New Daily Writing Guides from The Write Practice

3 Steps to Complete Your Writing Goals in the New Year

For the last two weeks I have received emails from over eight different companies offering to teach me how to have a wonderful and amazing year next year. Their premise is that I will have a wonderful year if I complete a goal. Since I am a writer, perhaps I should complete some writing goals.

The companies offer to give me practical advice to assist me. Some of them even offered to give me a certificate of completion when I finished their course. The least expensive offer was close to five hundred dollars.

Today, I will give you my three steps to complete a goal and have a great New Year. And, I won’t charge you five hundred dollars.

Tone in Writing: The Uplifting Tone Your Writing Needs to Reach Your Readers

by David Safford | 12 Comments

Being a know-it-all, I’ve always assumed I was a good teacher and coach. I’ve often taken that attitude into blog posts and book chapters, and then wondered why I received negative comments and feedback.

I’m learning a tough lesson about successful teaching and coaching: Tone is everything.

Because if we coach with the wrong tone, we might not be coaching at all, but driving our readers away!

20 Christmas Gifts for Writers in 2017

by Pamela Fernuik | 13 Comments

Are you not sure what to get the writer friend in your life for Christmas? Would you like help with a list of gift ideas? They probably already have their two front teeth, so that is not an option.

Do not worry. Here is a collection of Christmas gifts for writers that will help you find the perfect present.

4 Inspirational Quotes for Writers

by Jeff Elkins | 20 Comments

There are few things in the world as weird as being a writer. We pour ourselves into our work, giving it everything we have, pushing through rejection, overcoming one barrier after another, hoping our work will be noticed. In this strange and taxing pursuit, it’s important that we hold onto some truths that can keep us centered, inspirational quotes for writers that will remind us why we write.

Sometimes, the best place to find those truths is in movies.

Empathy: How to Show Empathy in Writing

by Ruthanne Reid | 34 Comments

Stories create empathy. Stories bring hope. Stories change history. Yes, even yours—especially when you know how to show empathy in writing.

How to Finish a Novel in Three Days

by Monica M. Clark | 7 Comments

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) ends on Thursday. That means you have to figure out how to finish a novel . . . in three days.

Let’s get the bad news out of the way first—you might not make it.

The good news is that it’s not impossible. With the right strategy and enough determination, you can finish writing your book and win NaNoWriMo.

3 Scenes That Will Boost Your NaNoWriMo Word Count

by Jeff Elkins | 26 Comments

As you sit down today to write are you filled with a sense of dread? We’ve come through the first weekend of NaNoWriMo. This is where I always fall behind in my word count.

I never get as much done over the weekends that I think I will. I tell myself, “This weekend I will catch up. I’ll spend a few extra hours, knuckle down, and catch up to my word count.”

But then my wife tells me about some obligation I neglected to notice on the calendar, or my kids need to be driven places I didn’t foresee, or things break in the house that need to be fixed, and I look up on Sunday and all my writing time is gone, and I’m farther behind than I was before the weekend began.

If that’s you, don’t panic! All is not lost. Many of us have been where you are. There is hope.

Writers Group: How to Build a Fantastic Writing Community

by Sue Weems | 24 Comments

Writing is a solitary profession for the most part, but sooner or later, we realize we need a network of people, from beta readers to editors and eventually readers. Some writers retreat, discouraged by unkind comments or unsupportive friends or family, believing that someday, somehow their work will reach a wider audience.

But writing alone and hard work aren’t enough by themselves. Very few writers can write and launch a book and career entirely in isolation. (Plus, being a part of a writing or creative community is much more fun.)

Here are a few small steps for finding, joining, or building a writing community.

5 Inspiring Tips for How to Start a Story

by The Magic Violinist | 27 Comments

An argument can be made that the beginning of any story is the most important. It is the first part your readers will encounter and it is what potential agents and publishers will read in order to determine if your project is right for them. But do you know how to start a story? What’s the perfect opening?

Rules of Writing: How to Create Your Own Rules

by Ruthanne Reid | 24 Comments

It’s good to study other writers’ rules, but in the end, those rules were not made for you—they were made for other writers. If you’re serious about being a writer, then you need to figure out your rules of writing and stick to them. This post will show you how.

Here to learn? You’re in the WRITE place!