Fuel Your Writing

Are you a Literary Snob?

2010-02-08T08:06:28Z

A good friend of mine and I have long discussed the division between what is considered quality literature vs. popular fiction. Quite often the two do not go hand in hand. The image of the unpublished writer who sits alone at his desk with his glass half-filled with cheap scotch while he taps away at his keyboard to create an original masterpiece which will embrace the souls and minds of his readers has become iconic. Writers and non-writers have adapted to this persona as the individual who will create our literary works of art. It appears that one must suffer, be disillusioned, and have a lust of contempt to create unparalleled fiction. The works of this person are studied and critiqued. Mass popularity may not follow until years later, when we realize how truly phenomenal they were. Thus, leaving us with a final belief that writers should follow the path of most resistance so that they, too, may one day be labeled as truly talented.

Do I believe in this statement? Well, yes and no.

An author’s work must derive from a place within them. Whether it is from their heart, or a place much darker, an author’s writing must be fed by emotion. Otherwise, it is empty drivel that a fifth grader will see through. This does not mean that all great works of fiction are required to have long words, random soliloquies, and over-the-top narratives that only a person with a degree from MIT will be able to decipher. The author’s writing, if fueled by passion, will find its place with both literary snobs and the masses.

What constitutes a snob? Do you only read works from Conrad, Joyce, Atwood, or Austen? Do you worry what others will say regarding your choice of reading material? Would you vehemently deny reading, or having any such knowledge of, popular fiction from such authors as King, Patterson, Brown, or Meyer? Are you a closet popular fiction reader? Then yes, my dear, you are a snob. I am not here to judge. I took a long hard look at my bookshelf before writing this article and found that the scale tipped quite heavily in favour of what are known as “great works of literature.” But scattered between Dennis Lehane, Carol Shields, and Ann-Marie MacDonald were James Patterson, Stephen King, Dan Brown and, yes, Stephanie Meyer.

Writers, whether they wish to admit this or not, want readers to enjoy their work.

A work created with passion will undoubtedly find a reader who will connect with the story and its characters. This is the starting point of great fiction. And it is what truly matters, snobbery aside.

Do you consider yourself a literary snob? What is on your bookshelf? If you wish to include some of the more notable literary works, a good site to bookmark is The Greatest Literature of all Time. This website is a wonderful reference for commentaries on authors, their works, and even film and video reviews on great works of literature. But then again, a book you pick up from the summer reading table at the bookstore might hold just as much value…

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Are you a Literary Snob?

How to Learn the Skill of Being Inspired

2010-02-05T13:57:29Z

A writer’s biggest problem is how to find inspiration. Once you have a subject, a character, or a circumstance that fascinates you, it’s all anyone can do to keep you from rushing to the blank page and scribbling away like mad.

Writing with inspiration is easy. Finding inspiration can be one of the hardest things in the world.

One of the reasons for the elusive nature of inspiration is that we expect finding inspiration to be effortless. More than effortless – we expect it to be nearly magical. One day we’ll open the drapes and look out on the street and there, walking in front of us, will be the character around which our next great novel will revolve.

Or we’ll be sitting at a coffee shop one day and inspiration will hit us, suddenly, like a bolt of lightning. All at once, we’ll know exactly what we should be writing about.

Inspiration does sometimes happen this way, but this is a little bit like saying you shouldn’t have to go grocery shopping just because a friend of yours occasionally stops by with pizza.

Sure, sometimes inspiration happens unexpectedly, at just the right time and in just the right place. Most of the time, writers have to go looking for it. And we have to have the skills to recognize where to find it.

Explore New Experiences

I know many aspiring writers who sit around the house all day by themselves, trying to think of new things to write about. Whenever they’re invited to do something new and exciting, they say, “Thanks, but I have to work on some writing.”
These same people are constantly in distress because they can’t find the inspiration to make their writing flow easily.

The last few times I was struck with sudden inspiration, it was because I was doing something new, something I hadn’t experienced before. At the very least, it was something I hadn’t experienced in quite awhile. The new experience forced me to look at the world in a slightly different way. From that, I got an idea.

That’s inspiration.

Go ice fishing. Attend an art opening. Check out a rodeo. Visit some of the tourist attractions in your area that you’ve always known about but had never bothered to visit. Go on a walk by yourself with no music and no particular idea where you’re headed.

Then pay very close attention to every single thing that happens.

Ask People about Themselves

One of the common failings I notice in writers is that they only want to write about themselves. Sure, writers are all told to ‘write what you know’, but no one ever said, ‘write what you know about yourself’. Your work will be seriously one-dimensional if all it is are simply variations of you and your experiences.

