I’ve always been a lover of inspirational sayings; through the years I’ve collected a wide variety of these words of encouragement to bolster my sometimes flagging attitude. One of my favorites is attributed to the 30th President of the U.S., Calvin Coolidge. The gist of it is that nothing in the world can take the… Read more »
I recently wrote about using the Enneagram to set your own goals as a writer, but you can also use this powerful tool to help develop your fictional characters. In this post, I’m going to show you three ways that the Enneagram can help you develop complex, relatable characters that the reader cares about. 1…. Read more »
Today, I have the pleasure of interviewing Scott Gates. We’ll be talking about his novel, Gone, the Redeemer. Have you signed up to be a DIY MFA Radio Insider yet? This is an exciting new monthly newsletter, especially for our podcast listeners. Every month, you’ll get an email from our podcast producer with recaps of… Read more »
Introducing Shutter Picture it: it’s your twenty-seventh birthday. Twenty years to the day since your dad first let you in on his adventures by taking you to the moon. Ten years since your dad died. You feel washed up, because you don’t have any new adventures to write about. You decline company from your best… Read more »
For writers rebounding from illness or a family emergency, getting back on track is challenging. My recovery from the virus-that-shall-not-be-named is going at a snail’s pace. Writing time has all but disappeared. With my lack of stamina, anything I do has to be in short increments. At times I feel discouraged, but working in small… Read more »
My reading has always been a bit all over the map. It’s gotten more so over the past couple of years, and even more so since I started cohosting the podcast. To be sure, there are still certain genres that aren’t my jam, but I am trying to find ways of subtly incorporating them in… Read more »
I read a lot of nonfiction because I have an innate curiosity about the world and I enjoy learning things I didn’t know before. Whenever I want to learn how something works, I find a book. I especially love reading writers’ memoirs as a way of learning more about writing. While everyone is different and… Read more »
One of my favorite things about tarot cards is how rich in detail each card is, whether you know anything about the numerology or symbology layered into the card’s history or not. This makes using tarot as a writing tool extremely effective, since even the most novice of tarot readers can derive some meaning from… Read more »
Today, Lori is interviewing Taylor Hahn. They’ll be talking about her debut romance novel, The Lifestyle. Have you signed up to be a DIY MFA Radio Insider yet? This is an exciting new monthly newsletter, especially for our podcast listeners. Every month, you’ll get an email from our podcast producer with recaps of the most… Read more »
Welcome back, poets! Today, I’m excited to talk about confessional poetry: a brief history, some defining characteristics, and a couple of exercises to help you get started writing confessional-style poetry of your own. A (Very) Brief History of Confessional Poetry In 1959, Robert Lowell’s Life Studies was published, a collection that would later be described… Read more »
