If you want to know how to be an author, it starts with the habits of professionalism that will carry you through a career. Treat your writing like you would any other job. You need a set schedule, you need a process, you need to improve, and you need to treat your coworkers (editors, agents, other writers) with respect.
Here to learn? You’re in the WRITE place!
At The Write Practice, we publish a new article each day designed to help writers tackle one part of their writing journey, from generating ideas to grammar to writing and publishing your first book. Each article has a short practice exercise at the end to help you immediately put your learning to use.
Check out the latest articles below or find ones that match your interest in the sidebar.
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Top 150 Short Story Ideas
Do you want to write but just need a great story idea? Good news! Below are 150 short story ideas for all your favorite genres. You can use them as writing prompts for writing contests, for stories to publish in literary magazines, or just for fun!
Get started writing with one of these short story ideas today.
Freytag’s Pyramid: Examples of the 5 Elements for this Classic Narrative Structure
Most great stories, whether they are a Pixar film or a novel by your favorite author, follow a certain dramatic structure.
When you’re getting started with writing, understanding how the structure works is difficult. Even if you go back and analyze your favorite books and films, it can still be hard to structure your own stories. That’s where Freytag’s Pyramid can help.
Polysyndeton vs. Asyndeton: Definition and Examples
Today, we’ll look at the difference between polysyndeton vs asyndeton, share some examples, and explain how and when to use them both in your writing. Let’s get started!
How to Prepare to Write a Book: 4 Simple Steps You Can Do Now
You’ve been thinking about it for months, promising yourself that when it arrives you are finally going to knuckle down and write your manuscript. Then you realize, you have no idea how to prepare to write a book.
It doesn’t matter if you visit your favorite coffee shop or have the best book ideas in the world, if you don’t figure out your ideal writing process, it’s unlikely that you’ll actually finish your entire book.
If you want to be a successful writer, start your book writing process by evaluating your creative process and when and how you produce the best work.
This may seem overwhelming.
Here’s the good news: You don’t have to just jump into it feet first.
There are things you can start doing right now to set yourself up for a solid writing routine and good actual writing that will do your rough draft (or final draft) justice.
7 Types of Nonfiction Books
While people have been telling stories and delivering speeches for thousands of years, the history of nonfiction book writing is fairly brief. Still, over the last 500 years or so, patterns have begun to emerge, tried and true ways of writing nonfiction books, depending on the author’s goals.
Read on to discover the 7 types of nonfiction books and the structures each uses to reach readers.
20 End of School Year Writing Prompts
We’re inching closer to the end of the school year for students (or maybe you’re already done, like my college students!). Major testing winds down, days are full of assemblies, field days, educational games, and the countdown to summer is on. These final weeks of school are the perfect time though to sneak in some fun writing. Here are some end of school year writing prompts to try!
Ya’ll vs. Y’all: How to Spell This Common Contraction
Many people confuse the spelling of ya’ll vs. y’all. It’s a common contraction and colloquialism that’s in wide use even outside the South in the U.S. If you’re going to use it in your writing though, you’ll need to know the spelling.
10 Obstacles to Writing a Book and How to Conquer Them
What does it take to write a book? What obstacles will you face along the way? And if you’re already writing a book, are the challenges you’re facing normal?
Writing a book can be a fulfilling and personally rewarding process, but I think it’s also important to be honest about the challenges you will face. That way, you can prepare ways to overcome those obstacles rather than allowing them to overcome you.
The 7 Components of a Fail Proof Book Plan
Some writers balk at the idea of a book plan, and I get it. I tried to write books for years without a plan. Guess how many I finished? Zero. Since I learned how to write and use a book plan, I’ve finished over a dozen books and helped thousands of writers finish their books. You can do it too!