Skip to content

Posts from the ‘Writing Life’ Category

Feb 8

Finetune your instincts for spotting writing ideas

I was inspired when I read my blogging partner Carol’s post yesterday about where writers find ideas. In fact, her post gave me the idea for this post. It made me think about where I get my ideas for poems, stories, and freelance articles. I think it’s possible to finetune your instincts for recognizing story ideas. Practice listening to the inner voice, the feeling in your chest when you hear something that pings your consciousness and tells you that you’ve found something you need to write about.

In case it helps, I’m sharing some of my ideas and how I found them.

Poem, “Bird Man.” This idea came from an encounter with an elderly man in the bread aisle at the grocery store. Read more

Feb 6

1 Comment

Become a better writer by doing a 30-day challenge

I’m on Day 6 of the 750 words-a-day February challenge. I love a challenge, and I like the way 750words.com puts a framework around my writing practice.

As computer scientist Matt Cutts says, “small changes are sustainable.”

Whether you choose to do a writing challenge or some other type of challenge, I’m pretty sure it will make your life more interesting. And that can’t help but make you a better writer.

For another perspective about 30-day challenges, see how Cutts looks at them by watching this 3-minute TedTalk.

Feb 3

4 Comments

How getting organized can help you be a better writer

I set big writing goals last year, but somehow the year got away from me. I did accomplish many of my goals but not some of the most important ones. Why? Life happened. Tragedies small and large. More happened last year to pull me off track then the previous several years combined. But I learned from those experiences–“grist for the mill” as they say. One of the things I learned was that I need help staying on track.

This year, I’m investigating and implementing different ways to keep my writing projects organized and keep me heading toward my goals. Don’t worry–I’m not one of those people who’s constantly rearranging paper clips to the detriment of actually writing. But I do find that planning to be successful helps me become more successful. Between my business and my various writing projects (poetry manuscript, memoir, and fantasy book) things slip by. I can go for days getting bogged down in one area while losing track of the big picture. Read more

Feb 2

2 Comments

Craft a Valentine’s Day poem for your beloved

Valentine’s Day is coming up, and it’s a perfect occasion to craft a love letter or poem for your beloved. Ted Kooser, U.S. poet laureate from 2004 to 2006, began a tradition in 1986 of sending a Valentine’s Day poem on a postcard to 50 women (with his wife’s understanding).

When he stopped in 2007, he was mailing postcards to 2,600 women, including actress Debra Winger and author Louise Erdrich. He closed with a final poem dedicated to his wife Kathleen.

His book Valentinesfeatures all the poems. Here’s the first one he wrote: Read more

Jan 31

1 Comment

Try these tools and techniques to keep your 2012 writing plan on track

The older I get the faster time seems to fly by and this year is no exception. The first month of the year ends today, and it’s made me stop and think about how much progress I’ve made on my writing goals.

I’m on a good track so far, but I know I need to focus on what I can do every day if I’m going to accomplish my plan.

Several tools and practices are helping me maintain a daily writing practice. I’ve listed them below:

Making better use of Stickies and to-do lists. I always feel more in control of what I have to do and how I’ll remember all the bits and pieces of tasks and ideas floating around in my brain if I write everything down. I use the Stickies app that comes with the Mac to collect ideas and notes. If you use a Windows-based computer, you can use a freeware Stickies app from Zhorn Software. Read more

Jan 27

The secret weapon to writing better stories: Make mistakes

I’ve concluded that to be a better writer, I need to make more mistakes. The more uptight and worried I am about, “getting it right,” the stiffer and less creative my writing is.

I’ve been working on revisions and I’ve found I wrote better pages when I was half awake and less tense about the sentences. Or when I worked fast and furiously as I wrote 750 words for the day. Or when I wrote with the abandon of a 5-year-old.

It’s just not effective or efficient to edit and create at the same time. If you edit while you’re creating, your brain can get a little too judgmental and suck the creative mojo right out of your story.

So here are a few ideas if you want to make more mistakes in your writing and open the door for more creativity. Read more

Jan 26

5 Comments

How to put together a poetry manuscript, part 1

I’m putting together my first poetry manuscript: gathering and editing poems, organizing and reorganizing them into some kind of order. Since I’ve never done this before, I wanted a little help.

I found an excellent article by Jeffrey Levine, an award-winning poet, and Founder, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Tupelo Press. In Thirteen Ways of Looking at the Poetry Manuscript: Some Ideas on Creation and Order, Levine gives an overview of the entire process from what font to use to how to find an effective title to tips on ordering the poems.

For me, ordering the poems was the biggest challenge. What seems as if it should be so simple, is not.

Levine advises: “Spread all of your poems out on the floor, a floor that does not need to be disturbed, and look at them. Read them. Live with them. See what relationships seem to be developing between the poems. Which poem wants to talk to that poem?” Read more

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »