“I only like to write when the muse moves me, but I’m having trouble getting the motivation to finish something. Help!” –Bemused You know what you need? A good ol’ fashioned dunk in an icy lake! Just kidding. But it’s 95 degrees here and I’m a little delirious with the heat. Writing challenges are popular in… Read more »
“I’m a relatively new writer and all of this advice is kind of overwhelming. What are the most important ‘don’ts’ I should avoid in my writing?” – Mark H. Copping to a fault is tough. We all want to think that we’re gifted by the heavenly virtues of writing and that our right to write… Read more »
This is the third post in my series on the benefits and practicality of writing with an outline. In my first post, I listed three reasons why most writers need an outline. In the second, I discussed three things to keep in mind when creating an outline. Now, what do you do now that you actually… Read more »
“I finally finished my ten-book epic fantasy series! Now I’m ready to start editing. How do I do that, exactly?” –The Next J.R.R., G.R.R., or J.K. Woah! Slow down there, turbo. First of all, congratulations on reaching the editing stage! That’s a step that most budding authors don’t get to. But you’re looking at this… Read more »
“How do you write so much? I can’t seem to get much more than 20,000 words on my novel so far!” – Devon A. H. If you had to choose between quantity and quality, I’m guessing most of you would choose quality. So, you spend about a year writing, angsting and revising—and that’s all just… Read more »
Ok, so we’ve established that you really need to hire a freelance editor before you throw your manuscript out to the proverbial wolves of public opinion. But how in the heck do you know what kind of editing you need? And who in the world do you find to help you? What can your editor… Read more »
As National Poetry Month draws to a close, here’s a closer look at a special form of poem that can be useful for poets and prose writers. A prose poem is a poem written in sentences. It appears as a block of text without line breaks. You could think of a prose poem as a… Read more »
“Nobody in my critique group understands my writing style. They don’t get the type of art I’m trying to create. Do I suck at writing, or should I listen to them? What should I do?” –Artist in a Sea of Mediocrity I’ve never been to a pageant, and I’ve never been a mother, but I’d… Read more »
As creative people, we look at the way our right brains work, and think we’re alone in that. We think we’re the only people who have certain ways of working or certain problems in our work. Believing you’re alone,that it’s “just you” and “just the way you work” can hold you back. When you understand what’s… Read more »
Have a writing project you’ve been dying to start, but can’t find the time, energy or motivation? Knee-deep in revision? Drowning in drafting? One of the best ways to get your writing back on track, or give yourself that extra boost and meet the next big challenge is to set aside a chunk of time,… Read more »
