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Posts from the ‘Craft’ Category

Jan 13

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Three ways to unleash your inner journaler

Just the thought of starting a journal freezes some writers in their tracks. Maybe you’ve been there. You open the cover of your fancy journal and stop. You don’t want to write about what you ate for breakfast. You blank out on the blank page.

But journaling can reveal writing gems that lead to new stories, character ideas, or valuable insights. Journals can be a legacy for family. A bit of history.

Sometimes focus is the answer to thawing your writing muscles. These prompts or topics might be the answer to shape your journaling practice:

Write 100 words. Decide to write 100 words (or 125 or whatever word count you choose). Write like a madman or madwoman. Write with no regard to meaning, sounds, spelling, or common sense. Fling the words onto the page. Do it as a free write, timed write, or just write.

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Jan 12

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How to take your finished manuscript to the next level

When I was writing my memoir, it seemed as if the editing process would last a lifetime. When I finally felt as if my manuscript was ready to send out to the world, I took the advice of agent Don Maass and applied one final editing technique. The results were pretty remarkable. I highly recommend this process for all writers whether you’re a beginner or a published professional.

Here’s how it works: When you think you’re done with your manuscript, take a handful of pages (20 to 30) and throw them up in the air. Repeat until the entire manuscript is scattered across your floor. Then randomly gather the pages into one big pile.

Now, go through your manuscript page by page (still out of order). As you read each page, find a way to do these two things per page: Read more

Jan 10

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How to create a project-specific reading list

My reading list changes depending on what project I’m working on. I have a fantasy book, a memoir, and a poetry manuscript in the works.

Since the memoir is done and I’m in the “sending it out” phase, I don’t have any memoirs on my current reading list—though I have read over 50 memoirs in the past four years. I wanted to read a wide variety of stories and styles to see where my story might fit. Along the way, I discovered many treasures that I’ll share in my Memoir Reading List soon.

As I begin to focus on my fantasy book, I recently revamped my reading list. Of course, as a writer, it’s good to read a variety of books but having a specific project-related reading list helps keep me focused on my next big goal. Read more

Jan 9

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5.75 questions to ask your characters (and yourself)

Are your characters living bold, brave lives?

The answer to that question and the 5.75 questions in this video may inspire your characters (and you) as they live their boldest life on the page.

Box of Crayons, an innovation agency, offers this video and others about living an authentic, creative life while doing great work.

Jan 6

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Tips for imagining memoir characters and events

Below are three previous blog posts with tips for writing your memoir:

Do you have a character in your memoir who needs to be fleshed out but you don’t have enough information to do so? Try these techniques:

How to Fully Imagine Your Memoir:

Deepen your memoir by imagining character thoughts and feelings

Need fresh ideas for describing your characters? Read this post:

Memoir “The Tender Bar” inspires unique character descriptions 

Jan 3

Anton Chekhov: Eliminate the commonplace for lyrical writing

As writers, one of our tasks is to create mental pictures by combining just the right combination of words on the page. This is exactly what makes writing challenging, rewarding – and maddening.

Those times when I’ve hit a wall and need to step away from the keyboard, I find inspiration from the advice of Anton Chekhov, often called, “the father of the modern short story.” In a letter to his brother Alexander, Chekhov wrote:

“I think descriptions of nature should be very short and always be à propos. Commonplaces like “The setting sun, sinking into the waves of the darkening sea, cast its purple gold rays, etc,” or, “Swallows, flitting over the surface of the water, twittered gaily” — eliminate such commonplaces. You have to choose small details in describing nature, grouping them in such a way that if you close your eyes after reading it you can picture the whole thing. For example, you’ll get a picture of a moonlit night if you write that, “on the dam of the mill, a piece of broken bottle flashed like a bright star and the black shadow of a dog or a wolf rolled by like a ball, etc.”

Chekhov’s correspondence with his family and writing contemporaries reveals a trove of advice and insight.

For more Chekhov advice, read his six principles of good writing and an example of how he offered writing feedback.

Dec 30

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Short story writing method reveals New Year’s theme

Instead of making a list of New Year’s resolutions, my friend Nicole likes to have a theme – a single statement that encompasses a key idea that she wants to focus on for the year. For 2012, I decided to adopt a writing theme – one that would help me focus on the power of imagination.

Sometimes it’s easy to over think the writing process. I’ll worry if I don’t know where my story is going. I begin to doubt myself and the project. Then I have to remind myself (again) that we write to discover, to find out what happens. It’s okay if I don’t know everything that’s going to happen.

In The Story Behind the Story: 26 Stories by Contemporary Writers and How They Work, author Stephen Dobyns says he was inspired to write a book of short stories after hearing advice from writing mentor Raymond Carver. Dobyns asked Carver how he had written a particular story:

“He (Carver) said the first sentence had come into his mind and he just followed it. The sentence was something like: “He was vacuuming the living room rug when the telephone rang.” Carver said, ‘It came into my head and so I tried to see what came next.’ In such a way had the story unwound itself.”

After the first sentence, the whole process had been a process of discovery. Read more

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