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.
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Many writers I know are overwhelmed and struggle to focus on writing anything. Do I research? Get a draft down? Should I be blogging? Do I need to get a business license? What about social media? What’s for dinner? (Sorry, my kids added that one).
A few years ago, I learned a technique that helped me get a handle on my to do list, and freed me to prioritize my writing. Along with sneaking time to write, learning to write in batches has changed the way I work.
Happy prep-tober! If you’re as excited for NaNoWriMo as I am, October is probably pretty busy for you. Now is the time to start printing your novel worksheets, introducing yourself on the NaNo forums, and scheduling time to write.
But NaNoWriMo isn’t always stress-free. Attempting to write 50k in a month is hard work. Luckily, I’m here with four tips to boost your word count.
No matter how much the adage “Don’t judge a book by its cover” is trotted out, we all do it. It’s in our nature to make quick assumptions about things, especially when we have literally millions of books to choose from. It’s easy to make quick judgements based on book cover design.
Think about walking through your local bookstore or perusing your library’s shelves. You’re looking at spines, and only spines, most of the time. Then one book stands out. You pull it from the shelf and give the cover a read.
Why did you choose that book, in particular? Most likely, the color stood out to you.
What does it take to immerse your readers in your story so deeply that they forget they’re reading? Maybe, for a few hours, they’ll even believe your imaginary world is real.
One of the strongest tools in your arsenal is point of view. Here’s how to capture its magic so your readers get lost in your books.
How do you stay disciplined? You’re ready to commit and focus on your writing (or refocus). Where do you start?
That’s where our 7 Day Creative Writing Challenge comes in!
Your dream of writing a book is like climbing a mountain. Not just any mountain, either: Mount Everest, the tallest peak in the world. Not convinced? Let’s take a look at how to write a book using what I call the Everest Method.
A few years ago, I read a startling headline in a back section of the Sunday newspaper. It said “Man Likely Padlocked Himself in Bag Found in Bathtub.” I blinked twice, sure I had misread something.
Even after I read the article, I still couldn’t believe it. I was grieved for his family and friends, but I couldn’t help but see the possibilities for inspiring fiction. I wondered how it could even be done? As a claustrophobic, I wondered, why?
This situation and article were surely stranger than fiction, but it prompted so many questions. Turns out questions are at the heart of great fiction, and you can use headlines to develop ideas all day long. Here’s how to get story ideas from the strangest news headlines.
Your point of view is one of the first and most important choices you’ll make in any story. Done well, your story’s point of view can draw your readers in to experience your story alongside your characters, and even make them forget they’re reading fiction.
You want to write. Your newest idea or draft has been sitting there for days, accumulating dust and regret.
You have to write.
But you also have a family. The kids need picked up, dinner needs cooking, and that living room isn’t cleaning itself. Your spouse has an event tonight (that you forgot you agreed to go to), and don’t forget the children need help with their ever-increasing load of homework.
How can you ever hope to write a book and be a parent at the same time?
Is it hopeless? Or is there a way to pull it off?
Rejection may be one of the hardest parts of writing. After pouring our lives into our manuscripts, it feels personal when someone tells our work isn’t good enough. Even if we know in our minds how to handle rejection, our hurt and disappointment can make us want to lash out.
Additionally, when we are submitting something the size of a novel, we are offering up something that represents years of our lives. To have it dismissed with a form email may make you question if you’ve been wasting your time.
When we are feeling rejected, we may be tempted to lash out. But that’s not a healthy way to process rejection. Here’s what to do (and what not to do) instead.
