I told them I’d been hired to write a children’s … Continue reading
John Briggs Books 