In order to find out how other people think and to get inspiration for new material, new characters, new ways of looking at the world, you need to know what people think and do and believe in. The only way to get that information is to ask them.

Pay attention. It’s very hard for us to listen to another person without jumping in with our own anecdotes. It’s a natural human response to demonstrate, “Hey, I’m just like you!” Resist that impulse, if only for the reason that you’re interested in what makes you two different from each other.

Think about that. If you like, start discussing your differences with this person. He may be able to expand on a viewpoint to the extent that you really feel you understand it. The next time you’re crafting a new character, you’ll think of all those viewpoints and one of them will ring true to you.

Bring a Notebook

Ever see a writer look very distant, very suddenly? It happens a lot among the creative crowd, and it’s usually because they just had a wayward thought about a possible idea. Mostly, they’ll try to remember it long enough to write it down later, but later comes after dinner and conversation and drinks, and they can never quite dredge up exactly what made that idea so wonderful.

That’s if they remember the idea in the first place.

Bring a notebook everywhere you go, especially when you’re exploring new sources of inspiration, because it’s you’ll likely have a flash of a great sentence or a scene or a just-right metaphor. You’ll want to catch that idea while it’s still fresh.

Later, when you lack inspiration, open up that notebook and browse through some of those brief moments of brilliance. I guarantee you that you’ll find what you’re looking for.

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How to Learn the Skill of Being Inspired

Having Guts – How to Physically Affect your Readers

2010-02-03T15:34:00Z

Inhale. Take in as much air as you can.

The goal of most of us, as writers, is to cause some sort of an emotional response in our readers. Whether we make them think, or make them angry or sad or excited, it is a sure sign that our writing has heart and substance and has linked the mind of the writer to the mind of the reader and touched them in some way. When this happens, we can be pleased with ourselves.

But, why just aim for an emotional reaction?

The short story, Guts, by Chuck Palahniuk, has gained almost mythical status for its ability to cause an extreme physical reaction in its readers. During the book tours in 2003 and 2004 to promote his new novel Haunted, Chuck read Guts for his audiences. At these readings around sixty people are said to have completely fainted.

How can just words make this happen? Sure, the story is graphic and deals with a dark, shocking subject. But this physical reaction that Chuck was able to achieve from his audience shows that his writing is bold, brave and powerful.

Like him or not, Palahniuk can teach us something here with Guts. His writing, particularly in this story, is extreme, and for better or worse it grabs readers by the throat and shakes. I’m not saying that we should completely change our writing styles in order to be outrageous. But we can all push the boundaries of our writing in little ways, and push our readers for the physical reaction. Even if you don’t get an actual physical reaction (and, let’s face it, you’re probably not going to make people throw up) you will certainly go a long way toward affecting them at a deeper emotional level.

Here are some ways that you can aim for that physical reaction.

Give your WORDS guts.

Sometimes, the right word for what we want to say is obvious, but we writers, for whatever reason, try and think of a different one. Sometimes we are trying to be clever and use an interesting or little-used word. Perhaps we are showing off. Sometimes we do not have enough faith in the words and try and think of a different way of saying it. Other times we try and explain too much with our words.

Have faith and let the words speak for themselves. Do away with those pesky adverbs, and write boldly and clearly. Your words will have guts and your meaning will be unmistakeable — and your story far more readable, enjoyable and, most importantly, much more emotive. The words will make your reader feel their power, not just try and persuade them to feel a certain way.

Give your CHARACTERS guts.

Characters should be real. They should live and breathe, both on the page and in the minds of the reader. They won’t do this unless you flesh them out, give them guts – a background (even if you don’t write about it), emotions, feelings. Make them hate something, make them love something and, most importantly, make them want something.

Also, when writing dialogue for your characters, have them talk as though they would in real life. If your character would swear, have them swear. And I don’t mean, “Aw shucks.” A man who has just lost his wife, or a mob boss who has just been shot, is going to swear. A lot.

Give your STORY guts.

Be bold and brave. When writing a story, even a simple one, you must not be frightened to write exactly what happens, even if that is ugly, depressing, shocking, brutal or disgusting. To the question, “What should I write about?” Stephen King tells us…

Anything you damn well want. Anything at all… as long as you tell the truth

Whatever it is that you write, be truthful and honest with your readers. If that means pushing the boundaries or being shocking, so be it. This is perhaps the best way to achieve the deepest, most powerful reaction in your readers. Be real, and write about the truth. Don’t pull your punches.

So next time you write, give your story some guts. Try your damnedest to make the reader feel it, whatever that is. Make their blood boil. Make them feel sick. Make their skin crawl.

