Today is Look Alike Day, National High Five Day third Thursday, Volunteer Recognition Day and the birthday of Michael Lewis, Pietro Aretino, Dinah Craik, Henry de Montherlant, Andrew Tobias, Sebastian Faulks, Rebecca Makkai

Tip: Work out what you will need to do to promote your work after it is published. A good rule of thumb is promotion should be ten percent of your writing time so if you spend ten hours a week in writing, one of those hours should be spent on promotion.

Thought: “The trick is not in becoming a writer, it is staying a writer. Day after week after month after year.” – Harlan Ellison

Teaser: This is National Look Alike Day and your character has a doppelganger – a body double – but this one is opposite in personality and creates havoc for him. How does the hero deal with him? Do they meet? What happens?

Today is International Jugglers’ Day, Newspaper Columnists’ Day and the birthday of George Henry Lewes, Richard Harding Davis, Etheridge Knight, Thomas Middleton, Waldemar Hammenhog, Claire Martin, Joy Davidman, Richard Bausch

Thought: “The last thing we decide about a book is what to put first.” – Blaise Pascal

Teaser: Your house is on fire. You live alone and have no pets so there is nobody else to worry about but yourself. What would you risk going back inside for? (Note – this teaser came about when I was staying at a hotel with a group of writer friends and there was a fire in the hotel. All of us gathered in the parking lot and what did we save from our rooms? Our laptops!)

Today is Bat Appreciation Day, Blah, Blah, Blah Day, Dyngus Day, National Cheeseball Day, Patriot’s Day, Pet Owners Independence Day and the birthday of: Thornton Wilder, Cynthia Ozick, Karen Blixen, John Ford, Herve Bazin, Nick Hornby

Tip: Cut pictures of characters out of newspapers and magazines (only your own, please) or bookmark sites on the web for visualizing your characters. Don’t pick just the pretty people. Not everyone is gorgeous and you need quirky sidekicks sometimes as well. Pick a wide variety.

Thought: “The beginning of a novel is a time of awful torment, when you’re dealing with a lot of dead pieces and you have to wait and wait for some sort of animation.” – Iris Murdoch

Teaser: Write a scene using words of only one syllable and short sentences, ala “See Spot run.” But do it as an adult murder mystery.

Today is the birthday of: Barbara Kinsolver, Buddha, John Fante, Seymour Hersh

Tip: Don’t let your characters play Hamlet and give long, windy speeches.

Thought: “Experience is the hardest kind of teacher. It gives you the test first and the lesson after.” – Anon.

Teaser: Your character is going to the zoo. Where does she go? What kind is it? Large or small? What is her favorite exhibit/animal? Why?

Today is the birthday of: Margarite Duras, Remy de Gourmont, Maya Angelou

Tip: Some evening, light a single candle and turn off all other lights. How are your surroundings different? Imagine this is all you have for lighting. What would be different for you? Why?

Thought: “I always write a good first line, but I have trouble in writing the others.” -Moliere (Jean Baptiste Poquelin)

Teaser: Write a dark scene using the following: birthday cake, dancer

Today is the birthday of: Washington Irving, John Burroughs, Janey Goodall

Tip: April is a month of changes – from winter to spring, dark to light, cold to warm. Think about what changes do you need to make to be a better writer? How can you make them?

Thought: “The art of being happy lies in the power of extracting happiness from common things.” – Henry Ward Beecher

Teaser: Your character is going through a lot of changes—not good ones. What happened? Why? What does s/he do to adapt to what is happening?