Published inThe Writing Cooperative·Nov 29Member-onlyIt’s Not Just What You Say, It’s How You Say ItThe why, what, and how of developing character voice in fiction — Whether it makes itself known in dialogue or in the prose of first person or close third point of view, character voice can shift creative writing from generic and dull to specific, riveting, and lively. It is an area of writing that all fiction writers should work to develop in…The Short Of It4 min readThe Short Of It4 min read
Published inThe Writing Cooperative·Nov 15Member-onlyThe Power of Strong VerbsUsing verb choice to enliven your creative writing — Verbs are the action words of a sentence. The make-things-happen words. The jocks, one might say, of the parts of speech. In stories, they do everything from orienting a character in space, making them speak, revealing their inner lives, and manifesting the actual action of the piece, whether that action…The Short Of It4 min readThe Short Of It4 min read
Published inThe Writing Cooperative·Nov 1Member-onlyCounterintuitive Truths About Writing Short StoriesSome things just don’t make sense — Short stories are a wonderful little form of creative writing that has a long history from the classics we read in literature class to the campfire tales we tell over and over again. Once extremely popular and profitable, they are a bit underappreciated now, and — even more — a…The Short Of It3 min readThe Short Of It3 min read
Published inThe Writing Cooperative·Oct 19Member-onlyIt’s Okay *NOT* to do NaNoWriMoNo guilt, no shame, I’m going to write my own way — At that title, some of you are facepalming. “Duh,” you’re thinking. “Of course it’s okay. I never do NaNoWriMo.” I’m happy for you and your confident approach to your writing life… The rest of the article is probably not going to be helpful or insightful to you. Now for everyone…NaNoWriMo3 min readNaNoWriMo3 min read
Published inThe Writing Cooperative·Oct 18Member-onlyWriting Craft Versus Writing ProcessWhat we talk about when we talk about writing — Despite the title, these two things — craft and process — are not in opposition. They are complimentary. To sides of the same coin. In some ways, they overlap, but they’re definitely distinct. That is what the “versus” is about — clarifying the distinction. There is a lot of writing…The Short Of It6 min readThe Short Of It6 min read
Published inThe Writing Cooperative·Oct 4Member-onlyThe Jargon of Editing in the Order You Perform ThemKnowing what to do and when to do it — Rewrite, redraft, revision, editing, proofreading, line-editing… There are a lot of terms for the process of refining your story draft into a finished project. They definitely get mixed up in the mouths of a lot of people, and I am definitely guilty of using them interchangeably. …The Short Of It4 min readThe Short Of It4 min read
Published inThe Writing Cooperative·Sep 20Member-onlyHow (Not) to Swear In FictionA guide to writing in, writing around, and writing out curse words — I’m no Puritan. I like to swear. I think it’s fun to pepper them into conversation… when in the appropriate company and in the appropriate circumstances. Maybe it is just my perception as an adult, or maybe it is the rise of cable and streaming television that doesn’t have the…The Short Of It6 min readThe Short Of It6 min read
Published inThe Writing Cooperative·Sep 6Member-onlySelf-Publishing Retrospective: What I’d Do Differently Next TimeAnd what I’d recommend for other self-publishing first-timers — In December 2022, I self-published a book of short stories Object Impermanence: Weird and Fantastic Stories with modest but earnest expectations. …The Short Of It5 min readThe Short Of It5 min read
Published inThe Writing Cooperative·Aug 26Member-onlyRedraft with Purpose: A Guide to Getting Beyond the First DraftHow to rewrite short fiction with a plan — So you had a story idea, and you wrote it into existence. You’ve completed the first draft. Huzzah! But what’s next? Well, first, give yourself a pat on the back. A lot of people won’t ever make it this far. But while the first draft is often about bringing something…The Short Of It6 min readThe Short Of It6 min read
Published inThe Writing Cooperative·Aug 9Member-onlyCan You Write a Short Story in One Draft?The art of one and done — I’ve recently written about the story drafting process before. But that begs the age-old question — do you always have to write more than one draft? Can you, in fact, write a story in one draft? One and done? Hit it out of the park on the first go? Homerun…The Short Of It4 min readThe Short Of It4 min read
