How to Write Like You Love It

Are Writers Too Competitive to Give Honest Critiques?

2011-08-01T09:02:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I went to see Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris, and as soon as I got home, I shot an email to my writer's group asking that we go see it together. This is a great movie, not just for Woody Allen fans, but also for writers. It's an artists' smorgasbord, wherein the main character, played by Owen Wilson, is an aspiring writer who goes back in time -- 1920s in Paris -- and finds himself partying and socializing with literary greats like F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein and Ernest Hemingway, to name just a few.

In one part of the movie, the main character finds himself sitting opposite Ernest Hemingway who talks to him about writing that is "good and true." And when he asks Hemingway if he would read his book and comment on it, Hemingway says, "No." Not because he's cocky and uninterested, but because he has a philosophy on writers that makes great sense. If anyone knows anything about Hemingway, it's that during his years as a burgeoning writer, he had all his friends, including his wives, read his work. His most entrusted reader -- before he alienated her -- was Gertrude Stein -- and it is she who ends up reading the protagonist's manuscript and advises him to continue with what he is doing. Getting the OK from Stein is an enormous feat.

But back to Hemingway. On the subject of having other writers read your work, he says that writers are too competitive and that you will not get an honest answer out of them. You can't trust them. He follows his "no" response to Wilson's character with this pithy explanation:

If it's bad I'll hate it; if it's good I'll hate it because it's good.

Now who can argue with that?

Twice a month, I take my work to my writers' group and have it critiqued by aspiring writers just like me. Trusting them to give me their honest opinion of my work is not the problem at all -- but this may be because none of us is published yet. We are still very much in the humble place of wanting to know that our work is "good and true" and publishable. There are no egos getting in the way of honest reviews.

The problem is the subjective points of view, which isn't really a problem as much as it is a personal preference. For example, a new writer in our group read a lovely piece that she wrote, but half the group thought she should simplify her language (make it more Hemingway-ish, I suppose), while the remaining half loved the language and the complexity of her images. With such mixed reviews, who do you listen to?

In the end, every writer comes from a different place -- a place of inspiration, level of writing, and even educational background. Our experiences as people define our writing and the messages we weave into our work. We trust other writers because we must -- just like Hemingway trusted Gertrude Stein, Fitzgerald, Ezra Pound, and all the other writers who read his work and helped him get published. We need to hear that we are on the right track, that we are good, that we are not alone in our endeavors as writers. We need the connection to other writers -- even if their writing is about vampires and aliens and even if their writing is completely different from our own.

Will there be competition? Yes. Will there be jealousy when one gets published and another doesn't? Yes. But competition is good among teammates. It is the necessary path towards accomplishment -- and yes, even publication. We are all competitive by nature, not by specialty. Writers are no more competitive than tennis players or UFC cage fighters. In the end, we all stand in the center of the court or the cage and we shake hands for a well-played and challenging fight.

Be competitive, be challenged by the competitiveness of others, and keep competing. Whatever you do, stay in the game.

Do you agree or disagree with Hemingway's (via Woody Allen) assertion on writers?

Copyright© 2011 by Marina Delvecchio. All Rights Reserved.

Writers' Blog Hop from She Writes

2011-07-22T08:59:00.000-07:00

Hi, this is Marina DelVecchio, and welcome to the writers' blog hop hosted by Meg Waite Clayton, author and SheWrites.com blog hopper.

I began blogging about female agency and empowering girls and women at Marinagraphy, but since I am also trying to find a publisher for Drowning Squirrels, a memoir about my experiences with homelessness, orphanages and adoption ( or at least my agent is doing this), I began this blog on writing. My goal is to read books about writing and share the information with my readers. So far, I have covered Stephen King, Ernest Hemingway, and Elizabeth Gilbert. I eventually want to feature writers from SheWrites.com and ask questions as to how they published and what the writing and publishing process is like for them. If you're interested, please let me know. I'm in the process of compiling my interview questions.

Hang around, leave a comment and a link, and I will come to you.

Thanks for visiting fellow SheWriters.

Writing the Memoir: Fact, Fiction, and Domination

2011-07-14T07:04:00.000-07:00

When agents and publishers talk about memoirs, their comments are the same: the market is flooded with memoirs. It is a term I became familiar with years ago, when I fist began submitting my own memoir about surviving a childhood fraught with prostitution, violence, homelessness, and orphanages -- and this was only the first eight years of my life. An entire book can be written about my negative experiences with adoption. Although I have secured an agent, a good one from NY, my book is still being rejected by editors -- not because it isn't written well -- the comments usually go something like -- written beautifully, reads like poetry, powerful story and so on -- and yet, it garners many rejections. It is one of many out there.

The question I want to raise is, why is the market flooded with them? Obviously, we all have a story to tell -- a unique and unparalleled journey we have taken that has brought us to this exact point in our lives when we want to share it with the world. We have learned valuable lessons about humanity, life, and ourselves -- and everyone will benefit from our experiences.

I recently wrote a book review for Her Circle Ezine, a women's literary site, on The Real Real Thing, written by author and Professor of English at University of Pennsylvania, Wendy Steiner. In her book, Steiner examines the evolving role of the model in art -- from an object to a self-realized subject with a voice and opinion. An English Professor, she extended her research to literature, and especially, memoirs. In discussing the prominence of memoirs -- and non-fiction in general -- she makes the following point: "Audiences seek out nonfiction art for its evocation of the real" (71).

It is for this reason that we become incensed with rage when we discover that some memoirs are more based on fantasy than actual experienced events. Herman Rosenblat's Angel at the Fence (2008) is one scandalous example in which some facts were falsified in this Holocaust memoir; it has since been retitled and due to be published as fiction. Another such example is James Frey's A Million Little Pieces (2005), which exaggerated some of his experiences with substance abuse -- both pissed Oprah Winfrey off tremendously for fooling her into supporting their work.

Memoirs are flooding the market, but they are also feeding the hungry appetites of bibliophiles. Steiner proposes that the reason for this is because there is a give-and-take that occurs between the memoirist and the reader. The writer is a model fashioning his work -- retelling his experiences as fact, as truth -- and the reader looks upon the author as someone to model himself after. Another flawed human being to look up to. To understand and attempt to emulate in terms of actions and perceptions. Someone from whom to learn the skills of overcoming tragedies and dealing with setbacks. Steiner observes that readers identify with the real life people depicted in memoirs -- and sometimes even with their experiences:

Readers may be moved to make changes in their lives based on the insights that arise from these models. It is no wonder they become enraged when the basis of their empathy is revealed as a deception. (81)

Memoirs make us feel connected not only to events in history but also to people -- to unvoiced desires, unresolved pains, irrevocable experiences, and feelings we lack language for. And this is why the memoirs we write need to come from the core of who we are and what we have been through.
Copyright© 2011 by Marina Delvecchio. All Rights Reserved.

