Writing Forward named one of the 101 best websites for writers.

Every spring, Writer’s Digest publishes a list of the 101 best websites for writers.

It’s a huge honor for any website to make the list. Writer’s Digest is a highly respected publication. Every issue is filled with useful writing resources that cover everything from the craft to the business of writing.

Best of all, the magazine encompasses writers at all levels. Whether you’re just starting out or are already a successful, published author, you’ll find plenty of wisdom inside.

One of the most difficult chores for writers is sifting through the countless writing-related websites available in search of the gems that prove to be a valuable use of your time. That’s why, for more than a decade, we’ve been busy scouring the web for you, rummaging through every online resource imaginable to simplify your search and bring you the best of the best – Writer’s Digest May/June 2012 issue.

The list is jam-packed with websites that offer insight on every aspect of writing.

Writing Forward first made the list in 2009, and I’m thrilled to announce that we’ve done it again, selected as one of the best “from this year’s record-setting 4,350 nominations.” Wow!

Writing Forward was placed in the writing-advice category, and it’s an incredible honor to be recommended by such a prestigious publication and listed among such excellent writing-related websites.

Welcome, Writer’s Digest Readers!

It’s privilege to welcome the readers of Writer’s Digest to Writing Forward. I hope you will all find value here as well as inspiration for your writing endeavors. I encourage you to participate by sharing your thoughts in the comments. You can also engage with our audience by submitting a guest post.

Thank You!

I want to give special thanks to Dani of Positively Present – for alerting me to the good news, for being a supportive friend of Writing Forward over the past few years, and for tons of great posts on staying positive.

Finally, to all of you writers who have subscribed, commented, emailed, shared our posts on Twitter, Facebook and other social media sites: your participation, feedback, and suggestions keep me going. Without you, none of this would be possible. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

Subscribe to Writer’s Digest

For less than $20, you can get eight issues of Writer’s Digest packed with insightful writing tips, advice for getting published, and even working as a freelance writer. This magazine covers everything from the writing process to marketing your work.

Some of the best-loved and most respected authors in the world have been featured in Writer’s Digest. Plus, the magazine accepts submissions and pays writers quite well for any work they accept for publication. Subscribe to Writer’s Digest today.

Now, let’s get back to writing.

Creative writing exercises: Moral dilemmas

Today’s creative writing exercise comes from 101 Creative Writing Exercises, my recently published book on the craft of writing.

This book guides writers through an adventure in writing. You’ll explore different forms and genres of writing, including freewriting, journaling, memoir, fiction, storytelling, poetry, and article or blog writing.

101 Creative Writing Exercises imparts proven writing techniques while providing writing practice and creative inspiration.

Today, I’d like to share an exercise from “Chapter Nine: Philosophy, Critical Thinking, and Problem Solving.” This creative writing exercise is titled “Moral Dilemmas.” Enjoy!

Moral Dilemmas (a Creative Writing Exercise)

We each have our own personal philosophies and values. Our values come from our families, religions, and cultures. They shape our morals and the decisions we make.

People are complex. What we believe is right or wrong changes when we find ourselves in real situations. Consider an honorable character who believes that one’s highest loyalty is to his or her family. Then, that character learns his brother is a serial killer. Does he turn him in? Testify against him? Stories get interesting when characters’ morals are put to the test.

We all know the knight in shining armor should risk his life to save the damsel in distress. If he doesn’t, then he loses his status as hero and becomes a coward. What if the knight is forced to make a more difficult decision? What if his true love and his beloved sister are both in distress but he only has time to save one of them?

The Exercise

For this exercise you will put a character’s morals to the test. Below, you’ll find a short list of moral dilemmas. Write a scene in which a character faces one of these moral dilemmas and has to make an agonizing decision.

