On Writing Distractions: FakeFriends scribbler's paradise Committing to writing over the long haul means writing day after day. As you finish your various writing projects you may very well find your On Being a Bad Writer scribbler's paradise Skillfully executed nonfiction and fiction requires more than a brain dump on the page. We need a story, something to say, one that speaks to a Location Less Writing scribbler's paradise We want to find the right place to write. A dedicated space to our writing can seem like honoring our commitment to our writing. I have a writing Winging It Works?!? scribbler's paradise The majority of my writing life I have winged it. Budgets are for losers. So are writing outlines! Writing down my spending, creating and keeping a Do the Work Before the Work Does You In scribbler's paradise Here’s the thing: I am a published author and co-owner of a publishing company and know a few things about writing; rewriting; rejection; not How to Write 1.2 Million Words a Year Scribblers Paradise Erle Stanley Gardner, originator of the 20th century America’s favorite lawyer Perry Mason, wrote like a fiend on speed. His output as a writer Caveat Scriptor: Let the Writer Beware Scribblers Paradise Writing day after day after requires focus, discipline and physical exertion. The ease with which I can distract myself from these behaviors Scribbler’s Paradise Scribblers Paradise Here’s the thing: I am a published author and co-owner of a publishing company. I know about writing. I know rewriting. I know about rejection. I Writing In and Out Images Scribblers Paradise I’m working on a novel and mostly working on understanding what the heck I’ve gotten myself into. Long a nonfiction author, I had believed the shift Scribbler’s Paradise: 100% Effort Scribblers Paradise 0% expectations. 100% effort. Can I write this way, always? Never think about who might read my words? Never worried about whether I’m good enough? When a Beta Reader Says No Scribblers Paradise The manuscript, a second volume of my ongoing memoir series, was done and sent to my beta readers. I felt so proud, constructing essays using some Do I Write What I Want to Read? Scribbler's Paradise The words read flatly and stunk out loud. A kind of slow-moving gloom descended over me. What had happened to this essay? I worked on it for weeks Five Reasons Why You Should Write to Your Loved Ones Scribbler's Paradise A woman in front of a delivery truck shot with a Canon 60D while pulling focus. How many words I have written, yet none to my beloved or grandmother Creativity is a Marathon Scribbler's Paradise One of the challenges of living a creative life arises after the initial thrill of creating disappears. How do we keep the work interesting to On Change and Self-Management Scribbler's Paradise On June 30, 2016, after 12.5 years of employment at my local public university, my unit dissolved my position and set me free. The likelihood I Wanted: Intuition Scribbler's Paradise Today I plead with each you to follow your intuition. The voice that wakes you at 1:00 am and urges to write an important character sketch; or the This One Trick is at the Heart of Writing Scribbler's Paradise In her book, Imaginative Writing, Janet Burroway states, “There is a simple trick at the heart of imaginative writing.” Read the following Verb Tense and Writing Fiction Scribbler's Paradise Verb tense is a very important tool in the writer’s toolbox. Will you write in the present simple and continuous? The past simple? Both? Verb tense One Cool Trick to Shift Points of View Scribbler's Paradise photo by Will White Shifting between different points of view requires skill. This is something of a truism in writing. There are many who try and These 3 Words Will Improve Your Writing Guaranteed Scribbler's Paradise Todd VanDerWeff makes a brilliant case for why most writing fails. We too often use “and then” as the connective tissue in a story. Riffing off of Writing Exercise, or Journalism Scribbler's Paradise From the 3:00 AM Epiphany (More exercises here.) Journalism. Write part of a story in the form of journal entries. Everything that happens in the On Proper Word Choice Scribbler's Paradise Learning to write is learning to make a series of choices. Which point of view, tense, genre and other decisions are ones we must make as we write We, The Narrators - Buddha in the Attic Scribbler's Paradise photo by Will White Julie Otsuka’s Buddha in the Attic tells the story of Japanese picture brides. Women emigrated from Japan to America in the What is Writing Practice? scribbler's paradise A friend of mine is an internationally renowned jazz trombonist and a professor of music. He shared recently a set of trombone practice drills for You, The Narrator and Participant - Sebastopol Sketches Scribbler's Paradise photo by Will White Don’t believe anyone who thinks the second-person point-of-view began with Bright Lights, Big City. Well before