Writing Prompt:

2011-07-13T07:00:00.000-07:00

Wednesday's Writing Prompt: In Conversations with my 13-Year-Old Self, P!nk talks to the teenager in her self -- promising that things will get better at a time when life was extremely turbulent. For this week's writing prompt, choose your favorite genre and address the 13-year-old inside you. What would you tell her about your future that she didn't know back then -- and that could have helped her?

Dig deep, have fun with it, and maybe even read it to your teenager -- if you have any. If not, save it for them. We all remember what it was like.

Here's P!nk's tribute the young girl in her past:

Independence Day: Emancipating the Writer Within

2011-07-04T04:00:00.001-07:00

In honor of this 4th of July celebration, I'd like to talk about the ways writers, including myself, feel overpowered and oppressed, which deters us from doing what we want to do and love doing: writing. Every week I go to the gym and spend an hour at a time in a kickboxing class packed with sweaty people trying to do the same things I am trying to accomplish by being there: lose weight, get motivated, find energy, and feel good about myself. But by the time I reach the 30 minute mark, the same thing always happens to me: my eyes start searching for the clock and I am looking for easy exit strategies. I want to bolt, but I never do. Why? Because my instructor's voice reaches me at the same time -- every time -- and her words resonate with me:

You want to give up now! I feel it. But don't. The only thing stopping you from accomplishing what you want in this class is you! Don't let you get in your way!

And I have to laugh -- because she is so right! I can blame everyone and everything outside of me for getting in the way of what I want to achieve -- in kickboxing and in writing and in everything else I attempt -- but the only one that really gets in my way is me. I cannot blame anyone but me when I don't finish what I start or when I do something wrong. On this Independence Day, emancipate yourself from the typical shackles that bind every writer: excuses. Here's a list of the most common excuses writers need to be free of:

1. Confidence: Confidence is the difference between the successful and unsuccessful writer. Confident people -- in all areas of their lives -- get things done. They never give up. And they don't give up because they don't doubt themselves. Whether it's pseudo-confidence or real, it is the key to getting you to fulfill your dreams and desires. The only thing that will build your confidence is to keep writing until you read your work and say to yourself, "wow, that is really good!" The only thing that builds confidence is experience; the more you have in your craft, the more confident you will feel as a writer. So keep writing, don't give up no matter how many rejections pile up. You need confidence to be a writer -- to be anything, really.

2. Time: Not having enough time is the most common excuse used by writers -- even by me, to be honest. But by setting goals, putting yourself on a schedule, and sticking to those goals and that schedule, you can always find time to write. J. K. Rowling was a school teacher with kids to take care of, and yet she still managed to write the Harry Potter book that landed her a publishing contract, movies, and tons of money. Stephenie Meyer was a full-time stay-at-home-mom when she dreamed up the Twilight series. She wrote at night, every night, after she tucked her kids in snug and tight. Time is there -- you just have to fill the pockets and be constructive and wise in the ways you use the time you do have left. Too tired after work is just an excuse. The kids tired me out all day, is just an excuse. If you want it bad enough, like Rowling and Meyer did, you can find the time to do it. Perhaps this is where confidence comes in also.

3. Procrastination: I'm a huge procrastinator. I leave everything until the last possible moment -- until I am forced to sit down and do what I haven't done. I procrastinate with everything: returning phone calls and emails, writing, blogging, lesson-planning, and grading. And it stresses me out beyond belief, but it's a habit I developed in College, and I can't seem to escape it. But this is also an excuse -- and a bad one. If I used my time effectively -- and didn't procrastinate -- I would get an exorbitant amount of work done. I might even have time to send article queries to consumer magazines -- but because I procrastinate, I only get half the job done. Less procrastination is the goal.

4. Accountability: Writers are a rare breed -- especially when they don't have a publisher or a boss to hold them accountable. When we don't have bosses, we don't have anyone to tell us to shake our tail feathers and get the work done. We don't get fired if we're late with articles or lose book contracts because we don't have all our chapters ready by a given day. We have to hold ourselves accountable, and this is hard when you're your own boss. This is a good time to join a writer's group, where you have to have something to show to your peers each time you meet. You'll want to have something for them -- because what they have to say is invaluable. You should also find a writing buddy to work with -- someone you email or even see daily or weekly, with whom you discuss your writing and take turns holding one another to a schedule.

5. Motivation: Sometimes what we lack most is motivation. When this happens, just read. It works for me. As I read, I focus my attention on the quality of writing, the way the story is developed, and so on. I compare them to other books I've read, other characters I've been introduced to, and at times this gives me the motivation to sit down and write. If this doesn't work for you, go to the gym. Nothing works better at giving you a surge of energy and motivation than working out. I feel like I can do anything after an hour at kickboxing. Use writing prompts to get your engine running -- before you know it, you're off and writing without any hindrances standing in your way. Whatever you do, don't compare yourself to published writers, wondering how they did it and you didn't. This is not constructive or helpful; it is destructive to your objectives and your self-esteem. We are all different and good things happen to us at different times and in different ways. Don't compare -- just do what you do best: write in your style, in your voice, and in your time.

On this Independence day, consider yourself emancipated from the binding vices of these excuses -- don't use them. They are useless and a heavy load for anyone to bear. They are only excuses and they hold you back from becoming the next great writer. Be strong and be free! And keep writing.

Writing Prompt: Writing a Scene

2011-06-29T04:00:00.000-07:00

Image Credit: matt_hintsa

Wednesday's Writing Prompt: Using this image, tell a story. Who is the lone figure by the tree, and what is he/she doing there? Describe the feelings depicted in the picture and speak of its many shadows.

Link it back here when you're done -- let us know what you have come up with.

What NOT to do When an Agent Calls

2011-06-28T04:00:00.000-07:00

So. You submitted your query, along with the first twenty-five pages of your book; a literary agent emails you that he is interested in reading the entire book and to send it to him as a word document. You do so immediately...and then you wait. You wait until you're positive that he cannot possibly be interested since you haven't heard from him.

