I was never excited about taking the job; in fact, the first time it was offered I refused it. But this was Elance. The on-line freelancing website was not known for good jobs. Arguably it is the trash heap of the writing industry, a place where clients with insanely low budgets prowl the internet for […]
Why My First Time Ghost Writing Was My Last Read More »
Resistance is basic to living. So basic that when you touch something, the electrons in your hand repel the electrons of the touched surface. When you push an object, it pushes back: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. This is one reason resistance creates a sense of realism in fiction. Writing
Using the Psychology of Resistance for Vivid Narrative Writing Read More »
I have become painfully aware that debut novelists must not “overstay their welcome” when it comes to word length. This is a strange idea to me, since a longer story means that I put in extra work. But while querying for an agent, I have found that most publishers will not even consider a novel
Should Word Count Limits Have Limits? Read More »
Many of my blogs have been silly and whimsical, and for that reason, someone recently told me that, if I could be the same person around strangers as I am when I write, I could be “the life of the party.” Maybe long ago I could have been. When I was little, my dad used
Do introverts have the secret ability to be the “life of the party”? Read More »
There are writers who say writing is not therapy; that it may express but it will not change you. For me, that has been entirely untrue. Writing has cut a path through depressions and creative drought, spurred insights, and promoted struggles which led to solving real and pressing problems. Some people meditate for similar reasons,
Can Writing Change You? Read More »
My social media friends have advised me that, in order to be a successful writer I must glow with self-confidence, yet maintain the appearance of monkish humility. This confuses me. But over the years I have noticed a lot of actresses and writers who carry themselves with an imperial bearing, yet are constantly trumpeting their
Why I Have a Problem with the Word “Humility” Read More »
No way was I doing Twitter. Twitter was a spam-fest. A cross-hatched mess. It went against my whole philosophy. Except… “Reddit killed your blog,” my husband said. “Why would you not want to rebuild your readership? It might help you promote your new novel.” The words “killed your blog” cut deep, though they were only
The Intrinsic Value of Twitter Read More »
For a writer, being a professional is considered the highest distinction. If someone is paid, and especially if he is published traditionally, well, he must be really good. And if paid writers are the best, then it is easy to assume that those who write only for the love of it are the worst. This
Writing Like Hemingway for Sweatshop Wages and Loving It Read More »
For most of my life I thought my biggest problem was “discipline,” or how to “make myself” do things I should do. In my mind, the more of them I did, the better. For example, writing for 24 hours a day would have been ideal. Basic needs like eating and sleeping were only unfortunate obstacles
Writing: How Setting Limits Grants Freedom Read More »
Words have no value in the wild. If you show your fictional masterpiece to a starving lion, it will still eat you. Confronted with the most scandalous comment by a politician, a cat will not care, nor will she rave over your oil painting.The reality of certain things is determined by a lot of people
How Real is Social Media? Read More »
