My daughter Evelyn has consented to be an occasional guest star on my blog by agreeing to participate in a book club with me. Last summer when she was on break from college, we decided to read some books together and visit coffee shops to talk about them. Just us two. You can read about…
Reader, I added that “absolute” in the title in hopes of gaining your attention. I worry that a blog post about simply choosing better verbs could be one you’d skip over. You already know this stuff, right? It’s basic, it’s assumed, it’s Writing 101. But before you write off this article as rudimentary, I want…
I could tell you not to overthink your story opening in the first draft. But I’m not sure that’s even good advice. Thinking, thinking, and thinking some more is often what needs to happen with story-making. Finding that entry point and realizing those first 500 words can be critical to setting your feet on the…
What is “flash fiction”? the writer asks. It’s a common literary term and yet, in internet forums and in my writing classes, I hear people asking this question. If I was to give an answer that started with the modern history of the form, I’d mention that in the 1970s you’d rarely find a story…
One way you can up your writing game is to challenge yourself to look for and eliminate the vast majority of “practical action” sentences in your prose. I’m referring to those functional movements your characters make to accomplish basic tasks. Things like coming downstairs in the morning or walking across the kitchen. The underlined sentence…