And make them turn the page and read on.

Any more ideas on how to give your story guts? Please share them in the comments below!

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Having Guts – How to Physically Affect your Readers

Less is More: Aristotle and Four Simple Steps to Better Short Stories

2010-02-05T14:04:24Z

Since short stories aren’t as popular as they used to be, a lot of writers don’t know how to write them. I know, because I’m one of them.

Way back in high school, before I applied for my first creative writing contest, I gave a copy of my best short story tomy favorite English teacher. After reading it, his first comment was that I had too much going on. The story jumped from a football game, to a bus ride, to a locker room to a classroom. There were seven or eight characters, multiple plots lines, and the story spanned two months.

Did I mention it was a four-page story?

Because there were multiple scenes, none of them stuck in the readers mind. Because there were so many characters, they were names instead of people, and because of the bizarre time span, the story had no story to it. Most importantly, there was no clear beginning or ending.

Then I thought of Aristotle.

Look to the Masters

Aristotle knew that great art was simple. The great writers understood this about short stories; you just don’t have a lot of time–or words–to develop characters and places. That’s why they call ‘em short stories.

Think of stories like Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants.” There are two characters, an anonymous man and a woman named Jig. There is one setting, an unbearably hot train station in Spain. And there is only one plot, a conversation about an abortion. And it is fascinating.

In Steinbeck’s “The Snake” there are two characters: a lab assistant and a mysterious woman; one setting: a laboratory; and there is only plot, the woman buying and feeding a snake. Short, simple, and loaded with meaning.

Poe understood this when he invented the short story. His “Cask of Amontillado” is about two men walking down to a basement to get a fine bottle of sherry wine, and one man entombing the other.

Think of your favorite short story. It is probably very simple.

Wait, How Does Aristotle Fit In?

In his poetics, Aristotle describes three unities, of time, space and action. To him, the ideal play would take place in no more than a day, take place in the same location, and only have one plot. This principle can be applied to the short story.

True there are no hard and fast rules in the modern era of writing. But for new writers, you need to be aware of mistakes you could make. To this end I say limit your characters, locations, the span of time, and the number of plots. The larger your piece, the more you can add, but be careful.

Why do we do add too much? Because it is an easy way out of narrative problems. Need to move the plot along? Add in a new character. Your location too boring? Add another one. Bored with your story? Change it mid-way through. The problem is that these characters and scenes and events build and build until the story is too full to support its own weight. It becomes schizophrenic, or boring.

Some guidelines:

Time: Keep the time span short, usually only a day or so at the most. If you’re really adventurous, try to match the amount of time it takes your reader to read your story. If you do jump forward in time, make sure your story requires it.

Plot: Your short story should only have one plot, and one main event. You only have room for one beginning, middle and end.

Space: No more than two locations. Again, the best choice is to just explore one location, and create it and make it real for your reader.

Characters: With one, it is tough to build conflict. With two, a conflict and relationship can be explored. Anything with over three major characters will just be unwieldy.

In Closing…

I’ll keep it simple: in short stories, sometimes less really is more.

Eric Cummings writes for On Violence, a blog on military and foreign affairs, art, and violence, written by two brothers–one a soldier and the other a pacifist.

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Less is More: Aristotle and Four Simple Steps to Better Short Stories

More Than One Word (.com) With Brian Kessler

2010-01-29T15:10:29Z

So I did an article in November, titled, How One Word Can Lead to Thousands More. I didn’t specifically speak of the website that inspired the post, but many Fuel readers asked what it was, so I shared. And enough people were interested that I hooked up with the creator of the site on Facebook, through his page there, and he agreed to do an interview with me — to explain how the site started and learn some other fun stuff. Here are the highlights of my conversation with Brian Kessler, the man behind oneword.com.

(Oh, and I got a little excited and asked more than one question within a question, so I hope you can keep up.)

Fuel Your Writing:

Let’s get the big questions out of the way — What prompted you to start oneword.com? How did you go about doing just that? And (if you did) how did you market the site?

Brian Kessler:

It is a prompt site, which was prompted by prompting in a verbal prompt exercise. So there was a lot of prompting involved. A friend of mine had done a similar exercise in a writing group where one person would call out a word, then the group would write about it until the moderator would call out “stop!”
I really liked the idea and wanted to create an online version of the exercise, but had no clue where to begin. This was back in 1998. In 2003, I started blogging and was using the Movable Type publishing platform, and I realized that I could tweak it and make it work, so I tweaked away and it was up and running within a week. At that point, I really was just wanting it for myself, and didn’t really imagine anything else happening with it. I sent it to a few friends and they all dug it, then within a few weeks it got listed as Yahoo!’s site-of-the-day and sorta blew up. Sorta. It simmered back down to a cool 200-300 posts per day, which was good, because it was mostly serious writers, and very few cut-and-paste-the-F-word entries.