And then one day, when you have all but given up, the phone rings. Your caller ID informs you that it is Literary Agent X -- the one and only. Here's what you shouldn't do in the next few seconds:

1. Don't be Unprepared: Even if it means letting him leave a message and calling him back, don't pick up that phone if you're not prepared to have a conversation about your book. When submitting your work to agents, make a list of questions and topics of discussion to have with the literary agent lucky enough to want your work. Be prepared, and have a notebook and pen handy to take notes. He may want you to make changes prior to signing you on.

2. Don't Gush: If you're breathless, too excited for words -- then wait. He called. He left a message. He's interested. Take a few breaths, have a drink, and don't call back until you are calm and feeling self-assured. First impressions mean everything in this business, and the last thing you want to do is make a bad one. Gushing and rambling on like a nervous newbie does not a good impression make.

3. Don't be Distracted: When you do call back, make sure you have eliminated all possible distractions that will affect this very important conversation. Find a closed room away from kids and whining, crying dogs, banging pots, and whatever else violates the quiet spaces of your home. And whatever you do, don't leave an unopened Tylenol container out on the kitchen counter after doling out medicine to your sick toddler, and then have to put said agent on hold to remove Tylenol bottle from your toddler's chubby hands. Kids get everywhere and want your attention all the time, but especially when you need them NOT to. Make sure they are not around when you call your new agent back.

4. Don't Belittle Your Work: You worked hard on your book. It took you years to write it, and even more years to revise and rewrite it. Be proud of your manuscript and know exactly how to defend its publication and its value in the market. Many people talk about writing books, but few actually finish writing one. You have walked the walk, and here you are with an agent on the other side of the line. Stand strong, speak with confidence, and don't talk about the last agent that dumped your book, and why it hasn't been received well by publishers whose rejection slips haunt you from the dark files in your office. This one wants to attempt at getting it published -- let him. He may have different results.

5. Don't Hesitate: When he discusses drawbacks in your work -- missing elements -- things he's like to see you expand on -- don't explain why these missing elements aren't there -- why you took them out or didn't think they were important. If he's an experienced agent with many published authors under his belt, take his views under consideration and offer to make the changes -- right there and then. Don't pause, don't explain, just commit to drafting a revised chapter for his perusal. After all, he's interested, and finding an agent is one of the hardest parts of getting published -- you may not have another chance. Discuss the changes, make sure you understand what he is asking for, and say, "Yes, I can!"

The rest is up to you!

Can you think of anything you'd like to add to this list?

5 Helpful Links for Writers

2011-06-23T04:00:00.000-07:00

Here are this week's invaluable writing links. Hope they help.

1. Found on BlogHer, author of Secret Society Girls Series, Diana Peterfreund, gives some tips on how to find the time to write when your schedule is full of work, kids, and so on. Very helpful, short and sweet.

2. In Make a Living Writing, Carol Tice features Ollin Morales, who discusses how to make your author's web site incomparable.

3. Elizabeth Sims in Writer's Digest shows 8 Ways to Write Better Characters. This is worth printing out and having handy when writing.

4. Interested in traveling and writing. Here are Writing Workshops to break up your summer writing -- offered to you by Writer's Market.

5. Are you not as confident as you should be about your writing? Thinking that you should hang up your writing pen (put away your laptop for good)? Don't. DailyWritingTips -- a very good site to subscribe to -- offer Seven Way to Build Up Your Writing Confidence. Don't give up.

Have you any sites to recommend on writing?

Writing Prompt:Open Windows, Empty Rooms

2011-06-22T08:30:00.000-07:00

Wednesday's Writing Prompt: A few weeks ago, on my trip to NY, I went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art because it was featuring a gallery of work from the Victorian Era. The theme was Rooms with a View: The Open Window in the 19th century." The open window is a metaphor for longing and feeling unfulfilled -- which I can often relate to. Most of the art consisted of pictures within pictures -- a lone figure looking out the window at the world that existed beyond their loneliness and inarticulate longings. O some of the rooms were empty -- the observer of the painting was the lone figure looking at the empty room and then beyond it -- past the open window. They were beautiful and haunting at the same time.

For this week, tell the story of what it is that lies beyond the empty room -- what world exists beyond your own that you secretly long for -- tell it through your point of view or through the point of view of a character. Or write a poem. Here are some examples from the art collection.

Link back here to share what you've written.

Have fun and go deep.

Stephen King's 10 Writing Commandments

2011-06-21T03:00:00.033-07:00

A few weeks ago, I posted an article on Stephen King's On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, and focused on the tools of writing that every writer needs to have in his toolbox. This week, I am concentrating on the third part of his book, which discusses the actual act of writing and what I deem to be his "commandments." Here they are:

Commandment 1: Read and write -- a lot! King, every writing Instructor, and every writer all have the same advice -- and we should heed them. If you are a writer or an aspiring one, you have to love to read and love to write. Don't do either because you feel you have to do it -- do both because you need to. Bad writing teaches you what not to do, and great writing teach you what you should be doing. Paraphrasing King, if you don't have time to read, then you don't have time to write.

Commandment 2: Write every day -- Develop a schedule and write every day. He suggests writing a minimum of 1,000 words a day. If you're a night owl, write at night; if you're an early riser, write in the mornings. If you have day job, then be like Anthony Trollope and write for 2-3 hours before leaving for work. If you're a poet-mom, like Sylvia Plath, wake up before the children rise, and write in the wee hours of the morning. Whatever schedule you pick, it should last for 2-3 hours at a time, uninterrupted, and you should have a realistic goal of 1000 words a day -- every day.

Commandment 3: Find your space -- Find your space and shut the door.Truman Capote wrote in motel rooms. Ernest Hemingway rented a studio. Kathryn Stockett, who wrote The Help, rented a motel room every weekend in order to revise her book -- which had been rejected again and again. Your writing space doesn't have to be big -- it can be small and the size of a closet, but it has to have a door because you have to shut it -- shut out the world and shut yourself in. It should be just you and your writing without any interruptions or distractions like cell phones, phones, television sets, video games, or internet access. You, a room, and a door.

Commandment 4: Write the truth -- While most people say, Write what you know -- I say, Write what you love, but King says, Write the truth. Don't write to impress agents, publishers, other writers or even your friends. According to King, "When the reader hears strong echoes of his of her own life and beliefs, he or she is apt to become more invested in the story" (160).Write about your experiences with work, love, rage, etc., and write it honestly. Don't sugar-coat it or sensationalize it.

