Common Pitfalls When It Comes to Context
Writing without sufficient context doesn’t lead to “bad prose” as much as it leads to reader disorientation and an emotional disconnect. You lose your reader to confusion and a break in causality.
When your reader can’t tell what matters or why, or how one detail leads to another, they lose the ability to track story logic. It calls everything into question. When that happens, the brain defaults to inferring details and context instead of knowing them. This diminishes the story and robs it of emotional impact.
Narrative Intelligence: The Skill Every Writer Needs
Story isn’t just what we write. It’s how we think. It infuses every type of writing, outside of technical, most academic, government, and instructional writing. But even those benefit from narrative intelligence because it informs how our brains process information....
Special Notice for Subscribers
Dear Friend, Remember me? I know it’s been a while since you’ve heard from Figments & Fables and I apologize for that. Thank you so much for supporting Figments & Fables, especially during my extended sabbatical. I’m humbled so many of you remained...
Rejection—16 Tips for How to Handle It as a Writer (Part 1 of 3)
Rejection is part of a writer’s life no matter if you are writing books, scripts, speeches or blogs. Every writer has been rejected at some point in letters, emails, texts, phone calls and in person. And it never gets easier.
‘Tis the Season: Gifts for Writers & Readers
’Tis the season to celebrate and to make our list for Santa. I always loved writing to Santa as a child. It was magical that I could write a letter to someone like him and know he received it. I knew that because at least one of my requested gifts always appeared under the tree on Christmas morning, except when it was too large or unrealistic, like the horse I wanted one year or the penguin.
These days my lists go to my husband who tries to offer a combination of items off my list with things he picks out to surprise me.
My list always includes things writers would love. Here are a few items I’ve found and dreamed up this year:
Embracing the Unknown: The Role of Research and Learning in Writing
Lately I have moved from writing to research. I am in the process of pitching my novel and using the waiting period between pitching and the inevitable edits to dive into a new story. I have a rough idea of what I want to write, including the prologue and opening scene, but I also have huge, gaping holes in my knowledge. This explains the huge stacks of books lining my desk and the hours I’ve spent learning everything from creation myths to Jungian psychology to black holes. I am diving down rabbit holes in search of my story.
Previously Published: What It Means and How It Affects Your Work
You want to get your work out there. You want to gain an audience. You want to build a platform. And so you post. It’s so easy. There are countless platforms and opportunities from personal blogs and websites to sharing sites, like Wattpad, not to mention digital media outlets. The problem is reckless posting can undermine your ultimate goal.
NaNoWriMo: What You Will Learn
Last week, I shared my reasons for joining the National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) Challenge to write a 50k book in 30 days. But I have more to say about the benefits of taking on such a large writing challenge.
Anytime you can set aside a chunk of time to write is a good thing, but dedicating an entire month to a huge goal allows you to be heroic about it.
NaNoWriMo: Why It’s a Good Idea
One month. Fifty thousand words. No problem, right? Right. Even with a major holiday involving family, stress, traveling and other distractions, you can do this. It’s November. So it’s time for NaNoWriMo, the National Novel Writing Month challenge of writing a 50k word book in the month of November.
Let Us Read…Banned Books
Better yet, stop banning books altogether. The truth is the act of banning books is on the rise. According to the American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF), the organization that compiles data on challenged and banned books and generates the Top Ten Challenged Books List, there was a 17% increase in book censorship complaints last year. In a typical year, 10% of books are banned and pulled from the shelves and it’s time for it to stop.
Freelancing Is More Than Magazines: 26 Other Markets to Try
The traditional view of a freelance writer is someone who spends her day querying magazines and writing articles and many do. But the majority of independent writers earn their money through client work. It’s more consistent and offers more opportunity than the magazine market.