Oh, and no marketing whatsoever.

FYW:

I heard that Demi Moore tweeted about your site a while back. Do you know what types of people you reach? And how many visit the site on a daily basis? Do you even care about the stats? Is it just a service, for lack of a better term, you provide, and what the writers get out of it is satisfaction enough for you?? What DO you get out of all of this?

BK:

Yes, [Demi] did and her tweet generated a lot of new fans . . . I certainly appreciated the props. … The site averages around 1500 visits per day. Though there have been up to 10,000 visits in a day—that’s the average lately. …
What I get out of it is the satisfaction of knowing that I’m helping others to be creative. I love it when people leave comments on the Facebook page about how it got them out of a block—that really makes my day.

FYW:

[So,] you’re up and running now and you have great prompts all the time. I use them myself just as a simple writing exercise for the day, or I even take it further sometimes. I expand on what I’ve written in the sixty seconds allotted for anything from my books to flash fiction to just random ramblings. It seems you’ve struck a chord with a lot of people, and I’m wondering what your plans are for the future of the site…

BK:

Right now, it has already exceeded all of my expectations. I love that people like you use it to kick-start your creativity. That really makes it all worth it.

There has been discussion of revamping it and adding new features, which has garnered a lot of “NO!!!!! Don’t change it!!!!’” multi-exclamation-point responses. But really, the changes would be unobtrusive, and the simplicity of the site would remain intact, as I believe that has been what has kept it afloat all these years. It’s really a no-nonsense site. It does what it does, and does it well.

That being said, we’re taking suggestions in the discussions section of our Facebook page.

FYW:

(I asked Brian if there was anything he wanted to tell me I may have missed asking, and this was his response — his question to himself…)
–The only thing I know you wanted to ask, but were too afraid was “where do the words come from?” to which I added: Are you the only one involved, or do you have people who help you out? Are all the prompts yours? Do you think you’ve ever unintentionally repeated a prompt, or do you keep a list of some sort??

BK:

A lot of times (thanks to the iPhone) I’ll be out and about and will just look around for inspiration. Other times it has something to do with what’s going on in my life at the time.
Yes, it’s just me. Now and then I’ll be with someone and say “give me a word,” to which they usually say something like “sesquipedantilism!” or [something a bit more risqué] — depending on who I’m with at the time. And I like to keep it clean and simple. Even so, I still get the occasional “wall? what’s that? wtf? I don’t know what that means!”
I try and keep it to words that my 6-yr-old niece can understand. And, no, I don’t keep a list, and have most definitely repeated one or three words over the last six years. I’ve been tempted to do the same word twice in a week to see if return writers would be inspired to write something totally different, though I’m pretty sure I’d get a lot of “hey! we already did this one!”. Really, that’s what flow is all about, letting those fingers fly regardless of any would-be obstacles.

FYW:

Another part of the follow-up included this: I actually did have one more question based on what you said:: Do you read through the entries to see what people are writing? You mentioned a couple times that you were aware of the content and quality, so I was just curious.

BK:

I don’t read every entry, but I do browse through them, usually . I will be going more thoroughly through them over the next few months as I am thinking of doing an annual book “365words” or something like that. And it will be a good time for me to go get rid of all the useless entries.

* * *

– There was so much more we discussed, but this was what I thought was the coolest and most interesting info that you might want to learn. Head on over to the site, oneword.com (I do all the time — one of our writers even has it set as his homepage (after reading my first article) and I guess be on the lookout for a future book. We’ll keep you updated!!

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More Than One Word (.com) With Brian Kessler

How to Improve Your Writing in One Step

2010-01-27T15:09:33Z

What do you think when you see those typically government-funded studies with stop-the-presses news like “Rain Causes Things to Get Wet” or “Daily Cheeseburgers Can Lead to Weight Gain?” Two common responses: “Our taxes paid for that?” and “Well, duh!”

It’s the same simplicity when it comes to improving your writing in one step. While I’m no medical expert, I do know about physical exercise. People who frequently work out often reach a plateau where their body doesn’t feel as pushed as it did when they first started a particular exercise. The best way for people to overcome this “muscle memory” is to change their routine. If you only jog, try cycling. If you only do bench presses, try push ups. You get the picture.