Commandment 5: Don't plot -- Most writers plot or map out their writing. King argues that life is plotless, and so should your story. Let your story find itself -- let it unfold before you without you navigating it. Stories that are created from plot-structuring "feel artificial and labored" (164). Instead, allow the necessary elements of narrative, descriptions, and dialogue to bring your story to life.

Commandment 6: Practice -- Practice makes a writer a better, more seasoned writer. Practice these most important elements of any story.
Characters: Practice making real and believable characters with both good and bad traits -- make the reader hate and sympathize with them at the same time. King suggests that you let the characters take you for a ride -- let them reveal themselves to you when they want to -- when they're ready to. Have them grow and drive the action of the story.

Descriptions: Practice describing, not faces and clothing -- but setting and texture -- and whatever you do, don't over describe anything. Let your first instincts drive you to use description, and then use details sparingly and clearly. Describe things as you see them, and the reader will see it in the same manner.

Dialogue: Practice showing -- not telling -- through the use of real dialogue. Show us the IQ level of your character via his dialect, his vocabulary, and his use of colloquialisms. Use a clear writing style with simple vocabulary. If it sounds real, then it rings true to the reader.

Commandment 7: The story -- According to King, "Good fiction always begins with story and progresses to theme" -- not the other way around. After you're done with the first draft of your manuscript, lean back and look at it. Know exactly what your book is about -- what it is you're trying to do with it -- say through it. Understand what your story really means -- and if you don't yet, that's where the revision comes in.

Commandment 8: Revision -- The revision process for King is a four step process:
a) When you're done with the first draft, which you put down on paper without editing or reading, just writing unleashed, put it in a drawer and leave it for a minimum of 6 weeks -- yes, that's his advice.
b) After six weeks, go back into your room, take out a notepad and pen, and start reading. Make notations on the ms, note discrepancies in characters or gaping holes in logic, plot, etc. Don't be hard on yourself for your errors -- they're fixable.
c) Open the door of your writing room and give a copy to your choice for the Ideal Reader -- the first read always goes to this person -- this is the person whose responses you're thinking of when writing the first draft; he/she will always give you the most honest opinion -- whether you want to hear it or not. For King, the Ideal Reader is his wife, Tabetha.
d) After the Ideal Reader give you his/her comments, then send your ms to a few trusted friends who will give you subjective responses -- but if they critique the same points, then you know what kind of work you must do. King sends his work to 6-8 of his friends for their critiques. If you're not into this, then a writer's group should be just fine.

Commandment 9: Research -- There are writers who conduct a series of research and spend pages of their story revealing this new-found knowledge, but King insists that you shouldn't have to. If you're writing about something you don't know, then research it, but the research should be at the back of the story. The story always comes first and should never be placed second to the research.

Commandment 10: Writing Courses/Seminars/Workshops -- King, like Elizabeth Gilbert and so many other successful writers, doesn't believe that you should attend any of these classes for writing for the following reasons: a) Life is your classroom; your experiences are strewn in your stories; b) Aside from the fact that they cost a lot of money, there is a sense of having to be there as opposed to wanting to be there; c)When you write at these retreats, you're told to write something -- you're not moved to write; d)You don't need badges or degrees to tell you that tell you you are a writer -- if you write, you're a writer. Done!; e)You can't write with the door shut, which was King's third rule for writers -- you need that room and that closed door; and f) While there may be some redeeming qualities -- like being among other writers shunned by normal people who tell them to get a real job -- the critiques given to writers are usually quite vague and not helpful at all. So you're wasting time and money. Use that money to get yourself a room with a door -- and nothing more than you and your writing.

Writing Prompt

2011-06-15T04:00:00.007-07:00

(Design by: desexign)

Wednesday's Writing Prompt: Reflect on the strangest dream you ever had and reveal it through the point of view of every individual present. Focus on the room and describe every nuance of it -- the size, the smells, the way it feels; then move on to the characters -- focus on one at a time; how does the individual look, how is he dressed, how does she feel, what is she thinking and feeling, and so on. Who knows? It may just turn into a short story worth sending out.

5 Top Links for Writers

2011-06-14T03:00:00.001-07:00

Here are this week's top links for writers that may be of interest to you:

1. Writer's Digest is hosting a Novel/Memoir Webinar in writing a synopsis. We all know that following rules and wording these things appropriately can help your chances in an agent or publisher asking for more. Not a bad way to spend your money. It's hosted by Chuck Sambuchino, and if you don't already know, you can submit articles to him if 1) you have acquired an agent; 2) about 7 things you've learned so far about writing, publishing, querying, etc. It's also hosting a "Dear Lucky Agent" contest for women's fiction with a money prize and a visit with an agent.

2. Robert Lee Brewer posts an interesting article on Revision Tips for Writers -- same old thing but from a new voice.

3. Do you need more confidence as a writer? The read this post from Daily Writing Tips, which discusses ways to boost your confidence. The key, of course, is to put yourself out there.

4. Do you have problems finding the right words to describe weather? The Bookshelf Muse provides a healthy vault of descriptive language for weather that apply to each of our senses.

5. Although this last link is for blogging, it's crucial to writers since we are better off having a blog. Here's a post on 5 Ways to Succeed with Guest Blogging,which helps tremendously in giving your blog a different voice and gaining more readers.

Writing Prompt: Last Tree Standing

2011-06-08T04:00:00.003-07:00

Wednesday's Writing Prompt: Write a short poem from the point of view of the only tree left standing.

When you're done, publish it on your blog, come back and link it here so that we can read it.

Stephen King and 6 Tools Every Writer Should Have in His ToolBox

2011-06-07T11:37:00.003-07:00

In his Memoir of the Craft, Stephen King breaks up his book into three parts: 1) memories of his personal and professional life told in numbered chunks and fragmented snippets; 2) what's in his toolbox and what should be in yours; and 3) comments on the actual craft of writing.

