It pays to take notes, if you have the patience.
Lesson from Literature: Election Edition, Part 2
Writers, being keen observers of character, are uniquely situated to offer insight about the choice we face in this election.
A Round Up: Writing Dialect in Fiction
I have been searching “how-to” and “history of” articles for some context and advice on writing dialect. Here are some of the best that I’ve come across:
The Task of a Writer in the Current Moment
As a writer, especially one who grew up in the South, I have to tell stories that confront racism in its many forms, which will invariably bring my own racial biases to the fore. A scary prospect, but a necessary one.
Make Your Mark, Write a Letter
Professor Siobhan Phillips, who teaches a class on letters as a literary and para-literary phenomenon, notes some compelling reasons why letters cannot be entirely replaced by the alternatives society has developed.
Finding Comfort in Historical Fiction
What better way to ease my anxiety about what is to come, about the toll this pandemic will take in terms of lives and quality of life and how it may change us, than to look toward a story from the past, written by one of my favorite authors.
A Room of My Own
The longing for “a room of my own” inspired me to re-read Virginia Woolf’s famous essay
A Reader’s Retrospective
The problem with last year’s reading list was not in failing to read all the books but in thinking that not reading them all was failure.
Searching for Inspiration in Scotland
An advantage of setting aside expectations is that it leads to pleasant surprises.
On Mindfulness: One Writer’s Perspective
“Mindfulness is ‘the awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally, to the unfolding of experience moment to moment,’
Good Bones
Both novels and houses need good bones to last.
A Prompt for Every Purpose
Whether you are in the middle of a work in progress, or ready to start something new, writing prompts can be the cure for writer’s block.
Leave Fiction to Writers
“Fiction is the lie through which we tell the truth,” as Nobel-prize winning author Albert Camus said. Perhaps Trump would make a good novelist. But a good leader?
Audience from a Writer’s Perspective
How do you think about audience when you write?
To Write Fiction or Nonfiction, Should That Be the Question?
Many writers write nonfiction or fiction exclusively, but many enjoy writing both. . . so why do MFA programs make writers choose one or the other?
Be Prepared!
If you’ve ever been to camp or sent children off, you know why the Boy Scout motto is “Be Prepared!” Getting the most out of the experience requires careful planning and preparation. The same is true for writers who attend Camp NaNoWrimo this July.
Beware the Rabbit Hole
Research is necessary for any writer, but it is particularly critical when it comes to writing a book that is, at least in part, historical fiction.
Defining Success
Being the third of four sisters, I am accustomed to being in the middle, but the array of “middles” I’m in now are things my birth order did not prepare me for.