• In the novel Sophie’s Choice, a young Polish mother and her two children are taken to a concentration camp. Upon arrival, she is forced to choose one child to live and one to die. If she doesn’t choose, they both die. Write a scene in which your character must choose between the lives of two loved ones.
• A single woman is close friends with the couple next door and has secret romantic feelings for the husband. She discovers that his wife is having an affair. Normally, this woman minds her own business but now she sees an opportunity to get closer to the man she wants.
• Some countries have strict laws regarding drug possession. A family has traveled to one such country for vacation. Upon arrival (or departure), one of the teenagers’ bags is sniffed out by a dog. The bag is opened, the drugs are identified, and the guard asks whose bag it is. Both parents are considering claiming ownership. Everyone in the family knows the sentence would be death.
• Your character gets to travel through time and face this classic moral dilemma: the character finds himself or herself holding a loaded gun, alone in a room, with a two-year-old baby Hitler.
• A plane crashes into the sea. Most of the passengers escape with inflatable lifeboats but they do not board them correctly. Your character ends up on a lifeboat that holds eight people but there are twelve people on it, and it’s sinking. Your character can either throw four people overboard and eight will survive or they will all die except your character, who will get rescued after the others drown.

During the scene, the character should agonize over the decision and reveal his or her reasons for the choice that he or she makes.

Tips: Search online for “lists of moral dilemmas” to get more scenarios.

Variations: If you don’t want to write a scene, challenge yourself to come up with a few moral dilemmas of your own.

Applications: These moral dilemmas also work as story prompts. They force you to put your characters in situations that are deeply distressing, thus creating conflict and tension.

How do you classify creative writing, or do you?

In creative writing, we talk about form and genre. Form is what we write: fiction, poetry, or creative nonfiction. Genre is how we further classify each of these forms.

In fiction writing, there’s literary fiction and everything else.

In fact, literary fiction and all of the other genres are so at odds with each other that some writers simply say they are either literary fiction writers or genre writers. But what does that mean? Isn’t all fiction considered literary?

Yes and no.

What is Literary Fiction Anyway?

Let’s start with a simple definition of the word literary. Dictionary.com offers several, including the following:

1. pertaining to or of the nature of books and writings, especially those classed as literature: literary history.
2. pertaining to authorship: literary style.
3. versed in or acquainted with literature;  well-read.
4. engaged in or having the profession of literature  or writing: a literary man.
5. characterized by an excessive or affected display of learning; stilted; pedantic.

So we can use the word literary whenever we’re talking about writing or authorship in general, but it can also mean an excessive or affected display of learning. That’s a nice way of referring to snobbery.

Wikipedia offers a more specific definition of literary fiction: “fictional works that are claimed to hold literary merit.” The article goes on to say that “to be considered literary, a work usually must be ‘critically acclaimed’ and ‘serious’. In practice, works of literary fiction often are ‘complex, literate, multilayered novels that wrestle with universal dilemmas.’”

In other words, literary fiction has meaning and significance. I’ve also heard literary fiction defined as paying diligence to the craft of writing (or the art of stringing words together), exploring the human condition, and making bold commentary or criticism of society and culture.

Literary Fiction vs. Everything Else

I love literary fiction. Some of my favorite novels are The Grapes of Wrath, The Catcher in the Rye, and To Kill a Mockingbird, all of which would be classified as literary fiction. These are the kind of books that people study and analyze. They’re taught in schools. People read them for decades, even centuries, after they’re published. They win prestigious awards and are beloved and celebrated by bookworms and scholars alike.

As much as I love literary fiction, I’d have to say that my heart belongs to science fiction. From A Wrinkle in Time to The Hunger Games trilogy, the science fiction that I love best has done everything that literary fiction can do and then some.

In an interview with the Paris Review (which I highly recommend), the great Ray Bradbury said that “Science fiction is the fiction of ideas.” He also observed that science fiction often goes unrecognized for having literary merit and expressed his chagrin:

“As soon as you have an idea that changes some small part of the world you are writing science fiction. It is always the art of the possible, never the impossible… The critics are generally wrong, or they’re fifteen, twenty years late. It’s a great shame. They miss out on a lot. Why the fiction of ideas should be so neglected is beyond me. I can’t explain it, except in terms of intellectual snobbery.”

