I am a copyeditor through and through. I live, eat, and breathe punctuation and grammar. As such, I love the feeling of finding a moment in the manuscript where it can be strengthened. Depending on the writing, these changes and suggestions can reach the thousands. But what’s average? And what are all the changes this… Read more »
It may seem counterintuitive, but as a writer, you have to tackle many job descriptions that go far beyond putting pen to paper. When you’ve finished writing a book, the real work begins. With so much competition out there in the self-publishing world, you need to boost your visibility and revenue—from there you can keep… Read more »
You’ve pulled your hair out. Bled on the page. Gone over your WIP six ways til Sunday. Maybe you’ve even put it through one of those AI editing programs or had someone read it. One last comb through for typos or other writing errors. Yeah. That’s it. Time to submit. You hit send, and then… Read more »
Today’s episode is our monthly Craft Jam. This is a new feature at DIY MFA, where once a month, Lori and I will be jamming about the craft. In these episodes, we’ll be doing a deep dive into various craft topics like character development, story structure, world building and more. This month’s episode is a deep… Read more »
Writing an entire novel is a lot of work, but it can be a truly satisfying accomplishment. Seeing your characters come to life, pursuing their primary motivations while overcoming (or not) their greatest obstacles, makes for some amazing storytelling when sustained for at least 50,000 words. But novels aren’t for everyone, so enter short form… Read more »
Who doesn’t love the daring feats of Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley? And most of the time they’re acting independently, without a parent in sight. That being said, this independent action gets them in all sorts of trouble with not only parents, but their teachers and school headmaster, Dumbledore. That’s the thing with… Read more »
Greetings and felicitations, fellow nerds of the word! The May 2023 Leisure Learning column focuses on literary contributions somehow related to the past. Gain insight into William Blake’s process for resurrecting the illuminated manuscript, meet some lesser-known family members chronically overshadowed by their famous relations, and see how Walt Disney’s soldiering days influenced early Disney… Read more »
Writing a captivating novel (one that grabs readers like a new episode of Stranger Things) is perhaps the most challenging personal project you’ll willingly embark on. Why? Because it demands a unique blend of creativity, craftsmanship, storytelling finesse, resilience, and the unwavering belief that you’re a literary genius, even when your words feel as lackluster… Read more »
Picture books are their own unique art form, and often it’s a memorable main character that makes a picture book feel so special that you want to read it again and again and share it with everyone you know. Whether the protagonist embodies the theme and goes on a singular adventure, or gets in trouble… Read more »
Today, Lori is interviewing Daniel Weizmann. They’ll be talking about his neo-noir mystery, The Last Songbird. Have you gotten the DIY MFA Starter Kit yet? This is a two week email series full of worksheets to help you DIY your MFA. You’ll learn more about how to write with focus, read with purpose, and build… Read more »
