by Ryan Lanz
For some writers, editing strikes fear into their hearts. Okay, perhaps not fear, but some discomfort. At least a stomach ache, right?
Before you reach for the antacids, let’s discuss the different methods of editing and introduce some ways that might make it less intimidating.
Continue reading What’s Missing From Your Self-Editing
by Allison Maruska
A subgroup of writers (myself included) proclaim they are pantsers, meaning they write by the seat of their pants with little planning beforehand. But even pantsters have to do some planning. In fact, it would be more accurate to call ourselves plantsers.
Planning is taking an initial idea and developing it into a cohesive premise that makes a story. Plot points, conflict, and characters have to be decided. You pretty much have to know the beginning, middle, and end of a story before the draft starts. The difference between planners and plantsers is how many smaller details are decided beforehand.
by Lauren Sapala
In order to be a successful writer in today’s online world there are certain things you have to do.
If you want to get your name out there then you have to play the game in a certain way.
The internet offers limitless possibilities and it is up to you to choose which ones work for you.
One of the statements above is true, and the other two are false. Can you tell which is which? I’ll give you a hint: look for the words “have to.” Whenever you hear the words “have to” your red flag radar should start bleeping at you that something is off.
by Andrea Lundgren
Personally, I like fitting endings even more than happy ones. Sure, it’s nice to know that the characters you’ve read about succeed. When you’ve invested time and emotional energy, you enjoy it when they make it out of their troubles and gain the victory they’ve sought for so long, but I don’t like false endings. I don’t like endings that feel fake, as though the author pulled some strings with the fictional higher powers to give the characters the ending they wanted, rather than what they deserved.
Continue reading How to Write an Ending That Fits Your Story
Hi all!
There’s only two more days (almost one day now) left to participate in the current creative writing contest.
I know there are many of you finishing up your story to submit tomorrow. Even if it’s not perfect, I encourage you to submit. You can’t win if you don’t enter.
Keep in mind that the prizes total $250 in cash and over $3,200 in prizes. Check the link here for more information:
https://ryanlanz.com/2018/02/01/short-story-writing-contest/
Good luck everyone!
by Meg Dowell
Writing a lot and writing well at the same time? It’s not easy, but it’s possible.
I know of writers and overall content creators who publish a new piece of content every day — and their work is usually good. But not always great.
I also know of creators who publish new content less frequently — and it’s always phenomenal.
Continue reading How to Balance Quality with Quantity to Write More, Better
by Michael Mohr
Finding your literary “voice” in writing is tough, no question. So much of it is organic, visceral, from within. What does that mean? Well, basically it means that you’re not likely to “find your voice” from an MFA class or from a writing seminar or from a writing conference or from a book focusing on voice. All the above mentioned certainly can help. But to truly find your voice, if “find” is really the most accurate word (I’d say “discover”), it’s really more about your confidence, your life experience, and your sense of self as it relates to the world.
by Andrea Lundgren
You can’t always tell who’s going to pick up your story and read it. Sometimes, readers are unpredictable. Those who don’t read your genre may stumble upon it and read it anyways, and what speaks to one person won’t to another.
But you can tell some things about your own story based on the fiction classification. This isn’t a genre-thing, but more a flavor of the story based on character, plot, and description, and it can tell you something about why someone would pick up your story. Not all readers read for the same reason, and sometimes, a reader who generally favors one kind of fiction may want another kind as a change of pace.
Continue reading What Fiction Classifications Can Tell You About Your Readers
by Ryan Lanz
For some, writer’s block is a very real and forbidding thing. I personally know authors who treat this as a superstition that no amount of garlic and rabbit feet will save them from.
There are countless blog posts on how to beat writer’s block–and yes, we’ll go over that too–although I want to also look at why a writer might encounter a writing block. Perhaps it’s not for the reasons you think, and it could be indicative of deeper issues. Let’s begin.
