In the Write

 If you’re writing fiction, what’s a reasonable daily output?  It’s the issue beyond all others–all the technique talk, the strategizing, the research, the preparation.  At some point you have to begin your novel (or short story), and put black words on a white paper or monitor screen.  We all know authors with reputations for high […]

I’ve pulled the trigger on  my new book-to-be, a nonfiction work on hunting.  After some agonizing in a couple of earlier blog entries (I worried that readers don’t hunt, and hunters don’t read) I just had to dive in.  Deadlines are a good thing, and my editor’s winged’ chariot is always hurrying near.  But I’m […]

I’ve written in other blog entries that writing is a process not a miracle.  That publishing a novel is far more about hard work than genius.  That many (if not most) would-be writers do not work hard enough at the sentence level–then gripe about the publishing industry “putting up walls” against new writers. They (the […]

Recently a pleasant young librarian, Jan, from Illinois tracked me down via my website.  She specializes in literature for young adults, and, not surprising, is writing a novel of her own.  She was shy about asking for advice, but I could tell she was hoping for some reaction.  In a moment of Minnesota nice I […]

Writers Are Not Normal People Writers believe, secretly, that they are different from most people. Deep down, writers think that they have thoughts and feelings other people don’t have. This is probably not true, but it could be.  I’ve never answered the question to my own satisfaction. But the feeling of being unique, of having […]

Yes, Vincent van Gogh, the painter (1853-1890), famous for his technique with vivid color and landscapes.  But technique is technique, be it painting or writing, and in a recent article in the Smithsonian magazine (Jan 09), Paul Trachtman writes: “. . . van Gogh’s discipline was as firm as his genius was unruly, and he […]

Writing teachers talk to their students a good deal (sometimes too much) about “pre-writing.”  That is, thinking through a topic, finding a rhetorical approach (compare/contrast, analogy, etc.), and only then beginning the rough draft of the essay or research paper.  Well, the same holds true in approaching a book-length project:  strategizing, puzzling over, thinking through […]

Write Right: Help for Writers: Every Book Is Its Own Puzzle: Pre-Writing Strateg…: ” Writing teachers talk to their students a good deal (sometimes too much) about ‘pre-writing.’ That is, thinking thr…”

Write Right: Help for Writers: Beginning Your Novel: ” I’m not referring here to first lines or paragraphs, or ‘hooks’ or anything like that. Rather, I mean the artistic…”

Write Right: Help for Writers: Want To Publish? It’s Not Who You Know But How Yo…: “I recently spoke at writers’ conference, along with Sarah Shumway, a bright young editor at Dutton’s children’s books, and Andrea Weiss, N…”

Write Right: Help for Writers: First Novels: ” With multiple bids from New York publishers, my first novel sold for $150,000. I say that mainly to get your atten…”

With multiple bids from New York publishers, my first novel sold for $150,000.   I say that mainly to get your attention; now let’s back up and talk about first novels generally. The short story is a great place to learn your fictional chops, but not every plot will fit into the “teacup” (Hortense Calisher called […]