Tag: Writing

Essays

Writing action scenes in novels: Why sequence and clarity matter

Mandy Webster

Nothing kills the momentum of an action scene faster than confusing choreography. Readers will forgive a lot in a fast-paced sequence. They’ll forgive impossible odds, dramatic coincidences, even a hero surviving injuries they probably shouldn’t. What they won’t forgive is not understanding where everyone is standing. One of the most common mistakes writers make in action scenes is putting events on the page out of sequence.

When action scenes lose their sequence, readers lose the thread. Clear choreography keeps readers inside the movement instead of forcing them to stop and untangle what happened.

The problem is usually small at the sentence level, but the effect on the reader is enormous because it forces them to stop, mentally rewind the scene, and reconstruct what actually happened. They’re no longer experiencing movement in real time—they’re translating it. And that translation breaks momentum.

The issue usually isn’t that the writing is unclear in isolation. Each sentence might make sense on its own. The problem is that the order of information doesn’t match the order of events as they happen in the scene. Readers don’t want to assemble a timeline. They want to experience it.

Continue reading “Writing action scenes in novels: Why sequence and clarity matter” →
Essays

Choosing a writing style guide for independent writing: How to build consistency on your own terms

Mandy Webster

One of the underrated freedoms of being an independent writer is that no one is standing over your shoulder enforcing a style guide. You don’t have to follow a publisher’s house rules or argue with an editor about commas or capitalization conventions. You get to decide what your writing looks like. That freedom is also where things can quietly get messy.

Square graphic about choosing a writing style guide for independent writers, showing a notebook, pen, coffee, and desk setup alongside text about sentence case, the Oxford comma, and formatting book titles, emphasizing consistency and personal style choices in writing.
Choosing a writing style guide for independent writers: a reminder that consistency matters more than rigid rules, and every writer gets to define their own system.

Once you’re writing novels, blog posts, website copy, newsletters, and maybe even social media captions, consistency starts to matter more than most people expect. Readers notice it when formatting shifts. Search engines don’t care, but your credibility as a careful, intentional writer often depends on the subtle signals your text sends. The solution isn’t to give up your independence. It’s to choose your structure on purpose.

Continue reading “Choosing a writing style guide for independent writing: How to build consistency on your own terms” →
Call for Submissions

Beautiful and Terrifying releases April 23, 2026: A new anthology from the edge of the uncanny

Mandy Webster

Beautiful and Terrifying: Tales and Visions from the Edge of the Uncanny, the newest anthology from Elderfly Press, will be released on April 23, 2026, bringing together haunting fiction, poetry, and black-and-white artwork that explore the strange space where beauty and fear collide.

The cover of Beautiful and Terrifying: Tales and Visions from the Edge of the Uncanny, Elderfly Press’s upcoming anthology of eerie fiction, dark poetry, and black-and-white art, releasing April 23, 2026.

I’m thrilled to finally share the release date for this collection, which has been such a meaningful project to bring into the world. From eerie woods and submerged cities to folklore retellings, grief-soaked landscapes, and intimate encounters with the supernatural, this anthology embraces the unsettling and the sublime in equal measure.

Continue reading “Beautiful and Terrifying releases April 23, 2026: A new anthology from the edge of the uncanny” →
Writers on Writing

Writing adult novels with a young adult point of view: Challenges, opportunities, and why it matters

Mandy Webster

There’s something uniquely compelling—and uniquely tricky—about writing an adult novel through the eyes of a young adult protagonist. You want the story to resonate with adult readers, but the voice will inevitably feel youthful, immediate, and shaped by the character’s limited experience. That tension can be powerful, but it can also trip up both writers and readers if it isn’t handled thoughtfully.

It’s difficult to write an adult novel when telling the story from a young adult point of view.

Take Casey Dunn’s The Wind Witch Murders, for example. The novel is marketed as adult fiction, but its protagonist, Raven, is young, searching, and emotionally raw. The book is written in first-person point of view, which makes it even more difficult to escape the natural YA headspace. Every detail, every observation, every emotional beat is filtered through Raven’s young adult perspective.

Continue reading “Writing adult novels with a young adult point of view: Challenges, opportunities, and why it matters” →
Holidays, Reading

Comfort reads and quiet creativity: finding peace in a busy season

Mandy Webster

When life speeds up, it’s tempting to set reading and writing aside until “things calm down.” But this season rarely slows — and maybe it’s not supposed to. Instead, it’s the perfect opportunity to carve out small pockets of quiet and reconnect with the stories and ideas that bring you joy.

Combine reading with social time this winter season!

The shorter days and long to-do lists can drain our energy, but they can also push us to slow down in small ways. Curl up with a comfort read that makes you exhale. Revisit an old favorite or try something cozy and atmospheric. For writers, even a single paragraph or a page in a day counts. Sometimes creativity thrives in small, stolen moments.

