The working novelist's glossary.

A beat sheet is a condensed outline listing a story's beats — its key events and turns — in order. How writers use them at the book and scene level.

A beta reader gives reader-level feedback on a finished draft before publication. How betas differ from alpha readers, ARC readers, and sensitivity readers.

Deep POV is a close third-person technique that erases narrative distance: the prose renders the viewpoint character's experience with no narrator between.

A developmental edit addresses a book's big picture — plot, structure, character, pacing. How it differs from line edits, copyedits, and proofreads.

A dinkus is the row of asterisks (* * *) marking a scene break within a chapter. Where it came from, how to format it, and why ebooks need it.

EPUB 3.3 is the current W3C standard for ebook files. What it contains, what EPUBCheck validation means, and why retailers care about a valid EPUB.

Filter words (saw, felt, heard, noticed, realized) report perception instead of rendering it, adding distance from the POV character. When to cut, when to keep.

Head-hopping is switching between characters' inner thoughts mid-scene without a clear transition. How it differs from omniscient POV, and how to spot it.

An info dump is a large block of undramatized exposition — backstory, world rules, history — that halts the story. Why it fails and the incluing alternative.

KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing) is Amazon's self-publishing platform for ebooks, paperbacks, and hardcovers. What it accepts and how listing works.

ONIX 3.0 is the industry standard for describing a book to retailers — title, contributors, subjects, pricing. The label on the box, explained simply.

A story bible (or series bible) is the reference document tracking characters, places, systems, and timeline so a book — or a whole series — stays consistent.