“An editor’s job is to make you, the author, look good and save you from embarrassing mistakes.” — Unknown source Hiring an editor is like looking in a mirror before you leave the house, checking to make sure everything is where it should be and nothing is showing that shouldn’t be showing. — Marlene Cullen Editing is like a captain having a good crew to help steer the craft. — Marlene Cullen Let’s talk about editing. Or, as I like to think: Re-visioning. Some writers love to edit . . . making their writing better and better. Other writers loathe to edit . . . finding it tedious and nerve wracking. Some writers are in the middle, or elsewhere, on the continuum. The best scenario: Writers and editors work together as they dovetail their skills and expertise to come up with a product that is ready for publishing. It’s a…
Passions
Going through an old (paper) file folder, I found something I wrote around 2011: I am passionate about writing. It is my joy to find the exact right word for what I’m looking for. Some people work crossword puzzles for a hobby. If there was such a hobby for finding precise words, that’s what I would do. Well, it is what I do! Grant Faulkner also appreciates discovering the right word, as described in his Substack essay, “A Grab Bag of Trinkets, Flotsam, Jetsam, Doo Dads, Dad Doos, Rusty Objects, Found Objects, Attempts at Erudition—and More (but not less): “Words have halos, patinas, overhangs, echoes.” —Donald Barthelme “I steal “frotteur” from James Salter, who said, “I’m a frotteur, someone who likes to rub words in his hand, to turn them around and feel them, to wonder if that really is the best word possible.” As a frotteur of words, I love this quote,…
Lyric Essays
“A lyric essay is a type of creative nonfiction that fuses personal essay with poetry to tell a powerful story or reinforce a primary message.” “A meditative essay encourages contemplation, wonder, and curiosity.” Example: “The Death of a Moth,” by Virginia Woolf. A collage essay is a collection or patchwork of thoughts, of found things, that together point to a greater whole. Example: “Going to the Movies,” by Susan Allen Toth. A braided essay weaves multiple strands together with the goal of creating a work that becomes greater than the sum of its parts. Example: “A Braided Heart” by Brenda Miller. The hermit crab essay takes on the form of the content type it inhabits. Examples:“Solving My Way to Grandma,” by Vivian Wagner, written as a crossword puzzle.“Son of Mr. Green Jeans,” by Dinty W. Moore is written as a glossary. In a counterpoint essay, the writer alternates between two narrative strands to convey a larger truth. Example: “The Search…
Write What You Know: What Does That Mean, Exactly?
Guest Blogger Dixie Somers writes: If you’re a writer, you’ve no-doubt heard the phrase “write what you know” in every workshop you’ve attended. But what does that actually mean? Should you only write about your personal experiences? Do you have to be an expert on a topic to write about it? Not necessarily! To get a better grasp on this common writing tidbit, I’m here to break it down and help you find what you “know.” So grab your pen and paper (or keyboard) and let’s dive into this together. What is “Knowing?” To start, let’s define what it means to “know.” The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as having a clear perception or understanding of something. So when we’re told to write what we know, it means writing about things that we have a good grasp on and can easily convey to others. This can include personal experiences, but it…
Pick Up The Pace
Quick pacing hooks readers, deepens the drama, creates and increases tension.How to pick up the pace:1. Start story in the middle of the dramatic action, not before the drama commences.2. Keep description brief. This doesn’t mean using no description, but choose one or two telling, brief details.3. Combine scenes. If one scene deepens character by showing a couple at dinner and a few scenes later they have a fight, let them have the fight at dinner.4. Rely on dialogue. A lot of the story can be carried by spoken conversation. Readers seldom skip dialogue.5. Keep backstory to a minimum. The more we learn about characters through what they do now, in story time, the less you’ll need flashbacks, memories and exposition about their histories. All of these slow the pace.6. Squeeze out every unnecessary word. This is the best way of all to increase pace. There are times you want…
Failures as Opportunities
“Life is trying things to see if they work.” — Ray Bradbury Guest Blogger Suzanne Murray: I recently met a man in line for coffee who works for a company that offers technology for grade schools that allows learning to be personalized to the level of the individual student so each can get the specific support they need. I love hearing about such innovative practices. As we talked he mentioned a report about why gaming is so popular among the young. Even though they experience an 85 to 90% failure rate as they play, they learn from their mistakes and get better in the process. “It gives them a safe place to fail” he said. I love that idea. “That’s exactly like creativity,” I responded. It’s why as a creativity coach I encourage people to fall in love with the process. Just like the experience of gamers, when we relax…
Faulkner: Intimations
“ . . . our primary drive as humans is to be understood, be seen, and writers use words, these tools of precision and imprecision, to make ourselves understood, to make life understandable—to try rather, to endlessly try.” —Grant Faulkner To read more about Grant Faulkner and why he started his Substack platform “Intimations: Writer’s Discourse,” click on Intimations.
Hope . . . Prompt #802
Today’s Writing Prompt: Hope #justwrite #iamwriting #iamawriter
Time Machine . . . Prompt #801
If you had a Time Machine, what day, what month, what year would you like to travel to? Why that time?Who do you want to be there with?
It Happened So Fast
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. It Happened So Fast By Robin Mills It happened so fast. A visit to the doctor. A diagnosis. A very quiet drive home, my mother, my father, my brother, and me. “I am so glad I just had my teeth cleaned” my mother said. Then six weeks later, just like the doctor said, it was over. Those six weeks were the fastest and the slowest. At first, she was awake, up, not in bed. She sat in her comfortable chair. We gathered around, talked, shared. Soon, she was tired, too tired. She got in bed. Initially sitting up, legs out, blankets over her legs, cats over the blankets. Then, soon again, she slid down, head on a pillow, blanket clutched up at her chin, cats on her stomach or riding the side of her body as…