It’s the same with our brains. If we work the same schedule at our computers long enough, we’re going to hit that inevitable plateau. We know that physical activity causes the brain to release those healthy endorphins that give us a “natural high” and sense of well being. Per several studies (the valid kind), we also know that those released brain chemicals boost creativity. So how do we improve our writing in one step? The answer is in the question – just take one step away from your computer and do something physical.

I’m not talking about a training for a triathlon. I’m suggesting writers take a break from technology and walk around your office. Better yet, take the stairs down to the lobby, fast-walk to the snack bar, jog to the mailbox or walk the dog. Regardless of your work environment, doing something physical is almost always possible. Your body and your mind will thank you for it.

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How to Improve Your Writing in One Step

Start the Story: Where Do We Begin? [01.25.10]

2010-01-25T15:17:46Z

Electricity is not the hobby Mom wanted little Jimmy to find an interest in…

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Start the Story: Where Do We Begin? [01.25.10]

How to Overcome Your Fear of Submission

2010-01-22T03:03:46Z

Most writers hate submitting their work. It seems strange – after all, most writers want to be published somehow, somewhere, and how do they expect that to happen if no editor ever lays eyes on the work?

The fear of rejection is far more powerful than logic. Here are a few ways to blast through that fear of submission and get on a regular schedule of handing your work over.

Aim Low

This may sound like bad advice, but hear me out. There are the big giants of the literary magazine industry – The Kenyon Review, the Paris Review, Tin House, The New Yorker – and of course we’d all like to see our name emblazoned above our work in one of those great publications.

But the very thing that makes those magazines so appealing is the same thing that keeps many writers from ever submitting to them — they’re nearly impossible to get into. Sure, it’s a mark of prestige if you make it, but if you’re nervous about submitting you’re never going to get over your fear of rejection, when rejection is almost inevitable.

You’ll probably make it worse, in fact.

There are dozens of literary magazines founded every year, though. Many of them badly need good writers in order to establish themselves. These magazines cannot possibly get the attention of the biggest-name writers, so they’re looking for talented unknowns.

They want to establish themselves as places where really good writing is published, and they’re completely open to new people. They are a brilliant place to start submitting.

Now here’s a hard question for you — how many new, small, or relatively unknown literary journals are you even aware of? If the answer is zero, that’s a problem.

So check out the online (and free) literary magazine database and find ten literary journals in your genre that you’ve never heard of before (it’s searchable by every genre and length you can think of). Go read a few back issues and submit to the publishers who would be interested in your style.

Aim High

We’re not talking about where to submit anymore – we’re talking about the sheer number of submissions you should make. One excellent professional writer said that she made a goal to get at least ten rejection letters every month.

That’s right. Her goal was to get rejection letters, not acceptance letters. Why? Because when she made that goal about rejections, they weren’t nearly as disappointing to receive. They were simply a mark of honor for having submitted at all.

Think of your rejection letters as a tangible receipt for your submissions. Stop thinking of them as a terrible thing, and start thinking of them as a perfectly ordinary way to find out your story was indeed received and that you had successfully submitted.

What happens when you don’t get a rejection letter? Why, then, you get an acceptance letter.

Since you weren’t even looking for those acceptances, they’ll come as a nice surprise. You’re trying to receive a certain number of rejections, but you have no goal for acceptances. So when they do come, they will fall in your lap like gifts from above and you’ll be far more thrilled by them than you would have been had you been planning on them.

Getting acceptances might also mean your allotted number of rejections for that month hasn’t been met. Oh well. I guess you’ll have to submit more often to make up for it.

If you have a writer friend who also has trouble submitting, make a small wager with one another that whoever gets the most rejection letters in the space of a month wins a prize furnished by the other. If you get more rejection letters, he buys tickets to your favorite team’s game. If she gets more, you have to buy her a day at the spa. That’ll light a fire under both of you.

Aim at a Friend

Speaking of friends, if you have work that’s ready for submission but you can’t quite bring yourself to send it, enlist a friend’s assistance in exchange for your own. Make an agreement with one another that you will submit each other’s work to an agreed-upon list of publishers.

It’ll work. Most writers take a certain glee in making other writers do things they’re afraid to do themselves.

Make it into a party, hey. Get a bunch of envelopes, stamps, and copies of your manuscripts. Get a list of your publications and a computer for the ones who only accept via email. Break open a bottle of wine, get some good food out and start writing cover letters for one another to approve. It’s far easier to edit your friend’s work than it will be to start a letter from scratch on your own.

Before you know it, you’ll have a submission letter for every manuscript, and every one will be stamped and sent.

Even better? You won’t have had to be the one who pulled the trigger. Completely painless.