In this post, I will be discussing the toolbox and what King deems worthy in including in his own writer's tool box. He compares writing to a craft, a trade, like carpentry. Writing requires skill, but for every skill, tools are required. Imagine you have a toolbox, one of those red ones with six drawers that is kept in the garage. But your toolbox is for your writing only. Here are the 6 most essential tools that King keeps in his toolbox, which help him with this writing:

1. Vocabulary: The top drawer should include your vocabulary as it is. Don't add any GRE style words or write above your level of diction. Don't write fancy; use plain and direct language. King says that a writer should always use the first word that comes up -- no other word will mean exactly what you wanted it to mean. Write so people can understand and don't feel alienated. Don't dumb your writing down, but don't try to dress it up either. Write as you are. If you read this book, you'll find that King follows this advice all the way. His writing is crisp, clear, and direct.

2. Grammar: According to King, "Bad grammar is bad writing" (120). Grammar is obviously an important part of writing, but he also says that if you haven't got a grasp on grammar by now, then you may never get it. The best way to acquire grammar rules without thinking about it, is to read. And as long as you have a noun and a verb, then you can't go wrong. Simple sentence constructions worked for Ernest Hemingway and other great writers -- they can work for you. But of course, if you expect more from your writing than just a noun and a verb to make a sentence, he does recommend Warriner's English Grammar and Composition: First Course.

3. Passive vs. Active Voice: King and every other writer in the world will tell you to rid your writing of passive voice constructions. King says that when writers use passive verbs, it's usually because they are timid or passive writers/people. If you're not sure of what is meant by passive/active verbs, here is an adapted example from King himself (123).
Passive example: The body was carried out of the kitchen.
Active example: Freddy and Myra carried the body out of the kitchen.

Freddy and Myra are your subjects, not the dead body (which is already passive since it's dead). When you write, look over your sentences one by one and see if you write with a passive voice. If this is your pattern, then you should make a conscious effort in changing it. As I tell my students, writers must assert themselves as authorities in their writing; otherwise, why would anyone want to read your work?

4. Adverbs: "Adverbs are not your friends," King most ardently states. Usually ending in -ly, adverbs are used to modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. But as he points out, they're unnecessary. We don't need words like firmly, sadly, ardently to be placed in the prose because the prose that comes before these extra words should be telling us this stuff to begin with. Adverbs are basically redundant, extra, and unnecessary. And whatever you do, omit them from your dialogue attribution. These are phrases that tell us who said what and how ( he shouted, she pleaded, he said). Adding adverbs to these verbs weakens the dialogue and your writing.

5. Paragraphs: King says that paragraphs are "maps of intent" (130). They tell your reader if your book is heavy and a hard read or easy and a breeze to read. Make your work easy to read by crafting paragraphs that are light, airy, and loose. Make them short and not packed tightly with verbiage. Include short paragraphs and lots of white space and dialogue. The easier it looks, the more a reader will want to buy and read it -- He won't feel overwhelmed by the heaviness of the language or the content.

On paragraphs, King also reveals that they are not the melody of your work, but the beat, and in order to find the beat that will rock your writing, you must practice. Don't think about where paragraphs should begin and end; just sit down and keep writing until the beat finds you. To help with this, he also suggests that you read a lot of fiction: "The more fiction you read and write, the more you'll find the paragraphs forming on their own" (131).

6. Commitment: The last drawer of you toolbox should contain your commitment to your craft. Don't let fear or your insecurities drag you down and away from what you want. Don't let bad reviews or rejection slips deter you from writing or trying to get published. Don't give up. Start small and take one paragraph at a time -- one beat at a time. Keep writing whether you write short stories, poems, novels, or non-fiction. Commit to your craft -- and stay committed.

How about you? What's in your writer's toolbox?

5 Essential Links for Writers

2011-06-02T03:45:00.002-07:00

Here are some links I have compiled this past week that I have found helpful as a writer and as one who struggles with getting myself out there. I wish I could just bury myself in my writing and have someone else do the PR work for me, but this is no longer the case for us. Here goes. I hope you find some of them useful in your writing pursuits:

1. Do you have a Facebook Fan page? If not, get one. Here are 5 tricks to benefit your efforts in getting yourself out there and connect with an audience.

2. Writer's Block? Run out of ideas? This post from Engage the Blog breaks it down for you and tells you that the key is to just sit down and write. This is a very good site.

3. In this Writer's Digest gem produced by a Romance editor, the advice is How to Break the Rules and Get Published. This is a great post if you are like me: a strict rule follower. Know and understand the rules, of which there are so many, and then forget them, she advises. Interesting.

4. "Chaptering" is the process of knowing when and how to break up your chapters. Here are a few essential rules to help you end your chapters in the right places.

5. Are you having trouble organizing and developing your novel ideas? Here are some tips to get you motivated and organized.

Book Recommendation: Are you finding it difficult to sit down and write that book that is driving you nuts
inside your head? Here's the tough love you need to write it and publish it. Sometimes we all need that push, that gentle nudge that gets us moving. Get writing/typing!

Weekly Writing Prompt: Act of Bravery

2011-06-01T08:48:00.000-07:00

Lately, I'm finding it hard to be brave. I know I need to be -- and that I have to take on brave actions -- but fear holds me back. Fears that come slamming at me from childhood, but that have an inexplicable control over me and keep me from acting -- bravely or otherwise. I find that when I write about it, I experience surges of empowerment that help me take small steps towards acting wisely and with the strength I know lives inside me.

For this week's writing prompt, write about one act of bravery that you have actually accomplished or that you would like to accomplish. What are the things or persons that stand in the way of this act of agency and necessity? Choose any genre, dig deep, and flush out every emotion and detail for this piece.

Feel free to link your writing to this site so that others can see what you have come up with. And if you are comfortable with what you have written, find a venue for it and send it out.

5 Twitter Links for Writers

2011-05-24T06:58:00.000-07:00

Here are this week's tweets on writing. Compiled by me so you don't have to. Have fun.

1. David B Coe of Magical Words posts an article on why he still believes in traditional publishing. Here he discusses the advantages of having a big press behind your work.

2. Are you looking for an agent? Writer's Digest is offering a webinar by an agent, who is willing to teach us how to write queries that will HOOK an agent. Of course, this is all subjective, but there's nothing to lose in this, especially since this agent will also review your query and critique it.

3. This link, by Jane Friedman, discusses the 3 Top Trends Writers Must Stay on Top of regarding e-book sales, Amazon and Publishing, and agents becoming publishers.

4. Are you a victim of writer's block? Here's some advice from author Jonathan Franzen on how to master writer's block? My problem is time...how about you?

5. Are you considering e-publishing? Here are 5 steps you must take before you can call yourself ready to undertake the task from author and publishing guru, Richard L. Mabry, MD.

