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Posts by Carol Despeaux Fawcett

Aug 13

Storytelling and the art of letter writing

Lakshmi Pratury,  co-host of TEDIndia 2009, gives a 6-minute talk about the profound effect her father’s handwritten notes and journals had on her after he passed away.  See how she plans to carry forward his legacy.

Handwritten letters are a way to keep us connected with one another and practice our storytelling. In Carly Sandifer’s blog post, “Anton Chekhov’s six writing principles,” she discusses the different ways in which the great author used letter writing to advance his craft and inspire others.

Who do you write letters to?

Aug 10

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How artists can benefit from meditation

Earlier this week, Carly wrote a blog post featuring a talk David Lynch gave about the effects of meditation on creativity.

Meditation is a wonderful tool that has added immeasurable benefits to my life, including:

  • Increased awareness of myself and my motivations;
  • An expanding of consciousness—I see things more clearly than I used to;
  • Increase in creativity; Read more

Aug 7

Story tips: notice the unusual around you

In my post, “Six Elements of Great Short Stories,” I wrote about the six things literary agent April Eberhardt said we should think about in our stories: setting, character, point of view, conflict, plot, and theme.

She suggested carrying some index cards with these elements listed and using them when we see something in our daily life that sparks our interest.

She used the example of the day she was driving in the city and saw a car full of nuns next to her. What drew her interest was the unexpected–they were driving a new Lexus and laughing hysterically. She began to wonder about their story.

So, if I take her advice and list the elements of this situation on my index card, it could look something like this:  Read more

Aug 3

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Best books of all time?

No matter what genre we write or like to read, there are certain books that, as writers, we can learn so much from.

I remember the first time I read Carson McCullers’s novel “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter.” What struck me most was the way she used setting in her story – how it became a living, breathing presence.

What are the best books to read and learn from? Opinions vary but below are lists from two successful authors and one grand list from the Guardian. Browse their lists and then create your own.

From suspense and thriller writer Lee Childs: Top 40 Books of All Time

From Pulitzer-winning author Michael Chabon: Top Ten List

And from the Guardian: The 100 Greatest Novels of All Time

Do you have any favorites to add?

Aug 1

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How to create fiction that moves readers

Literary agent and writing teacher Donald Maass says the most successful novels of the early 21st Century are beautifully written while telling powerful stories. He predicts less focus on genre and more focus on fiction that moves people.

What moves people? What connects readers to the heart of our characters? Emotions.

At the Pacific Northwest Writer’s Conference last month, Maass spoke about how to achieve an emotional landscape in our novels.

He says to ask yourself what new emotions you’ve experienced this year.  Then ask: is there a place in your manuscript where a character can feel this emotion? Read more

Jul 30

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Six elements of great short stories

In literary agent April Eberhardt‘s short story workshop at the recent Pacific Northwest Writer’s Contest, she gave us a list of six elements to look for in stories.

Eberhardt suggests that we write our story first and then overlay these six elements on it to help polish our work.

Six elements of short stories:

Setting.  Set the stage close to the beginning of the story. In my earlier post, I quote poet Nelson Bentley, “Give the readers a place to stand, and then you can take them anywhere.” Read more

Jul 26

Obstacles can illuminate your characters’ strengths

Obstacles. Life is full of them. And so is a good story. Obstacles in storytelling not only keep your readers reading but, according to author Robert Dugoni at the recent Pacific Northwest Writer’s Conference, obstacles show us our characters’ strengths.

Think of Harry Potter and all the obstacles he encountered. Through these obstacles we see that Harry is smart, loyal, honest, brave, and a good friend.

Just as important, we believe the end of Harry’s journey because we’ve seen him shine in action.

Ask yourself: What obstacles confront your characters? What do these obstacles show about your characters?

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