I decided that the best way to get back into the mind set of writing was to … well, write, of course … but not just any writing. So many things have been turned upside down these last few weeks. First, finding someplace to live, then packing a house full…
How to Get Back to Writing
I have a problem. We moved two weeks ago. That might not seem insurmountable to you, but this is the first time (not counting dorm rooms in college) that I’ve moved in 34 years, and I think my system is still in shock. I knew, of course, that the first…
Can a Game be a Story?
My father is a puzzle to me. He watches sports for entertainment, for example, and when I protest that I prefer watching something with a story, he tells me “It’s all about stories.” He believes (I’m guessing) the strategies and the occasional player biography means that watching the events of…
Lost Your Train of Thought?
You know how it is when you have the perfect word on your tongue but you can’t. quite. get. it. out? It happens to me when I’m writing all the time. So, what do I do? Trusty Thesaurus: Well, there’s the thesaurus, of course. They can be handy if you…
Writing Makes Everything Possible
So, Joanna wants to know how writing makes things possible? Well, duh, Joanna. What DOESN”T it make possible? (grin) Writing makes everything possible. For example: Writing down instructions on how to build things. Writing down instructions how to do things. Writing down lessons for children so they can learn. Writing…
You Can Lead a Dog to a Story…
You may think that, as the writer, when you tell a story or write an article, you are leading your readers exactly where you want them to go. But is that really true? Have you ever watched a dog out for a walk? The person walks along in a straight…
Really, It’s a Puzzle
It’s puzzling. One of my responsibilities at my day job is writing and designing the company newsletter. Since newsletters, even the best of them, can be boring, and I figured it couldn’t hurt to put something in each issue that clients would want to look at. A reason to open…
Wanted: Literary Agent of My Dreams
Wanted: A Literary Agent Who Will Love My Book as Much as I Do. I’ve tried those online dating services, like Writers Market.com, but still haven’t found The One yet. You know, the Literary Agent that will read my entire manuscript and be so enchanted that she or he will…
Where the Action Is
Do you prefer stories where the bulk of the action, the stuff that drives the story, is external to your main characters? Or do you prefer internal engines? Engines make a good metaphor, here. Imagine your story is a boat. You need to get it from point A to point…
Word Tailoring
I have a confession to make. I am BAD at being succinct. Short. To the point. Direct. No wasted syllables. See? I couldn’t even say that without extras! Now, is this a terrible flaw? No, not really. We have a running joke in my family that my father has to…
Shoot for the Moon
It’s one thing to talk about goals and plans, but there’s a difference between discussing something fairly straight-forward that you plan to do, and talking about The Dream. You can talk about how you’re going to write a 400-word article, or how you hope, by the end of the year,…
How Not to Get Hired as a Writer
Last time, we talked about the ways you could preserve your anonymity by keeping your precious novel untouched and unpublished, but what if you don’t write novels? What if you write other things, like articles, press releases, and other types of non-fiction? How can you make sure that they stay…
How NOT to Get Your Novel Published
I’m practically an expert on this subject because, even though I’ve had a completed manuscript since the late 90s, I remain an unpublished novelist. I know, it’s an impressive feat, right? I bet you are just dying to know all my tricks so that you, too, can be an Undiscovered…
Putting Together the Pieces
Do you know what my favorite part of writing fiction is? Putting the pieces together. See, the best fiction … heck, the best writing … starts with a single germ of an idea. Something that sparks. Something that sets off a chain reaction. If you’re lucky, that one thing is…
Is What You Write More Important than How You Write it?
