January 10, 2023
You Have an Idea for a Novel - What Next?
by Kristin Oakley and Laurie Scheer
You have an idea for a novel, but what do you do next? How do you begin?
Let's Start With the Basics:
- What is your idea?
- Write it down. Seriously. Many people say they have an idea for a book and never write it down.
- What is story?
- Story is simply a character (the protagonist) who has a goal and someone or something (the antagonist) is trying…
January 3, 2023
Show, Don’t Tell Disambiguation
by Tim Storm
Show, don’t tell. It’s a piece of writing advice that is nearly ubiquitous, especially among Western creative writing instruction. I maintain that 1) it’s a good skill to practice and master, 2) it’s not the only path to effective writing, 3) there are, in fact, some potential pitfalls to it,…
December 27, 2022
Reading Like A Writer
by Jess Lourey
Editor's Note: If you're like me you're always reading articles about writing; looking for tips or trends, advice on how to work through problems, tricks to make plotting easier, someone's fool-proof writing process...
What works for one might not work for another, but what doesn't work at one…
December 20, 2022
Oral History: Preserving Voices
by Samantha Hoffman
Oral history is a genre I was only aware of in a peripheral way, not one I ever studied or considered writing. In the tradition of Studs Terkel, oral history is a way of preserving memories and experiences of individuals and groups in their own voices. Where written…
December 13, 2022
Starting From Scratch, Tip 4 of 7
by Annie McCormick
Creativity isn’t just reserved for your writing. It’s also a way to approach the way you work and live.
The career of an agented author is not a traditional one. There are no water cooler conversations, no marketing departments, IT support, 401K plans, or paid vacation days.
The life of…
December 6, 2022
6 Reasons To Attend a Writers Conference
by Kristin Oakley
As writers we spend a lot of our time at our desks writing, thinking, researching, procrastinating, editing, and writing some more. We often seek feedback from a critique group, critique partner or editor, so we’re not completely isolated in our endeavor, but most of us prefer the isolation. We tend…
November 29, 2022
How Journaling Helps Your Writing
by Samantha Hoffman
I have been journaling most of my life. I have journals going back to the 70s, called them diaries as a teenager. Back before I was cool. When I was 14 or 15 my mother found one of my diaries and read that I hated her. Like, what teenage girl…
November 22, 2022
Thanks to the Chicago Writers Association
by Samantha Hoffman
Since it's Thanksgiving time I'm going to take this opportunity to be a little sappy and tell you how thankful I am to be part of the Chicago Writers Association.
I met Randy Richardson, CWA president, in 2012 at a romance writers conference. No, neither of us writes…
November 15, 2022
Starting From Scratch, Number 3 of 7 Tips
by Annie McCormick
As you know if you've read my previous posts (Tip Number 1 and Tip Number 2) my goal is to be an agented author, i.e. a writer who has an agent who sells the books that I struggle to write. It's a career change for me and just…
November 8, 2022
Creating Unforgettable Characters
by Kristin Oakley
Unforgettable characters resonate with readers and lead to more book sales. How can you create a protagonist who’s unforgettable? At the Chicago Writers Association’s Let's Just Write! An Uncommon Writers Conference next March, I’ll teach a workshop on just that. In the meantime, here are some pointers.
First, ask…
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