Your First Draft Is Not Shitty

Your First Draft Is Not Shitty

Ernest Hemingway said, “The first draft of anything is shit.” Ann Lamott said, “What I’ve learned to do when I sit down to work on a shitty first draft is to quiet the voices in my head.” And I say, “Nope. Your first draft is not shitty. Your...
How to Use Life Experience to Write Better

How to Use Life Experience to Write Better

Readers want something that’s real. They want to live in your novel. They want to become your characters, and feel every joy and heartache right along with them. They want to see, smell, hear, feel, taste. Our struggle as the writer is to deliver to them what they want. Our careers and our very lives depend on how the readers feel. No pressure, right?

Why Grammar Matters

Why Grammar Matters

If there’s one significant thing that Joe and I have historically disagreed on, it’s the role of grammar in a writer’s toolbox. We complement each other well because as much as I love grammar and sentence structure, he equally embraces the dismissal of commas and the implementation of run-on sentences for art’s sake. When you get down to brass tacks though, I have to admit that he kind of has a point: grammar is somewhat arbitrary.