Write the Way You Talk You have heard this “rule,” haven’t you? It’s all the rage these days. Internet gurus tell their initiates that all they need to do to gain thousands of readers or sell gazillions of widgets is to simply Write the Way You Talk. They insist that…
Social Media 101
Hey, look at that … I have a guest post over at SocMedia101.com. This site, if you don’t know, comes from the brilliant minds of Julie Roads and Ron Miller and is devoted to helping people (especially new people) navigate the waters of the social media river. Confused about Twitter?…
Internal Entertainment
Another thing I’ve been thinking about, about writing: It’s internally created entertainment. Now, of course, there can be a difference between the fun kinds of creative writing and the obligatory kinds of drier, business-types of writing. But still, I find that dredging words up out of my subconscious can be…
Right to Write Right
I’ve seen a couple posts floating around the internet lately discussing whether the ability to write well is necessary, or even desirable, for someone who wants to write a blog. It should be obvious that I’m going to come down on the “Yes, it’s necessary” side of the fence. After…
Pet Names
I was just writing a response on a message board, and found myself typing, “In theory, the publisher can…” Not a shocking phrase, really, except that I used “in theory.” This is a verbal tic that I’m told I use a lot. I think the reason is that it’s a…
Anticipation
In honor of the fourth annual Bloggers’ (Silent) Poetry Reading (which I participated in last year, as well as in 2006, 2007, 2008 over at my knitting blog), this year you get a Very Special Treat. A poem that I wrote. This is a rare, rare thing. I like poetry…
Let the Yeast Do the Work
Writing is like bread baking. No, really! Let me explain. You start with the basics. Yeast: The initial idea. The spark that’s going to make your writing grow into a loaf of bread. (Well, you know what I mean.) Flour: This is the substance, the main argument. Really, without the…
Pulse Warmers
Sometimes, it’s the little things that make the most difference. I was thinking about this the other day when I was sitting in my office, shivering in the draft coming from the door. I was wearing warm pants, wool socks, and a handknit sweater (made by yours truly) … but…
Dumped On
So … you had your schedule all worked out. Your plans laid, your priorities clear … And then you get dumped on. Just like a snow storm came barrelling along to disrupt your well laid plans. The roads are bad, slippery, messy, treacherous. Suddenly, what was going smoothly and according…
If a Writer Writes in a Forest…
So–there are lots of reasons to write. We’ve discussed this–there’s the whole, making-a-living thing. There’s the helping-yourself-think thing. There’s the I-have-no-choice thing. Right. We get that. But then there are writers who write because they want to, they’re driven, they’re inspired. So inspired, perhaps, that they try to write an…
MM: Got Subject?
You’ve seen the milk ads, right? “Got Milk? Have you noticed that there’s no “subject” to that sentence? Two words– a verb “Got” and a noun which is the object of the sentence, “Milk”–but neither of which is the subject of the sentence. That, of course is “You.” As in,…
Train of Thought to Nowhere
Are you waiting for a train of thought that isn’t coming? There you are, sitting at the station, waiting. And waiting. And waiting. But no train ever seems to come. You’re not sure why, exactly. All the tracks are there, you’re ready and waiting … but there’s nowhere to…
MM: Important Bulletin!
Bullet lists are all the rage these days, so let’s give a very quick overview about correct usage, shall we? Each bullet should begin a new idea, or a new item Unless every bullet is a complete sentence, you do not need periods at the end of each item If…
Who’s Driving this Thing, Anyway?
Here’s a question for you: What drives a writer to write? More specifically, what drives you to write? Let’s think …. Inspiration. You just have to write. You have this burning need to express yourself in words, to put it all on paper, and you feel unfulfilled if you don’t…
MM: Claustrophobic?
Does the thought of talking about sentence clauses make your eye twitch? Well, let’s see if we can’t make this a little simpler for you. We have talked about basic sentence structure over the last two weeks, and how all a sentence really needs is a subject and a predicate–either…
MM: Compounding Interest
Last week we talked about Subjects and Predicates–the very basis of sentence structure. Today, let’s talk about Compound Subjects and Predicates. Basically, if there are two or more subjects to the sentence, you have a Compound Subject: Running laps, doing push-ups, and eating well are all good for your health.…