At DIY MFA, we talk a lot about “big craft” topics like character development, world-building, or story structure. Today, I wanted to do something a little different and discuss scene craft—i.e., the techniques that go into creating a compelling and engaging scene. Scenes are an essential component of storytelling because they are the fundamental building… Read more »
At DIY MFA, we focus a lot on the craft of writing. It’s our specialty and (truthfully) it’s one of my favorite things to teach. I love coming up with frameworks and structures to help writers learn the craft and implement techniques on the page. But there’s more to writing than just the writing itself…. Read more »
One of the most challenging parts of the creative process is what many writers lovingly call B.I.C. (backside in chair). But productivity isn’t just about getting to the desk and cranking out the words. Many of us often struggle with distractions and all sorts of interruptions so that even if we are able to get… Read more »
I recently introduced my daughter to my all-time favorite Broadway musical: Les Miserables. In fairness, we could not see the actual show because it’s no longer on Broadway, so we watched the film adaptation (which is a poor imitation at best, let’s be real). It was enough to get her hooked on the show. This… Read more »
Time management is one of the most misunderstood concepts because most people think it’s all about watching the clock and saving time. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. You see, watching the clock is not time management, it’s punctuality. Similarly, saving time is efficiency, which is different from time management. After all, you could… Read more »
“Read with purpose” is one of the three pillars of DIY MFA, but it’s often the most overlooked. It’s easy to see how writing and community can contribute to our literary development, but sometimes reading can fall by the wayside. Today I wanted to talk about the importance of reading with purpose, what exactly it… Read more »
This time I thought I’d do an analysis of Murder, She Wrote, one of my all-time favorite TV shows. If you’re not familiar with it, it’s about Jessica Fletcher, a retired schoolteacher-turned-mystery-author who goes around solving murders. Some of those murders take place in her beloved hometown of Cabot Cove, while others occur when she… Read more »
I’ll admit, at first I was skeptical about dictation. To be honest, the idea kind of intimidated me. But after taking a Dictation Boot Camp led by my friend Sarah Elisabeth Sawyer, I decided to give it a try. In fact, I’m actually doing it right now as I write this Writer Fuel. I think… Read more »
Today, I’m doing an analysis of Beauty and the Beast, one of my absolute favorite movies. This film never fails to tug at my heartstrings and the ending makes me cry every single time! I first saw this movie at a very pivotal moment in my life. I was in ninth grade and a total… Read more »
A lot of people are nervous—and with good reason—that Artificial Intelligence (AI) might take away opportunities from human writers. After all, why should publishers pay humans to produce material when they can get a GPT to spit out something similar for free? What is it that can differentiate human writers from the bots? Two things:… Read more »