Have you recently written a post on writing or publishing that you want to share? Link up. I'd love to read it.

How to Find Your Agent

2011-05-23T05:46:00.000-07:00

Like most writers, I have been writing since I was a child, just off the plane from Athens, Greece with only my name and an adoption certificate to claim me. The first eight years of my life were plagued with violence, neglect, prostitution, homelessness and orphanages, while the next sixteen years, highlighted by my adoption, functioned to silence those experiences. I overcame these complexities only because I had found my voice in writing poetry, and at the age of thirty, my story began to surface in prose with the involuntary want of telling. My journey towards finding an agent has been long and arduous, but it is an example for all aspiring writers not to lose heart, faith, or confidence in their stories.

Round One

In 2004, after I had written and rewritten my manuscript three times, I printed queries with self-addressed envelopes and lots of hope. I started with the A’s and followed the rules, seeking the attention of agents who only dealt with creative non-fiction . Within the first year of query submissions, I finally got a hit when I reached the G’s. The agent requested the book proposal, then the manuscript, and two weeks later, she called me, telling me she loved my book and wanted to represent me. The publishers, however, thought it was too dark, too harrowing, and they didn’t think it would fare well. After nine months of rejections from major publishing companies, my agent finally gave up and wished me well.

Knockdown and Knockout

I did what many agents and writers tell you not to do: I gave up. I packed up my manuscript and my folder filled to the rim with rejection letters, and I did not write for two years. I concentrated on my two-year-old son, wrote research papers for my doctoral studies instead of prose, and I began to teach writing on the college level. Although I don’t recommend giving up, this distance from my writing gave me new perspective in telling my story. In writing one of my thesis papers, I came across a scholarly journal that explored how female writers wrote their autobiographies in order to understand their mothers, and this is what I was doing, especially since I had just become a mom. And so I had a comeback. I began to write my story again, this time with reflective distance and a more finite focus on motherhood.

Round Two

For the next two years, I wrote my book Drowning Squirrels from scratch, and revised it three times before I approached agents. Since my book is about women – mothers and daughters – I only queried female agents; their responses were all the same – “beautifully written,” "compelling and unique,” and “not for us.” But they also told me not to give up – that someone would grab it. After a frustrating year of this, I tried something different. I went off the cuff, closed my personalized Writer’s Market web site page, pushed aside my alphabetical list of agents, logged on to AgentQuery.com and came across the list of agents they recommended for my genre. And then I really changed my game. I emailed my query to a MALE agent, and I did this because he requested not only a query via email, but also the first twenty-five pages of the manuscript to go with it. It was March 15, 2010 at 8pm, and I emailed him both. Twenty-five minutes later, he emailed back: “powerful stuff. Please send me the rest in word.doc.” After a year of querying, this was the first time an agent wanted the entire thing, and I was ecstatic.

Round Three with Unanimous Decision

But it wasn’t as easy to sign with him as it had been with my first agent. After a week, he called me. Instead of offering to sign me, he told me that there were some gaps that needed filling in my manuscript. He wanted to know if I agreed with his analysis and if I were willing to add content to my book. I paused, sputtered, ran to retrieve the open bottle of Tylenol from my two-year-old daughter’s pudgy fingers, and squealed out a yes. A few weeks later, I resubmitted the changes and did not hear from him. I thought it was all over – and then he sent me an email telling me that he was behind on his reading and was just as interested as before. Four months later, he emailed me and wanted some more development with one of my characters. And then it was on. I made the changes, and within days he told me he was ready to submit my book to publishers. In August of 2010, by unanimous decision, I signed a contract with my agent. The only thing that remains now is to get a publisher. And I’m still waiting…but not alone.

5 Helpful Links for Writers

2011-05-20T06:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a few links/sites to check out, no matter what kind of writer you are:

1. Make a Living Writing is a great site for writers, and in this post, you can figure out what your chances are for being a successful freelance writer. I always go back and forth -- Do I want to freelance? Maybe one day, but I'm not there yet, and this quiz reveals the same about me. Take the quiz and see if you can cut it as a freelance writer.

2. Here are tips on freelancing, if that is the route you want to go with. This is a site I subscribe to; it's not just on freelance writing. I have added it to my blackboard tabs so that my students can have access to it. Very informative.

3. Do you use Google to conduct your research? I always tell my students not to -- at least not for their formal papers. Here are a few other sites we could be using to conduct our research

4. To self-publish or not to self-publish...that is the question. It's the current debate for writers. I like the traditional road of getting an agent and finding a publisher and having them do the work. But the contract I have with my agent is coming to a close and by the end of the summer, I may not have an agent. Then what to do? Who knows? Maybe I'll publish on Amazon. That seems to be the route to take nowadays. Things are changing, and we may have to move with the current tide. Jane Friedman talks about this issue on her post.

5. This is from We Magazine called Don't Just Lurk, Say Something. It's good advice for every blogger, every writer, everyone who visits, but doesn't leave a comment. I know how hard this is, since I have an account that fills up with blogs I subscribe to and am behind in responding, but this is part of networking -- of building relationships with people who blog about similar subjects. So leave a comment! I'll comment on yours too.

Writing Prompt: Your Shackles of Exuberance

2011-05-18T06:45:00.000-07:00

Wednesday's Writing Prompt: Imagine yourself perched on a cliff, the blue sky all around you, the sun caressing your face and closed eyelids, and the ocean's currents crashing against the jagged rocks beneath you. You want to jump -- not to die -- but to live. To exhaust yourself with freedom and life -- to feel the freedom that comes with gliding in the air and then free-falling and diving into the blue depths below -- hearing nothing but the pounding of your heart.

But -- there are shackles, or chains, or hands that grip on to your ankles holding you back from this experience -- this freedom.

Describe the people or feelings that hold you back from feeling free and exuberant and unencumbered.

Post it on your blog and link it here, so the rest of us can read about it. Cut and paste it into the comments page if you don't have a blog ( and why don't you have one? They're free, you know...). Or just do it for yourself. Happy writing.

