Do you know what entices a reader’s brain and what frustrates it? I enjoy learning about how brains work, and as a writer I particularly appreciate Lisa Cron’s book Wired for Story, which uses brain science to explain how to create a satisfying story. I have combined what I’ve learned from Wired for Story with… Read more »
We’ve all experienced it. We finish a story or a draft and we know deep down that something is missing. It’s a good story–but it’s not great. It doesn’t have the pop and sizzle that we’ve achieved in the past or maybe that we’ve witnessed in another writer. But what’s missing? Before you take a… Read more »
I worked as a bookseller and library clerk in multiple places. I enjoy talking to people about books and offering them recommendations. My best selling display was one where I offered cross-media recommendations (for example, if you enjoyed the Netflix series Stranger Things then you should read the graphic novel series Paper Girls). I love… Read more »
I began practicing Korean Breath Qigong yoga to reduce stress. I would leave class feeling relaxed and brimming with creative energy. Inspired to share this with others, I am now a certified instructor. I am also an alumni of Pixels to Platform and DIY MFA 101. Thanks to the philosophy of Pixels to Platform, teaching… Read more »
When you bring up difficult life experiences to share and teach the world through your writing, you need to take great care of yourself, first and foremost. In the Fall of 2014, I went to a workshop at a local writers house on writing memoir. I thought it would be a fun Saturday afternoon activity… Read more »
If you’re serious about blogging, and you want to find success with it, you’ll need to make sure your blog continually remains valuable and engaging to your readers and subscribers. The more value your blog offers your readers, the healthier it is. The more engaging the content, the greater its vitality. A healthy and vital… Read more »
Theme is one of the most important parts of a writing a book — but it’s also hard to execute without feeling like you are beating the reader over the head with “and the moral of this story is…” Thankfully, there are a few tricks to incorporating theme into your first draft that don’t involve… Read more »
Sometimes even the best of intentions can go wrong. You have a plan to write, but then Monday turns into Friday and your goal is nothing but a distant memory, cast aside for the completion of daily errands. Or you pull up your writer’s chair and sink in with ideas flowing, but the doorbell chimes… Read more »
Writing is hard enough. You do it all by your lonesome, forever battling that cranky voice in your head that snipes at every word you write, and when that doesn’t stop you, switches tactics and suggests you have a snack. Or a nap. Or look, a squirrel! But you have the grit to keep writing… Read more »
Around the time I was getting ready to graduate with my BA in English, I made the decision not to pursue an MFA. Although I knew I had made the right decision for myself, I still didn’t know how I could be part of a writing community without going back to school for it (cue… Read more »