Continue reading “Comfort reads and quiet creativity: finding peace in a busy season” →
Essays

Writing (and reading) through the holiday chaos: finding focus when life gets loud

Mandy Webster

The holidays are supposed to be a time of joy and connection, but for many of us, they also bring a whirlwind of obligations: family gatherings, travel, shopping, cooking, and endless to-do lists. Amid the chaos, finding time to write, read, or simply pause can feel impossible. Yet even during the busiest season of the year, it’s possible to carve out moments for creativity and reflection—if you approach it with intention and compassion.

Amid the holiday bustle, it’s important to carve out a moment for yourself to write and reflect—even when life around you is loud.
  • Set smaller, achievable goals: When life is hectic, long writing sessions or ambitious reading lists can feel overwhelming. Break your projects into smaller, manageable chunks. Write for twenty minutes in the morning, read a chapter before bed, or jot down ideas in a notebook while sipping your coffee. Small, consistent efforts often add up more than you realize—and they keep your creative momentum alive.
Continue reading “Writing (and reading) through the holiday chaos: finding focus when life gets loud” →
Call for Submissions

Call for Submissions: Mother Monster/Father Fiend

Mandy Webster

Elderfly Press is now accepting submissions for Mother Monster/Father Fiend, a new anthology exploring the shadowed edges of parenthood. We’re looking for short fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, and black-and-white artwork that reveal the monstrous, misunderstood, or mythic aspects of motherhood and fatherhood.

This anthology invites you to challenge the cultural scripts of what a “good” parent looks like. Sometimes the monster is real—a parent whose choices hurt, haunt, or unravel the lives of those in their care. Other times, the monster is only a mask placed by society:

Continue reading “Call for Submissions: Mother Monster/Father Fiend” →
Call for Submissions

Submissions open for Beautiful and Terrifying: Tales and Visions from the Edge of the Uncanny

Mandy Webster

There’s beauty in the things that unnerve us. Beautiful and Terrifying is the next anthology from Elderfly Press—an exploration of the eerie, the intimate, and the in-between. Submissions are now open for short stories, poetry, and black-and-white art that linger in the shadows of the strange and the sublime.

There’s beauty in what haunts us.
Submit to Beautiful and Terrifying today!

This collection seeks work that blurs boundaries—between beauty and fear, humanity and monstrosity, love and decay. We’re drawn to dark, literary narratives and haunting imagery that leave readers with a sense of wonder and unease. Not every story needs to fit neatly into horror or realism; the best pieces often live in the uncanny space between.

What Elderfly Press is looking for:

This anthology invites a wide range of voices and forms with themes of transformation, obsession, decay, beauty, violence, or the supernatural:

  • Genre fiction: horror, speculative, gothic, dystopian, weird, sci-fi, supernatural—anything that chills, disturbs, or unsettles
  • Literary fiction: moody, shadowed, emotionally raw
  • Poetry: rooted in chaos, shadow, or change
  • Visual art: black-and-white art that captures the eerie, surreal, or dreamlike
Continue reading “Submissions open for Beautiful and Terrifying: Tales and Visions from the Edge of the Uncanny” →
Find Your Next Read

Bad Moon on the Rise: An Anthology of the Unsettling is Here!

Mandy Webster

The wait is over! Bad Moon on the Rise: An Anthology of the Unsettling is officially released and ready to haunt your bookshelves. This collection brings together an extraordinary group of writers, artists, and creators who explore life under a dark sky—whether literal or metaphorical. From chilling short fiction to thought-provoking essays and striking black-and-white art, this anthology dives into the unsettling, the eerie, and the uncanny.

We are thrilled to showcase the work of our incredible contributors:

Continue reading “Bad Moon on the Rise: An Anthology of the Unsettling is Here!” →
Author Interview

Author interview with Melissa R. Collings

Mandy Webster

Melissa R. Collings is the award-winning author of the bittersweet love story, The False Flat. Before Melissa started writing, she worked as a surgical physician associate in Nashville, where one of her favorite procedures was reconstructing a lower-lumbar tattoo after a back surgery. Her stories, like her, are always a mix: light and dark, laughter and tears, outlandish and grounded, beautiful and ugly, glitter and charcoal smears. Her interests are way too varied; her imagination never fails to get her into trouble; and she lives by her life philosophy: nothing is impossible, and everything is better with glitter—except surgical wounds.

Q: When did you first catch the writing bug? What drove you to persist?
A: I’m originally a surgical Physician Associate (medical provider). I worked 50-60 hours per week doing spine surgery, rounding on hospital patients, and seeing patients in the clinic. I enjoyed my job, but when my husband and I were expecting our first child, I decided to take a long hiatus from medical work and stay home to raise our daughter. I’d worked since I was very young, so this was a steep adjustment for me. I needed something for myself, so I turned to a psychological suspense novel I’d started before college.

Back then, I’d been working as a receptionist and had a lot of down time. I had an idea for a book and started writing it to fill my time. I didn’t think anything would come of it. But when I was at home with a newborn, I picked that novel up again, and I discovered a whole new world.

Continue reading “Author interview with Melissa R. Collings” →