In Kurt Vonnegut’s Player Piano, a character named Ed Finnerty expresses reservations about seeing a psychiatrist, saying: “He’d pull me back into the center, and I want to stay as close to the edge as I can without going over. Out on the edge you see all kinds of things you can’t see from the […]
How to Write Like a Small Business
Tomorrow is Small Business Saturday. While people lined up [in some cases, last night] for Black Friday deals at large chain retailers, there’s a movement planning to shop locally tomorrow. It’s not about getting the best deals on mass produced electronics; it’s about supporting the people who actually live in your neighborhood. I Understand Being […]
When Getting Published Was Hard
With the rise of self publishing, I’ve heard many people over the years say, “When it was harder to get published, it weeded people out.” True, writers have more options than ever to get their work out there, but I still wouldn’t say it’s easy. I think what people mean is when it was harder […]
Monday Motivation: Do Your Own Thing
I have a couple empty Moleskine notebooks tucked away in my desk drawer. Within reach, though, I have an almost full Mead notebook. (And several small Mead notebooks scattered about–even in my car.) * * * I have a good friend who’s an artist. Years ago, when he read that Mark Schultz uses a Windsor […]
Building A Solid Writing Foundation
I’ve picked up books that floored me with the writing. I appreciated the way the authors put words together — going as far as wondering what it must be like to have a mind that can write such beautiful prose. Many times, though, about 40-50 pages in I stopped and thought: “Okay, this is nice […]
5 Ways To Get Out of a Creative Funk
On Monday, I wrote about a couple artists discussing their self doubts. Sometimes that self doubt can turn into something really bad: a full blown funk — even depression. I think almost everybody who sets out to do something creative experiences it at some point. At times, especially in the middle of a funk, it […]
Do Something Scary
It’s two days until the scariest holiday: Halloween. (And the birthday of my favorite person.) Boo! I’ve done a couple scary things this month: I started podcasting, and I started freelancing. I’ve written about why podcasting was scary for me, here. Freelancing is something I’ve thought about doing, so when a couple opportunities came along, […]
The Little Things About Writing
When writing a novel, it’s typically a good practice to have each scene move the story forward. If you’re not moving the story forward, what is written should at least focus on the traits and motivations of characters. Sometimes, though, you just have to write that one little thing for no other reason than it’s […]
Monday Motivation: For the Love of Writing
My wife used to be a freelance artist. And then one day she came to no longer love what she did… It got old dealing with clients who approved preliminary sketches for finished art, only to not want to pay her for work because they changed their minds and wanted something else (and felt like […]
Stuck in a Rut: Try Something New
All this week, I’ve written about ways to get out of a writing rut and recapture the spark from when you first started writing. Monday, I wrote about revisiting old friends. Tuesday, I wrote about rereading some of the writing from when you first started writing seriously. Wednesday, I wrote about revisiting old haunts. And […]
Stuck in a Rut: Old Work
I recently pulled some writing I hadn’t seen in ten years off an old computer. Some of it made me cringe, but some of it still holds up. I spent time reading old stories, some from when I first started writing. With years of writing experience behind me, I read with a much more critical […]
Stuck in a Rut: Old Haunts
When I think about when I first started writing seriously, I can feel the cool breeze of that season and hear the leaves blowing. I remember what it felt like to write all night with the windows wide open and the curtains moving in an out like a breath, as though the house were alive. […]
Stuck in a Rut: Reread
All this week, I’m writing about ways to get out of a writing rut and recapture the spark from when you first started writing. Yesterday, I wrote about visiting old friends and how that can help. Today, I’m writing about rereading. * * * I recently sat down on a rainy day with my favorite […]
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 11
- 12
- 13
- 14
- 15
- 16
- Next Page »