Some of the other genres have it even worse. When was the last time a romance novel or horror story won critical acclaim or took home the highest literary honors? Science fiction and fantasy writers have enjoyed more critical and commercial success in recent years: J.K. Rowling, Stephanie Meyers, and Suzanne Collins have dominated book sales, and they are all genre writers. Ray Bradbury himself won several prestigious literary awards. Sometimes it seems like the literary academics (the literati) are coming around and slowly opening their minds to genre fiction.

Yet there is still a stigma attached to genre fiction in certain literary circles. Just recently, I heard someone say they refused to read The Hunger Games because it was about kids killing kids and was therefore garbage. Yet kids are killing kids all over the planet: in gangs, in wars, and in school shootings. It’s not garbage; it’s truth, and that is the purest form of literature.

Looking for Merit in Creative Writing

Of course there is an argument to made about the merit of a work of fiction. I’ve read plenty of literary and genre fiction that said absolutely nothing about humanity or the world in which we live. Some of the literary novels I’ve picked up recently have been so abstract, obtuse, and erudite that after a few chapters, I  gave up and moved on to the next book. And I’ve read plenty of genre fiction that is good fun but will never change the world.

Ultimately, each of us decides for ourselves which stories hold the most merit. We get to ask ourselves whether we want a gripping story or a story that makes us think, feel, and question. Do we read to be entertained and to escape or do we read to broaden our perspectives and enlighten ourselves?

Have you ever watched a film or read a book that you thought had a lot of artistic or intellectual merit only to learn that the critics shot it down? Have you ever experienced a story that you thought was just awful and learned that it won awards and prestige? What are your thoughts on the divide between literary fiction and genre fiction? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment.

Proofreading and editing will help you improve your writing.

From the archives…

The best way to achieve better writing is through daily writing and reading, but proofreading and editing are near the top of the list too.

If you want to improve your writing, it’s imperative that you review each piece to check for typos, mistakes, context, and tone.

Creative writing tips often fail to mention the mechanical side of writing. It’s fun to focus on language, plot, characters, and rhymes, but polishing your work diligently will make you a better writer. And once you nail grammar and develop a habit of proofreading, you can focus on coming up with creative writing ideas rather than worrying about the technical aspects of your work.

Proofreading and Editing Tips

These proofreading tips and reminders will help you produce better writing – work that is polished and professional but still creative and compelling.

Catch Your Typos

Nobody likes typos. They look like misspellings, only it’s usually obvious they are mere oversights, the result of tapping the wrong key. It happens a lot when writers rush, and it happens a lot less when writers proofread their work before submitting or publishing it. Most writers are going to miss a typo every now and then; nobody’s perfect. However, when you read a writer’s work regularly and typos are just something you expect every time, that’s a sign of poor or nonexistent proofreading.

Read Out Loud

One of the best ways to edit and proofread your work is to read it out loud. If you enunciate every word, you’ll be better able to catch mistakes. It’s common for writers to leave words out while composing a first draft. During a review, the mind automatically inserts those words because the writer knows they’re supposed to be there. Reading out loud will help catch missing words. Oft-repeated words often stand out while reading aloud as well. It’s also helpful for determining whether a piece lacks clarity or if phrasing doesn’t sound quite right. It’s your chance to make sure everything makes sense and ensure that the language flows smoothly.

Proofread to Perfection

I’ve been teased for being so enthusiastic about proofreading and editing. Yet if I want to produce better writing, shouldn’t I keep reviewing each piece until I don’t catch a single error or need to make any more changes? Sometimes I reread a piece once and everything’s fine. Other times, I go over it five times, maybe ten. I proofread and polish everything I write — usually more than once.

Don’t Make Excuses

Young and new writers often have issues with revision and proofreading. I don’t want to change the original, they’ll claim. That’s like a furniture maker not bothering to sand a table. If you’re truly attached to that first draft, then save a copy, but don’t get so sentimental that you go and submit or publish it with all its errors and imperfections.

Don’t Be Too Hard on Yourself

Even though editing and proofreading are important to your professionalism and essential for better writing, they aren’t everything. Mistakes slip through now and then, and you shouldn’t beat yourself over the head about it. Great writing will always outshine the occasional error.

