Line editing involves taking an existing piece of writing and reworking it, line by line, to make a better piece of writing. Sometimes this involves making or merging paragraphs, restructuring arguments, or even cutting out sections that are redundant or off topic. Most of my career has been spent in technical areas, and my...
When I was in high school, I was certain I wanted to be a writer. Which is why when I graduated and entered college at 16, I majored in mining engineering (and dropped out after 1 semester). Which is why I later became a computer programmer. Which is why I (even later) majored in...
When people ask, “What do you do?”, it’s always a little odd to answer “I’m a writer.” After all, many people do some writing as part of their job, even if it’s just signing an acknowledgement that they received their schedule. From my first jobs in fast food and warehouse work, I’ve never not...
Writing can be a lonely endeavor. With the obligatory cliche out of the way, let’s look at some methods of making it less lonely. At heart, all of these involve either finding a community of writers or finding a community of readers. Sometimes you can find both in the same place. A quick search...
Most of us probably encountered poetry even before we began school. Picture books are often based around poems, and some of the best loved Children’s authors write with rhyme and rhythm. Many of us were probably asked–somewhere between forced and strongly encouraged–to write a poem during our first few years of schooling. A few...
Hunger and I long, two fast companions, ...
Probably there is some writer out there who has no doubts about their ability to write great novels, stories, poetry, and any other form. They always know that the rejection is just the agent or editor not understanding the brilliance of the piece. Maybe they never get rejected. I am not that writer. I’ve...
I’m always suspicious when I see the words “inspired by real events” applied to a movie, TV show, or book. How many books, in particular, are not inspired by real events? Many people are pointing out, for example, that Game of Thrones is based on the War of the Roses. As far as historical...
I recently attended the Muse and the Marketplace conference, offered by Grubstreet in Boston, Massachusetts. In 2018, I attended two conferences. Whether I attend any in 2020 will depend on time, budget, and the location of the conferences. People define being a “serious” writer in many different ways. I’ve certainly met those who think...
I don’t remember when I first formally learned about “unreliable narrators” in fiction. It was probably sometimes during junior high or high school. First, we had to learn about points of view, of course. Was the fiction written from a third-person or first-person point of view? If third person, were they omniscient? Limited omniscient?...