7 Steps to Become a More Productive Writer

7 Steps to Become a More Productive Writer

I am Harper, a cat, a cat who writes. I have a large problem.

No, not the dog I live with. My problem is I struggle with self-doubt and don’t write very much. I really need help to become a more productive writer. My typist is always ready to type for me, but when I sit down to dictate I waste so much time worrying about the quality of my writing.

I really need to prepare for writing and follow Jeff Elkins’s Seven Steps to Increase Productivity—The Elkins Seven.

How to Use Garbage for Character Development

How to Use Garbage for Character Development

Today is garbage day in my neighborhood. Naturally, when I went for a walk with my dog Annie this morning, I looked at my neighbors’ garbage. What did people throw away? What did their trash mean? What what can we discover about a person from what they throw away, and how they throw it away?

People leave clues about their character in their trash. Today we will practice character development by writing about someone’s garbage—what they throw away.

Writing Prompt: A Show, Don’t Tell Game

Writing Prompt: A Show, Don’t Tell Game

In grade school, your teacher had Show and Tell. You brought your stuffed Teddy Bear to class to show your class the bear, and you told them how your Teddy Bear came alive at night and fought the monsters under your bed.

If you wrote a story about the Teddy Bear fighting the monsters under your bed, you could say, “I was scared,” or you could show your fear. Today, we will play a Show, Don’t Tell Game to practice showing and not telling.

Writing Lessons From Benjamin Franklin

Writing Lessons From Benjamin Franklin

There are many ways we can learn to write more expressively. We can read all of the posts on The Write Practice and join Becoming Writer, or we can take writing lessons from Benjamin Franklin. What Benjamin Franklin Can Teach You About Writing Benjamin Franklin wrote...