Originality. Is it something that we should seek to achieve when we write. Mark Twain doesn’t think we should worry. In fact, he said something to the effect that all writing is derivative, so you should not worry about whether yours is as well. Now, is this good advice to follow. Today on How to […]
Don’t Worry About Being Original Read More »
I think Ursula Le Guin. If you want to read a writer who knew her craft (RIP), you should read some Ursula Le Guin. Of all the writers I have ever read, I think she is in the top 10 (seriously). So, when she says something about writing, I think that people should perk up
Writing Follows the Sound of Language Read More »
Robert Butler talks about how art does not originate in the mind. He states that art originate in the core of a person. He states that you cannot arrive at good art if you are trying to think to that end. Now, if you have been listening to me for quite a long time, you
From Where Does Art Originate? Read More »
Samuel Delany, a science fiction author, once said that writing is more about what to omit from your writing. He states that most writing advice you receive is about what you should not do. Though I don’t disagree with this second statement, I disagree with this idea that the core of writing is getting rid
Is Writing Just about what to Omit? Read More »
Lisa Dordal gives the specific piece of advice that writers should sets aside a specific day for reading and writing instead of trying to write every day. I don’t think this is just a piece of writing advice, but a piece of advice we can apply across all types of platforms. Today, on How to
Setting Aside Time to Write Read More »
Denis Johnson gives the advice that you should build yourself up to the actual act of writing. Johnson does this by what he calls “tinkering.” He takes time to play around with specific things within his writing, whether that be the voice a a character, dialogue, setting, etc. . . On Today’s episode of How
Building Yourself Up to the Writing Process Read More »
We write from two different viewpoints in English. We either write in first person or third person. And some people have very strong feelings about writing in one or the other of these tenses. I don;t really care. I think they both useful, and I am willing to write in either. In this episode of
I was going to make this episode about how to finish your book. In the future, I will actually make an episode about that, but when I was going through this topic, I found I had something I needed to say about the act of writing itself. Specifically, I thought it was very important to
Why Writing Frustrates You Read More »
You ever read one of those books that almost forces you to finish it. I have read those books as well. I have stayed up late into the night so that I could finish a book. I love books like this. I think most people like books like this. But as writers, how do we
Teasing Out Your Story Read More »
