New Daily Writing Guides from The Write Practice

How to Avoid Clichés (Like the Plague)

by Sue Weems | 0 Comments

We’re on the verge of summer, and that means I’m attending graduations (including my oldest son’s). Whether you are attending one for a friend or family member or yourself, commencement ceremonies are a great place for inspiration and one other thing: cliché-hunting.

Clichés are overused phrases or metaphors that weaken our writing. As writers, we want to hunt down, drag out, and kill clichés in our writing. (I know, the killing metaphor is also probably cliché. I’m still working on it.) Here are some ideas for how to avoid clichés in our writing.

3 Writing Prompts to Tap Into Your Creative Well

by Jeff Elkins | 19 Comments

Sometimes the hardest part about writing is coming up with the initial story idea. Once the spark of creativity is lit, the story will flow. All it takes to get moving is a strong title, inspiring image, or moving concept.

Creativity is like a muscle. If you haven’t used it in a while, it can become stiff and sore when you try to work it out. With the holidays in full force, between my full-time job, my children’s activities, and the various family get-togethers finding time to write can become difficult. I’ll get a thirty-minute window to write, sit down to type out a story, and waste all my time trying to figure out what to say.

Writing prompts are wonderful tools to get the words flowing. Today we are going to look at three tools you can use to get your creative juices going.

3 Ways to Rediscover the Joy of Writing

by Sue Weems | 0 Comments

Recently, I found myself dreading my scheduled writing time. I was bored with my book, tired of the grind, and angry that my revision was taking so long. I had lost my writing joy. Is it time to abandon a book or project once you lose your joy? Or is there a way to recalibrate and find the fun in your project and the joy of writing again?

How to Right a Book in Nine (Not So) Easy Steps

by Joe Bunting | 80 Comments

165,000 people search “how to right a book” every month.

(NOTE: Step one to write a book, get a good critique group who will catch those spelling errors.)

Seriously though, wouldn’t it be great to write a book? To see your name on that glossy cover, flip the pages filled with words you’ve written, to be able to tell your friends, “I’m an author.”

How do you write a book?

How to Write a Self-Help Book

by David Safford | 0 Comments

Do you want to help people? Do you feel a calling to use your writing to be a voice of encouragement to others? Do you want to know how to write a self-help book that will share your stories and wisdom with thousands of readers?

Thanks to the unique life that you’ve lived, only you have access to the treasure trove of experience and knowledge in your heart and mind. Within that trove are lessons that readers need to learn, and only you can teach them.

How to Bust Excuses and Focus on Your Writing Like Ray Bradbury

by Sue Weems | 0 Comments

Fill in the blank: I can’t finish my draft because _______. Are you sure that is what is holding you back?

This is one of the busiest months of the year for me. I’m usually disciplined, but there are some especially busy seasons when writing is hard to prioritize. As one of my classes began reading Fahrenheit 451 this month, I remembered a letter Ray Bradbury sent to a librarian about how he wrote the novel. It was just what I needed to get back to finishing my book.

How to Win the Readers’ Choice Award: 5 Strategic Things One Winner Did

by Guest Blogger | 0 Comments

“I published a book, didn’t tell a soul about it, and it became a best seller!!” Said no writer ever.

But we wish it were true, don’t we? We want to hole up and write epic tales and thought-provoking prose, not hock books door to door and shout from the rooftops about how awesome we are. Can’t we just write? Well … write, but also be discovered and then catapulted to great heights by someone else.

We’d like readers to find us that way, please. We don’t want to navigate those scary waters of how to market a book.

5 Ways Running a Marathon Can Improve Your Writing

by David Safford | 0 Comments

At first glance, running and writing don’t seem to go together. Writing involves sitting and thinking, while running involves sweat and suffering. Yet running and writing have a lot in common, and studying one can improve your ability to succeed at the other.

How to Write a Scene: 3 Theater Techniques to Make Your Story Jump Off the Page

by Guest Blogger | 1 Comment

It’s time to write that scene. You know, the one you’ve been avoiding. You’ve sketched out your character and the scene’s objective, but how do you get your character from point A to point B? What exact words should he use? What specific actions should she take to accomplish her scene goal?

If you’ve ever faced that blank page with these questions in mind, you’ll be pleased to learn about three techniques, borrowed from the actor’s playbook, that will boost your writing and make your story shine. Let’s take a look at how to write a scene with the mindset of an actor.

The Truth About Book Publishing: 3 Stories All Writers Need to Hear

by Jeff Elkins | 7 Comments

The stories we tell ourselves are like glasses through which we understand the world. They define the field we play on and guide the decisions we make, whether about book publishing or any other area of our lives.

Unfortunately, in the world of writing and publishing, there are a lot of false narratives floating around that create a romantic idea about the life of an author that can end in self-doubt, frustration, and stagnation. To avoid falling into the trap of bad stories, it’s important we pause and consider the world we exist in.

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

How to Avoid Clichés (Like the Plague)

3 Writing Prompts to Tap Into Your Creative Well

3 Ways to Rediscover the Joy of Writing

How to Right a Book in Nine (Not So) Easy Steps

How to Write a Self-Help Book

How to Bust Excuses and Focus on Your Writing Like Ray Bradbury

How to Win the Readers’ Choice Award: 5 Strategic Things One Winner Did

5 Ways Running a Marathon Can Improve Your Writing

How to Write a Scene: 3 Theater Techniques to Make Your Story Jump Off the Page

The Truth About Book Publishing: 3 Stories All Writers Need to Hear

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