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How to Overcome Your Fear of Submission

Write It All Down

2010-02-05T16:07:14Z

Ask any writer and they will talk about the importance of a writer keeping a journal of some kind. If you’re a writer who doesn’t fit into that sweeping generalization, then shame on you! In that case, you’ve come to the “write” place because here’s a list of neat-o journals that may just inspire you to spill your guts.

Multi-Colored Paper – Jenny Bick Bookbinding

Now how flippin’ fun are these? The answer is a lot! Maybe some of you will feel like a kindergartener drawing on construction paper but wasn’t life so much simpler back then? (The answer to that one is yes!)

Customizable – Bookfactory

Put your name on it! Or logo. Or anything else you want. With the Bookfactory, the sky’s the limit. Don’t let the minimum order get you down. For your business writers out there, what a great client gift idea.

Online – Mylifehereonearth.com

This is just one of the many online journal options out there. What I liked about this place was they have an option to write your autobiography. Isn’t that what a journal kind of is anyway?

Plantable – Uncommon Goods

Oh you read that correctly. Plantable. As in put it in the ground and create yet ANOTHER thing out of it. I just love this one! I should probably get a few of these since my huge box o’ journals is getting a little bit out of hand. This is also a great way to keep your private thoughts private. Well, Mother Earth will probably get a kick out of them but I hear she’s a great secret-keeper.

Venetian Wrap – Kiki James

This classic style of journal is handmade of soft nubuck. It comes in a variety of colors to satisfy both the ladies and gents out there.

Vera Bradley – Vera Bradley Barnes and Noble

This popular handbag designer teamed up with one of the largest booksellers to create this unique line. If you love her…um…unique and vibrant designs, then you’ll love carrying around these beauties.

Inspirational – Compendium

What I liked about these is that they’re not your typical “black poster with pretty picture” type of inspirational object. These provide fodder for your mind–even their covers inspire! This one pictured is the “Enjoy Everyday Journal.” See what I mean?

Grandparent’s Journal – Uncommon Goods

Some of life’s best lessons come from the past. If you’re lucky enough to still have them around, get to know your Grandparent’s – therefore, part of your own – history with this unique and engaging journal.

Unique – Writer’s Bloc

I love the look of this one. Pure and simple.

Little Black Book – Jenny Bick Bookbinding

Because every person needs one. <Wink Wink Nudge Nudge>

Natural Hemp – Barnes and Noble

Green is good! For those of you who are into the “green-movement” this is a great choice for you. Called the “Kelambu Notebook,” it is handmade in the heart of the Himalayas in Nepal.

For Kids – Chasing Fireflies

We’ve covered the older generation, now it’s time to handle the younger one. Give a child this diary (at what point is it called a journal?) and open up a whole new world for them. The best part is that it comes with a lock that is supposed to keep out any prying eyes (who don’t have a paper clip and a nagging interest in someones innermost thoughts).

Travel – Gallery Leather

We recognize that there is so much more to writing than just jotting down your thoughts and ideas in the comfort of your home. This travel journal has thicker paper than your run-of-the-mill journal and the company says it is “the same indestructible construction of our other journals.”

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Write It All Down

Start the Story: Where Do We Begin? [01.18.10]

2010-01-18T05:58:25Z

Honestly, it does make sense… I mean, who wants to risk spilling a cup of beer all over a perfect, white wedding dress?

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Start the Story: Where Do We Begin? [01.18.10]

7 Ways to Add Flavour to Non-Fiction Writing

2010-01-07T19:36:12Z

Many of us consider ourselves primarily writers of fiction, yet we spend a significant amount of time blogging. Likewise, freelancers, journalists and copywriters focus on non-fiction avenues.

Although it’s tempting for us storytellers to think of it as less creative, there are many easy ways to add a little flavour to our non-fiction.

Here are 7 of them to get you started:

1. Start with a quotation

Quotations are used to make your reader stop and think about something on a profound level. You can use a relevant quotation to begin your piece with a punch, or use it as a springboard for the content of your article.

2. Create an analogy

Some of the best copy uses analogies to make a point. Someone writing copy for a car dealership might draw on similarities between a specific vehicle and a powerful animal. A cheetah, perhaps. Analogies work well because they make the reader think about something familiar to them.

3. Integrate a story or personal anecdote

If you’ve ever sat through a lecture on a rather mundane subject, you’ll know that speakers often start with a story or personal anecdote. Like analogies, anecdotes spark interest in others by drawing on the familiar, prompting us to apply new information to our own lives.

4. Tell a joke

Who can resist a joke? Whether you tell it in words or use a comic strip to do the dirty work, making us laugh right off the bat nearly guarantees you’ll capture our attention. Just remember, the joke has to be relevant to your subject, and should add — not detract — from your overall purpose.