Proofreading and Editing Habits

Editing and proofreading have become habitual steps in my writing process, and I’ve come to enjoy this part of the process since I now know that it leads to better writing.

Every time I fix a mistake, I feel good about it, knowing I just improved my writing and made it more readable. That’s another thing — proofreading is considerate to readers. Typos, misspellings, and poorly placed punctuation marks throw readers off and jar them from the flow of a piece. So don’t skip the revision process: proof, edit, and repeat. Then, if necessary, do it again!

Do you have any better writing or proofreading tips to share? Please leave a comment.

Writing tips: write what you know.

If there’s one piece of writing advice that took me years to truly understand, it’s write what you know.

When I first heard this instruction, I thought it was odd. I don’t remember where I first heard it, but I do remember thinking that as far as writing tips went, it was absurd.

What about writing from your imagination or your feelings? How do genres like science fiction and fantasy fit into the idea that you should only write what you know?

It all seemed rather limiting. Was I supposed to write about American suburbia? Because that’s what I knew, and it was the last thing I wanted to write about.

One of the reasons memoir doesn’t appeal to me as a writer is because I don’t want to write what I know. I don’t want to relive my life. I want to use writing to live outside of my life, to explore what I don’t know.

I decided to disregard the advice and write whatever I wanted, whether I knew it or not.

What Does It Mean to Write What You Know?

Over the years, I began to understand that write what you know isn’t one of those writing tips that is meant to be taken literally. It’s not a piece of instruction; it’s a guideline.

Think about the world of Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling invented a world of magic, a world that many of us might dream about but none could know in the literal sense. Yet she based that world on our world and on the many fantastical, fictional worlds that already exist in literature. Even if we’re not consciously aware of it, we are constantly influenced by what we’ve read, seen, and experienced. My guess is that in one way or another, the seeds of Harry Potter’s world came from Middle Earth, Narnia, and a galaxy far, far away.

The most fantastical worlds in storytelling are beloved because they are full of truths. They tell us who we are as individuals and as a society. I would guess that Ms. Rowling knows a thing or two about friendship and loyalty because there is a truth to the relationships that exist between Harry and his closest friends, Ron and Hermione. These relationships have ups and downs but are constant.

While flipping back and forth between two channels late at night, Suzanne Collins saw kids competing on reality TV and footage of the war in Iraq. The images blurred in her tired mind, and the Hunger Games were born. She didn’t know a world where children are thrust into an arena to fight to the death. But she could take what she knew (or could learn), add a heap of her own imagination and render a believable world.

To write what you know does not mean to only write about experiences you’ve actually had or people you’ve actually met. It means to use what you know about life, nature, and humanity and use it as the foundation for your stories.

Write What You Want

I believe the best writing is a balanced mixture of what the writer knows and what the writer seeks. Maybe the setting is the writer’s home town and the characters are based on her friends and family, but the plot is completely outside her realm of experience. Maybe the plot is taken from history, which the writer has researched (and therefore knows), but the world in which it is set is drawn from his imagination. Creativity and art are all about combining existing elements in innovative ways.

It is true: you should write what you know, but you should also leave room in writing for the unknown, room to explore and discover new truths, ideas, and possibilities:

• Write what you feel. Use your personal, emotional experiences and share them with the reader through characters you’ve invented. Emotional truths make a piece of fiction honest and compelling.
• Write what you imagine. Let yourself explore a world of possibilities: fantastical beasts, mythical creatures, aliens, and strange, magical worlds.
• Write what you experience. Every experience you’ve had can be translated to fiction. Remember your first day of school? Tweak that experience and give it to one of your characters, even if the character is an elf or an alien.
• Write what interests you. You can write what you know after you’ve learned it. Conduct research about things that interest you and then use those things in your stories. Pull facts and ideas from history, current events, and textbooks.
• Write what matters to you. It goes without saying that your work must matter to you. Write about what moves you, stirs your passion, fills you with joy or rage. If you’re invested in your project, it will come through in your writing and it will speak to higher truths.

What do you write?

How do you feel about writing tips like write what you know? Do you try to write what you know? How far outside of what you know do you take your writing? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment, and keep writing.