How Ernest Hemingway Became a Writer

2011-05-16T06:30:00.000-07:00

For the past couple of weeks, I have been reading Paula McLain's The Paris Wife, a historical novel told from the point of view of Hemingway's first wife, Hadley Richardson. In telling the story of how they met, fell in love, married, and then divorced, Hadley was Ernest's first fan and she tells us HOW he became such a famous and revolutionary writer. Now I'm not a huge fan of Hemingway's. Aside from The Sun Also Rises, I don't teach much of his work. A lover of the classics, I vehemently hold that although his stories are compelling, he simplified the language of writing. He was a misogynist, a cheater, jealous of those with money, and he ruined every relationship he ever honored -- with women and with his mentors and those who helped him get to the top. This said, as a writer, he was unconventional and brilliant and passionate and he made it big -- even though he also went down big. Here are a few tips acquired from reading about how Hemingway got bigger than his youthful britches and became a renowned writer while still alive.

1. Passion: I feel that in writing, you must have a passion for it -- passion, blind and unrelenting, should fuel you to write. Hemingway had to write all the time. When he didn't, he suffered. And everyone around him suffered as well. Writing for money and fame is fine; after all, we all hope for these things, but longing needs to be there -- whether you're longing to write the next American or Russian novel, the best book of poetry, or the best book on how to become rich and famous. Whatever floats your boat, let your passion and love for writing and your subject guide you.

2. Go to Work: Ernest Hemingway, after he married Hadley, went to work every day. He rented a small studio in another part of town and went there every morning after having breakfast. Even though they did not have money, they were able to survive in the poorest section of Paris. This is something that Virginia Woolf also reiterates, although she intends her advice for women writers: you need a place of your own -- a room of your own as a writer. Somewhere where you can escape and be uninterrupted. You work there all day long as if you had a full-time paying job. Of course, it's not so easy nowadays, and it wasn't as easy for him. When Hadley became unexpectedly pregnant, he took jobs as a journalist to make ends meet. But it wan't for forever. He saved his money so that they could live off it for a while, and then he went back to work on his work: writing fiction. But figure it out. Schedule a time for you to write daily, and then commit to it -- daily.

3: Like Attracts: Today we have writing blogs, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, but before we had any of these, writers had to find a physical way of socializing with other writers. Ernest Hemingway moved himself and his new wife to Paris, where all the famous writers were. He had dinner with them, coffee with them, their wives hung out together, and they read one another's work. Social Networking is very important -- in any field -- but for writers, it is crucial. We need to be around one another -- not just to socialize, but to push and compete with one another as well as to support each other. No one really understands writers except other writers. Most people think we're ridiculous and roll their eyes at our ambitions. Find yourself a circle of other writers -- start a new Beat Poets or Harlem Writers or Women Rebel Writers. Just move in the circle of other writers -- people who understand you and the struggle that comes with writing.

4. Mentor Up: Get a mentor -- not just any mentor -- another writer; ideally a published one. Or maybe an agent, an editor, or a publisher. Someone who can help you get somewhere. We all need mentors in any job we assume -- they give us the ins and outs of the field -- and often, we learn from their mistakes -- not ours. Hemingway networked like crazy and ended up having his work read and commented on by Gertrude Stein, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Ezra Pound. He also met key people, editors of journals and publishing companies, who published his work and helped him climb to the top. Without them, his climb wouldn't have been as smooth as it actually was.

5. Write Your Experiences: My husband always asks me, "why don't you write about something else? You're always writing about the same things." Why? Because that is my passion -- what drives me to write. I can go and write a love story or chic lit, which is something my last agent recommended -- but then I wouldn't be true to myself. I am driven by dark literature and I only want to put into words that which people don't want to say aloud. That's me. Ernest Hemingway was haunted by many things: the war, lost love, a tenuous relationship with his emotionally inconsistent mother, the affluent and vapid qualities of rich folk, the way sexually aggressive women confused and intimidated him, and his fear of and desire for death. All his stories reflect these fears, anxieties, and conflicts that enrich and confuse our lives -- giving us all something to which we can relate and examine.

Wednesday's Writing Prompt

2011-05-11T07:41:00.000-07:00

Writing Prompt: You're in a dark, dingy bar having a beer or two. An older man sits next to you, drunk and wasted. He begins telling you about "the truth" that he has discovered in his life's journey. In a genre you're most comfortable with, write out his confession and revelations. What is this truth?

Elizabeth Gilbert's Advice for Writers

2011-05-09T09:03:00.000-07:00

Elizabeth Gilbert's Eat, Pray, Love was not only a successful publishing feat, but it also made it big as a movie -- maybe not one that men would go see, but it definitely gave women something to read about. For men, I'm sure the most intriguing factor is how Gilbert made it as a writer. We all want to know because that is what we are aiming for: to be paid writers. And if we can get a movie made out of our books, that would be nice as well. Upon visiting her website and reading her work, this is what she has to say about being a writer,

1. Be a Bride to Writing: Whether you're a man or a woman, Gilbert's advice is to "marry" writing. Make it your main priority -- not just a hobby. If you want to make it as a writer it has to be your first and only choice. Obviously, we all have to work to pay rent, but every hour in between must be spent on your craft. It goes without saying that if you want something bad enough, you have to work for it. Say your "I do's" and let's get on with the honeymoon.

2. Experience Life: Every writer begins with what he knows; if you don't know anything, what are you going to write about? Travel and experience different worlds, cultures, food, people. Put flavor in your writing. One of the reasons Gilbert's book was so popular was because it was centered on other countries and their distinct cultural flavors. Write about your experiences with marriage, divorce, children, traveling, teaching, being a police officer or a judge. Your work makes you unique, and there is a lot you have to say about it -- so say it as eloquently and as frankly as you can.

3. Say No to MFA's: Gilbert took some writing courses at NYU, but she felt that writing in a classroom is not the place for a writer married to writing. The best place to learn writing, to hone your skills as a writer are out in the world, not in a classroom with 30 other starving writers. Your degree should be in life and experience, not in classrooms and MFA's. Although, (and this is my observation), with an MFA you can teach creative writing on the college level without having a PhD -- and this can pay the bills while you write the Great American Novel.

4. Put Yourself Out There: Send your work out to magazines, newspapers, blogs, web sites, contests, agents and publishers. Your work is no good to you if it just sits in a file in your computer. For 8 years, I concentrated my efforts on one book, sending it only to agents when I was done with it. I did no other writing -- it was my life's work, I suppose. Today it is being shuffled around on an agent's desk and being rejected by publishing houses, but it doesn't hurt as much since I have been putting myself out there in other venues. Since I began blogging and discovering new sites in which to publish, I have been sending my work out quite frequently; I have been "published," so to speak, and each day I get bolder and wiser, looking for bigger venues -- ones that might actually pay me for my work.