5. Answer FAQs

For some reason, people love lists of FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions). Instead of writing about a topic in the same old manner, why not take a different spin on it by answering questions people would naturally have about it? The other beauty of this strategy is that it makes your article more user-friendly; readers can skip questions that don’t interest them, and focus on those that do.

6. Interview an authority

If you’re writing about something out of your area of expertise, find an authority on the subject and conduct an interview. The question-and-answer format appeals to readers on the same level that FAQs do, and people are always more drawn to information written by someone with a great deal of experience.

7. Use eye-catching photographs

Never underestimate the power of a good photograph, especially when writing a blog post. The purpose of using a graphic is to catch the reader’s eye–to capture attention so they’ll stick around to read your content. A good photograph also makes your content look more professional, which is desirable if you’re looking to establish yourself as an authority.

Next time you’re writing non-fiction, use one or more of these strategies to transform your piece from ordinary to awesome.

What are the best tips you have to offer on making non-fiction creative and engaging?

Photo Credits: B Rosen, Darwin Bell, Darwin Bell

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7 Ways to Add Flavour to Non-Fiction Writing

A Place to Call Home: Seven Writers’ Rooms to Check Out

2010-01-13T03:31:30Z

There are conversations, camaraderie, and critiques. Some offer quiet workspaces and others, seminars and other learning opportunities. Writing centers are cropping up all over the country. They are places where writers can go meet like-minded creatives who share similar experiences. Friendships develop right along with manuscripts and abilities.

Here are just a few of the places that have become meccas for wordsmiths:

The Loft- Minneapolis

Of course, I started in my own backyard. The Loft Literary Center, as it’s officially known, is located in downtown Minneapolis, right above a bookstore. They offer everything from readings and classes, to “genre festivals,” competitions and grants.

The Grotto- San Francisco

The Grotto is “a collective workspace community for writers, filmmakers and other narrative artists.” Like The Loft, they offer classes and events that cover all genres. The Grotto has a number of “in-house” resident writers who use the space to work on their never-ending lists of projects.

The Writers Workspace- Chicago

As its name suggests, this is a membership-based work/meeting space for writers in the Windy City. This spot is basically an office-for-hire. By becoming a member, you have access to their workspaces, meeting rooms, Wi-Fi, lounge, and of course, other creative minds to bounce ideas off of. They also hold workshops and host events such as their “Third Friday Series.”

The Writers Room- NYC

The Writers Room’s website states that it’s the “first and largest urban writers’ colony in New York City.” Maybe it’s just me, but the work “colony” just seems to fit an organization of this type, doesn’t it? This is the place that many New York writers come for a quiet, peaceful workspace. They feature talks from authors from all genre and they have a nice list of works produced there.

Writers’ Bloc- Phoenix

As with the other locations mentioned, Writers’ Bloc offers a place for writers to come together to share and grow. They have reasonably-priced workshops all year round and frequently host events. Call or email for a more recent list of seminars.

Eulalie and Carlo Scandiuzzi Writers’ Room- Seattle

Located in the Central Library of the Seattle Public Library system, this writers’ room has a limited number of workspaces available and offer them on a six-month rotating basis. Inhabitatants enjoy the benefit of having a plethora of reference materials a few feet away! Admission is limited to writers under contract with a publishing company or those who demonstrate a hearty commitment to using the provided reference materials.

LA Writers Center- Los Angeles

This is an invitation only membership organization that consists of writers, directors, actors and dramaturge that, at the moment, seems to focus more on screenplay and playwriting. They have a reading series that gives playwrights the chance to receive feedback and critiques on works-in-progress.

This list is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to writing centers around the country! Check with your local arts council to see if there are any in your area. If not, heck…start your own and then tell us about it!

Are there any other writing centers that are worth a mention?

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A Place to Call Home: Seven Writers’ Rooms to Check Out

Start the Story: Where Do We Begin? [01.11.10]

2010-01-11T02:41:52Z

And what, exactly, is going on here, do you think?!?

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Start the Story: Where Do We Begin? [01.11.10]

Where’s Your Conflict?

2010-01-22T02:30:29Z

You may have had the experience of picking up a book or an article and being bored silly without quite knowing why. The content is certainly interesting. You can see how it could be a fascinating story or subject. But somehow, inexorably, you begin to yawn.

What happened here? The book had potential! How did it become so boring?

Most likely, it lacked conflict.

