Tweet I started the week talking about writing 17,000 words in three days…and all the catastrophes that made it necessary in the first place. Then yesterday I talked about a new writing technique I’ve been studying in class that pushes a novel toward lots of conflict and catastrophe. Today I want to make the connection. […]
Tweet Yesterday I laid out my plan for a collaborative writing project based on some prewriting packages. Today, I’d like to talk about those packages. The Civilization Book This one actually started as a suggestion from Toby. It’s not a new idea, but it’s a fun idea, and it could give rise to something very […]
Tweet I started the week with the story of my lonely, zombie Christmas. Some of you might have guessed where the series was going based on comments I’ve made before — that writing is a really lonely profession. More of you might have figured it out by looking at the series title, “On Collaborative Writing.” […]
Tweet Yesterday I talked to you about your book’s big, bad rewrite. I gave you one example of how it might go, and then started into a bit of a pep talk. Now it’s time for me to tell you about application, to tell you how to do your rewrite. That’s a tricky task. I […]
Tweet For nearly a year now, Trish has been participating in a monthly book club with our friend Becca and several other ladies I don’t happen to be familiar with. She has really enjoyed it, as much for the opportunity to get out on her own and hang out with grown-ups at least once a […]
Tweet So. We’re reworking your novel. What exactly does that entail? It entails voice and style. It entails characterization and foreshadowing. It entails hooks and cliffhangers, suspense and resolution. This is the point in the story where you put in all the beautiful little things that will go unnoticed by your reader even as they […]
Tweet I started this week with a story about my creativity in the kitchen. It all really boils down to finding a prepackaged dish I really like, and adding some chili powder. Usually black pepper, too, but that didn’t make it into Tuesday’s story. It’s a solid metaphor for what we’re doing with our novels, […]
Tweet Today is December 14th. That means Thursday is going to be December 16th. I know, I know…I’ve just demonstrated that I’m a brilliant mathematician. Or…calendarist. Something. There’s a special significance to December 16th, though. Around here, anyway. Thursday will be the official anniversary of Unstressed Syllables. One year ago Thursday, I wrote my first […]
Tweet We’ve been talking about “debugging” your book — about committing to a cover-to-cover review that will make up the first stage in your document’s rewrite. With any luck you’ve had enough time by now to catch your breath. With any luck, opening up the book no longer feels you with the anxiety and frustration […]
Tweet I started the week with a story about learning to program, about learning the difference between typing computer code into a machine and actually writing a game. The difference (in case you skipped the story) is called “debugging.” And that’s where we are now with our novels. November’s done, our first draft is done, […]