5. Self-Forgiveness over Discipline: Everyone tells you that discipline is key to being published; Gilbert disagrees. Because we are creatures of habit and daily mistakes, we will not always choose discipline over a nap or a movie or coffee with a friend. And let's face it, for those of us with kids, they tend to make like quite unpredictable for us. Forgiving yourself for not having discipline, for not writing one day or two, is more important. By self-forgiving, we are giving ourselves permission to be human and make mistakes -- and this makes it easier for us to get back at the computer and start writing. No writer gets anything done with self-loathing stooped over her shoulders.

6. Stop Whining: If you're a writer and you're not published, don't whine about it. Do something about it. Write more. Get better at it. By becoming writers or artists, we have chosen the hardest path; it's an unsure and precarious one -- but we chose it. So deal with it or do something else. Harsh advice, but true. There's no whining in writing.

7. Get to Work: Write. Keep writing. Get better at it. Read more and pay attention to what your weaknesses are. I'm great at creating emotional situations and expressing my characters's feelings, but I am no so attentive to setting or physical details in environments. I can see the places in my head, but I suppose I don't have the architectural vernacular with which to describe places and buildings and streets. Therefore, when I read books, I pay careful attention to those details, learning something new -- finding new ways of describing settings.

8. Never too Late to Start: There's no age limit to when you can start writing books or poems. It's not like modeling. People care about our creations, our words, our characters, not what we look like. My son is 8 and he has already written a 16 page book; I'm around the corner of 40, and I didn't begin writing seriously, for publication, until I was in my mid-thirties. Start young, or start old. It doesn't matter. Just write.

9. Try Everything: I hate boxes and labels, and when people try to pigeonhole me, I get resentful. I fidget and toss and flail until I get out of those boxes. Genres are these boxes -- these labels -- and it's OK to address them and to label your writing, but you don't have to label the writer. Experiment with various genres until you find the one that best fits you -- and if they all fit you, when then you're a lucky writer. Now go submit them for publication.

10. Begin with Love: Since you've already decided to "marry" writing, you should be in love with writing -- the process of writing and the act of writing. Write what you love, what you know, what you believe in with vehement adoration or even repulsion. My best writing is born out of my advocacy for young girls and their empowerment. The way girls are treated, worldwide, the way they are being sexualized, objectified, raped, sex trafficked, beaten and/or murdered, takes me back to a dark place in my childhood -- a place of repulsion and loathing -- and when I write about that, my writing is passionate and unrelenting. So find your love, your passion, and begin there. When you love your subject matter, your voice is powerful and undeniable. And it is sure to get you published.

How to Create Unforgettable Characters

2011-05-05T06:30:00.000-07:00

In determining who the heroic figure of your book will be, you have to start from somewhere. Stephenie Meyer came across her characters in Twilight from a dream. Charlotte Perkins Gilman wrote "The Yellow Wallpaper" from personal experiences dealing with postpartum depression as well as an attack against the physician who told her to stop writing as a cure for her illness. When I write about characters in my work, they're always based on women I wish I were more like, or a combination of women I have known, complex maternal figures. It's a sort of collision of positive and negative traits all wrapped in one powerful voice. Someone we can all recognize and whose life and words we want to spend time exploring.

Here are a few different takes on creating unforgettable characters taken from the best writers out there:

1. Ray Bradbury says, "First find out what you hero wants, then just follow him." This concept allows you to chase after your character with a pen and paper (or your lab top). Let your character lead you to his choices and motivation. It's interesting because you have to let go of your own control issues, if you have them, and force yourself to be led, or be pulled in a different direction than the one you had originally aimed at. I find this sometimes, and I have to try very hard to go where my character takes me. But that is where the courage in writing lies -- and sometimes that is where the heart of the story is.

2. William Faulkner reiterates the aforementioned notion: "It begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet and begins to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does." Give it a try if you haven't already.

3. Jack Woodford disagrees with both Faulkner and Bradbury. He believes that "Characterization is an accident that flows out of action and dialogue." In this play, a writer begins with the situation, the drama, the conflict, and the character is born from it, not the other way around. He is an accidental creation, and not something you had actually constructed. It's an interesting idea, and one that warrants consideration. Of course, in the end, it all has to do with individual style and habits, but if you're an experimental writer, then this would be an interesting start.

4. John Gardner's is my favorite quote on creating characters. According to Gardner, "A central character wants something, goes after it despite opposition, perhaps including his own doubts, and so arrives at a win, lose, or draw." Because I teach literature, and because I am a hard core prescriptive reader/teacher, this is the way I look at stories and characters. I feel that life is like that as well -- we all want things that we are told we shouldn't want because they don't fit in with our lives or within our means -- but we want them anyway. And we fight to get them -- and this is the struggle of life. This is my personal struggle also. After all, wanting them and going after them doesn't always meant that we end up getting them.

How about you? How do you create your characters?

5 Twitter Tips for Writers

2011-05-03T06:30:00.000-07:00

Every week, I like to go through my tweeter friends' statuses in search of good articles on writing. Here are some tweets for you to check out.

1. Caol Tice, a freelance writer's guru with an outstanding and well-received among the list of top ten bloggers on writing, tells us exactly why LinkedIn is a great place to find writing jobs. If you are a freelance writer in search of work, check out her post Ten Ways Writers Can Use LinkedIn to Find Writing Gigs.

2.Do you need funding to support your writing? Sign up for this Webinar hosted by Writers Digest to Find Grants and Financial Resources to Fund your Writing. The Webinar takes place May 5, so get on the list.

3. Do you belong to a Writers Group? Becca Puglisi is The Bookshelf Muse, and in her post Face-to-Face Writing Groups, she discusses the advantages of belonging to one. See if writing groups are for you.

4. The Creative Penn, hosted by successful, self-published Joanna Penn, introduces the amazing story of Warren Fahy, who self-published his book on Kindle and after one week, pulled it off because he was offered a publishing contract. Nice! Read about writing and researching novel from his point of view in The Creative Penn's Researching Your Novel and Experiences in Publishing with Warren Fahy.

5. Do you have trouble with "show,don't tell" advice? Ollin Morales, in his blog {Courage to Create} discusses an easy way of understanding the logic behind this writer's truism. Read about it at "Show, Don't Tell" Explained in a Language Grown Ups Can Understand.

Who do you follow on Twitter? Share your links with us.