When you write fiction, you march onto a minefield. This book gives you a map.

Oh, what tricky terrain you're traveling! You must recon with: Character. Conflict. Point of view. Dialogue. Editors. Editors. And editors, who - by returning stories they see as problem-plagued - can burst your hopes of publication.

Where are the problems? Editors rarely take the time to map them out, so Jack Bickham has. In this book, he spotlights the 38 most common fiction writing land minds - writing mistakes that can turn even dynamite story ideas into slush pile rejects. And he guides you in overcoming them.

In to-the-point style, he shows you how to...

• conquer procrastination - and put ink on paper regularly
• dump wimpy characters - and build characters ready to act
• look for trouble - and create conflicts for your characters
• cut coincidence - and put better-than-life logic into fiction
• escape the fog - and find and stick to your story's direction
• free feelings - and fire your fiction with passion and emotion

In short, Bickham helps you take a giant step toward publication.

Read this book. Strengthen your writing. And start setting off explosions where they belong: on the sales charts.