McInerny was The Art of Revision Scribbler's Paradise All writing is rewriting. We must find a revision process that works for us. Over time we may adopt or more strategies that make us create the best Writing Exercise, or The Unreliable Third Scribbler's Paradise From Brian Kitely’s The 3:00 A.M. Epiphany: Write a fragment of a story from the POV of an unreliable narrator — third person limited (or attached) You and She, The Narrators - A Hybrid Form Scribbler's Paradise photo by Will White Mohsin Hamid’s How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia is a coming-of-age story using an unusual hybrid point of view. Unlike a The Big O: Mohsin Hamid Scribbler's Paradise “Glasgow Association of Observation and Curiosity” by Michael Gallacher Original detail distinguishes an average writer from a good one. An average Do This Exercise, or The Imperative Scribbler's Paradise In this exercise, we explore a tool Lorrie Moore used in Self-Help, the imperative. From Brian Kitely’s The 3:00 am Epiphany. Write a fragment of a You, The Narrator - Self-Help Scribbler's Paradise Flickr / Sophia Louise Lorrie Moore writes brilliantly in the second person in Self-Help, her first collection of short stories. Her style and tone You, The Narrator - Bright Lights, Big City Scribbler's Paradise As part of the point of view (POV) series, we will review the second-person point of view. Second-person POV uses the pronoun You. You can be either Point of View in Writing Scribbler's Paradise photo by Will White Point-of-View (POV) is a grammatical position through which you choose to tell a story. I say grammatical as a way to Ursula Le Guin’s Advice: There Are No Recipes scribbler's paradise Image by Flood. The process of rewriting can be difficult. When you have loved a particular essay as much as I have loved the one I am now Reading Exercise: The How of Language Scribbler's Paradise Sentences from Lord of the Rings The how of language, argues Sven Birkets, is the sentence. [1. Sven Birkets, “What Remains,” AGNI Magazine, 69, How to Read Like a Writer Scribbler's Paradise The moment when you’re reading a book…by Mendak When we read like a writer, we read to learn about how to write better. 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Why bother Why You Should Copy Other Writers Scribbler's Paradise I am adding this practice to my writer’s toolbox I Got Hacked, Part 2 Scribbler's Paradise Getting hacked has been a tiring but rewarding experience. Absurd, yes? Let me explain. I have spent my entire adult life learning how to be more I Got Hacked Scribbler's Paradise Do you have security style? I don’t. Late last week I discovered my personal site here had been hacked. Because I am the dumbest website Toni Morrison & Angela Davis - The Purpose of Freedom Scribbler's Paradise I am reminded of the tremendous work Morrison accomplished as an editor at Random House. During her tenure she published Toni Cade Bambara and Twenty-Five Cent Words Scribbler's Paradise Reviewing another writer’s work is a great responsibility. One of the greatest ones, I think, is my responsibility as a reviewer to understand what Toni Morrison & Alice Walker - There are Only Black People Scribbler's Paradise “I never asked Tolstoy to write for me, a little colored girl in Lorain, Ohio. I never asked [James] Joyce not to mention Catholicism or the world The Duty of an Artist Scribbler's Paradise The incomparable Nina Simone on the duty of an artist. “How can you be an artist and not reflect the times?” Do you agree or disagree Diary of a Wave Outside the Sea - Dunya Mikhail Scribbler's Paradise “Mazin bends his head to the table and cries. His niece in Baghdad has been kidnapped. She is twenty years old. Masked men surrounded her and pulled 3 A.M. Epiphany - A Great Writing Tool Scribbler's Paradise Three A.M. Epiphany by Brian Kiteley provides me with numerous opportunities to work on my writing skills. 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Reading Moby-Dick, I want to better understand this complicated, infuriating, wonderful book. I understand why critics argue it Mastery Takes a Very Long Time Scribbler's Paradise Malcolm Gladwell’s oft quoted number says it takes 10,000 hours of practicing anything to become a master of it. I suppose that is true. Based on my A Me Beyond Me Scribbler's Paradise Pushing myself beyond my limits has been a blast. While on staycation, I responded to a request to write periodic articles for a blog I read. Nice Pursuing Goals I’ve Created Scribbler's Paradise Pursuing goals I’ve created as always been a challenge. I have found it easy to create many goals over my adult lifetime. I have always struggled to Intentional Practice: Creating a Framework for Good Habits Scribbler's Paradise Creating a framework for good habits has eluded me for sometime. I work at doing it. I create lists and rearrange my stuff. 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