For any kind of writing, from journalistic non-fiction to literature to science fiction to film to blogging, conflict is highly necessary. It’s what creates drama and urgency. It’s what creates anticipation. Conflict is what compels your readers to find out what happens next, and to read more to see if it comes out all right in the end.

Sometimes it does. Sometimes it doesn’t. But the story, whether true or fictional, is dependent on whether there is any debate in the matter. Being uncertain of the outcome is why any story interests you.

Conflict in Fiction

Conflict in fiction is usually easy to find. Your character wants something, and other events or circumstances intervene to make achieving that goal difficult. That’s conflict.

The trouble that many writers encounter in fiction is mistaking dramatic action for conflict. For example, if the main character is walking down the street and a sea bird suddenly assaults him, many writers point to that as an instance of conflict.

That’s not conflict. Unless the sea bird prevented that character from achieving a specific goal that was very important to the individual, then the situation is merely dramatic. It isn’t conflict.

So how can you tell the difference? Ask yourself what your character wants, overall, in the story. Maybe he wants to achieve a certain quest, or reconcile with someone, or get out of the one-horse town. Then ask yourself if the situation you created for that character actively prevents the character from achieving his goal.

If not, your plot could use some tweaking to be more interesting.

Conflict in Non-Fiction

Conflict in non-fiction is often harder to manage because you’re bound by the facts. Whether or not conflict occurs seems wholly dependent on whether conflict actually happened in real life.

However, most non-fiction writers forget that they aren’t limited by just the facts of a particular situation. They can add in facts from surrounding situations to create necessary conflict. For example, a senator caught cheating on his wife is not conflict – it’s just fact.

Add in the fact that his actions may mean he won’t be re-elected, and that this has repercussions for the government at large, makes it a conflict. Will he get re-elected? Will he fail? Who’s on which side? Should he win or should he lose? Who’s saying what?

That’s conflict.

Figure out whose goal you support and see what’s in the way. For a non-fiction situation, you have free rein. You could take the senator’s standpoint and display the conflict from his point of view: he wants his seat back so he can achieve certain goals, but will he be able to get it?

You can also present conflict from other peoples’ point of view. The people the senator represents want certain goals of their own – will his re-election help or hinder them? Will they get what they want? Will the senator’s family get what they want? Will the president get what he wants if the senator fails?

Every Story Needs Conflict

Without conflict, you don’t have a story. Not for your journalistic piece, not for your blog post, not for your novel. Sit down and figure out who has a goal in the piece you’re writing, and what needs to happen for that person to achieve it.

Then find out what’s in the way.

When you have sufficient conflict in your story, no one will ever walk away from your writing thinking, “That had such potential . . .” They’ll walk away thinking, “I wonder what happened.”

That’s what you’re looking for. Go rustle up some conflict.

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Where’s Your Conflict?

Reading, Writing, and Kids

2010-01-06T05:38:06Z

From the time I was five I loved to read. I found adventure, fantasy, and pure delight within the pages of the books that lined my shelves. I owe my deep love of reading–which later spurred my compulsion for writing–to my mother.

Back then, computers were not as mainstream as they are today. In fact, the interactive reading games I played in elementary school on the Commodore 64 were the ultimate in simplicity, yet at the time I was astounded.

Today we are plugged in, wired to, and virtually set in worlds that separate us from reality. But what about our children? Are they also following the path of least resistance?

We know that computers are here to stay but, if we permit our kids to spend hours in front of them, let’s make sure their minds soak in material which will entertain and educate. Below are four websites geared to unleashing the creative outlet that rests within a child’s mind.

1. Scholastic

Activities geared to students from Pre-School to Grade 12, this site encourages the child to take an active role with their learning. From learning the basics in word usage and language to creating your own myth, the site uses audio and video tools to connect with its young audience.

2. Storyline Online

Sponsored by the Screen Actors Guild Foundation, children are read to by a host of famous actors. Hear and watch James Earl Jones, read To Be A Drum by Evelyn Coleman. Hector Elizondo, Jason Alexander, Elijah Wood, and Melissa Gilbert are just a few of the narrators on this delightful site.

3. Poetry for Kids

One of the easiest ways to entice a child to write or read is through poetry. Children’s Author/Poet, Kenn Nesbitt, has created a whimsical website dedicated to endearing poetry to kids. Games, Poetry Lessons, and even a Rhyming Dictionary are brilliant tools to urge children to create their own poetry.

4. Stone Soup

Do you remember the feeling the first time you saw your words in print? Imagine being eight years old and knowing that thousands of people will have the opportunity to read your work. Stories, Poems, Novellas and Book Reviews — Stone Soup Magazine publishes the creative work of children aged 8-13.

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Reading, Writing, and Kids