How many times have you heard an editor or agent tell you to show more in your writing? It’s okay if you’re answer is “A lot.” This was the number one comment I received during my first writing class. Heck, I heard it in my next two or three writing classes, which got me thinking:… Read more »
Recently, I wrote an essay about the sea glass I collected as a kid. This essay was a fun one to write because it was the type of piece that grew in complexity the more I spent time on it. Until I got encouragement from an editor to write the piece, I didn’t feel it… Read more »
So, you’ve sent you manuscript to an agent, or an editor, and now you wait. Will they like it? Will they take you on as a client, or publish your work? What makes them decide? Is it the unique premise or clever plot? Maybe the colorful characters? Or the snappy dialog and wonderfully rendered setting?… Read more »
Think of your favorite fictional characters. Chances are they have a personality you can recognize and motivations you can relate to. Drawing on personality systems can help you craft characters who are dynamic and believable enough to live beyond the page. In this post, I’ll introduce the nine personality types of the Enneagram, an insightful… Read more »
Some writers love the short story format while other writers hate the creative confines of a restricted word count. However, short stories have value that go beyond entertainment. Here are seven reasons why you should try writing one: 1) Flesh out a new character or story idea Writing a short story is a great way… Read more »
As human beings, we’re all products of our past; good and bad, our experiences have formed us into who we are. The same should be true of our characters. One way to make them really believable and memorable is to dig into their backgrounds and unearth those defining moments so we’ll better understand how they… Read more »
In 2014, Marie Kondo sparked a worldwide minimizing trend with the release of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing. When I read the book and decided to implement her “tidying” method in early 2017, my space did, in fact, get tidier, but that wasn’t all. As Kondo writes, “My… Read more »
I almost didn’t write this article. My every attempt at beginning failed. Interestingly enough, my last Writing Small article, Tips and Techniques for Training Your Writing Brain, covered a number of techniques to fire your writing muscles up. Yet somehow, I still found myself at a loss. While I’m by no means a prolific author,… Read more »
Artificial intelligence (AI), like time travel, is a perennial subject for writers of science fiction. And, like time travel, AI is subject to a number of misunderstandings which can make writing a story in that setting, on that subject, using it as a McGuffin, or as a character, problematic. With movies like Blade Runner 2049,… Read more »
“No sane person would think of setting out to construct a skyscraper or even a one-family home without a detailed set of plans.” – Albert Zuckerman When Eero Saarinen built the Gateway Arch in Saint Louis, he built from the ground up. In other words, he calculated extensive mathematical equations so that the arch curved… Read more »
