Writer Unleashed

Or should I just wing it, flying blind? I get this question a LOT. And while there 's no one-size-fits all approach to the creative process, the outline first approach can stifle most writers and grid...

21 Okt 202012min

Inspiration is a mysterious, mercurial force. Sometimes it shows up, sometimes it doesn’t. But what if we could summon inspiration at will? If each time we sat down to write, we could reach that magic...

14 Okt 202013min

How do you nudge your way into a story? How do you generate ideas? Do you start with a childhood memory? A vintage photograph? An overheard conversation? We all have our own way in. And our creative p...

7 Okt 202012min

I used to live for the rush of that first draft. And dread revision. The more I tried to revise the more lost in the mess of my draft I'd become. That's because I didn't understand what revision was...

30 Sep 202010min

In order to nail down a solid, productive writing practice, to reach the level of mastery that ultimately leads to publication, you need to be in a state of flow. But how do we find flow in our writin...

23 Sep 202016min

Happiness may be great in real life. But it’s fatal in story. Few things numb readers more than characters surrounded by birdsong and puppies who aren’t risking something deeply important. There’s no ...

16 Sep 202016min

We want to move our readers emotionally. We want them to feel our character’s joy, pain, and everything in between. But one of the surest ways to sever the reader’s emotional connection is to be over...

9 Sep 202014min

A flashback moves readers back in time. It interrupts the flow of the story to catch up on what happened before page 1. But when writers overuse flashbacks, readers grow impatient. They lose interest...

2 Sep 202013min