Scared to Write the Full Truth About Your Family Members? I Hear You The Power of AND – When It comes to Writing the People in Your Life I’m going to write a sentence that shocks even me. My father was both a racist and not a racist. When I go to write about him, […]
Marni: Where did the title “The Wisdom of Stones” come from? Brian: I started writing in 2010, and one of the best things I did was to join a writing practice group. During one writing session, the prompt was to write about a collection. I came up with a story about a six-year-old boy named Ben. […]
Query This! by, Lindsey Salatka I did it! I wrote a book. See that item on the top of my list of life goals? Now see me slap a fat check mark next to it. Yippee! Next stop, publishing! Oh, if it were only that easy. I always figured I would self-publish. My life goal […]
5 Steps to Crafting a Strong Story Idea A solid story idea is one that can be expressed in one to three sentences. The reader can easily understand whom the story is about and the central conflict the protagonist is facing. A soggy story idea is one where the protagonist is not clearly defined, there […]
As a writing coach, this is what I hear from writers as summer nears: “I’m leaving for Hawaii next week but I am packing my lap top and I plan on ten pages a day!” and yet… Two weeks later at our meeting: “Yeah, I didn’t open the laptop. See there was this volcano, and […]
3 Ways to Relieve Your Writers Stress Okay so I’m writing a new play. One that I’m very excited about. Haven’t been this excited about a piece of work in years. Years, I tell you. Well a few weeks ago I hit a major stumbling block. The story seemed to come to major stand still […]
1) When did you start writing Running from the Mirror and what pushed you to pick up a pen? I started writing my memoir about eight years ago. After reading some great memoirs, like Running with Scissors, The Glass Castle, and Eat Love Pray, I thought I also had a good story to tell. With […]
ZSUZSI’S TOP 3 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DECEMBER: ONE: THE ANATOMY OF STORY BY JOHN TRUBY http://www.amazon.com/Anatomy-Story-Becoming-Master-Storyteller-ebook/dp/B0052Z3M8A/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1450051670&sr=8-1 This book came out in October 2008 and has changed many writers’ approach to the craft. Including mine. Technically, he doesn’t talk about anything new– there are still Characters, Plot, and Theme to think about when it comes to […]
What to do when you find a man sleeping in your car… (Or Ben’s Prayer) This is how it went down. Just a regular Tuesday morning. My husband, Carlos, had to go to L.A. (yeah, that day only) for business and had left crazy early in the morning. So it’s just me and my […]
Interview with Jill Hall 1) What was your inspiration to write the Black Velvet Coat? I tried on a coat at a yard sale, loved it, but thinking it was too fancy passed on it. That night I dreamt about it and early the next morning I knocked on the neighbor’s door and then it […]