What Is Creative Nonfiction—And Why You’re Likely Already Writing It
Admittedly, the name doesn’t help. Creative nonfiction sounds like a literary oxymoron, something filled with fake facts or trying to be like fiction with footnotes. But it’s not. It’s truth with flair. Kind of like Buzz Lightyear falling with style, but on paper. You...
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.
Context Is the Heart of Story
I am not a yes or no girl. When someone presents only two options, my mind immediately leaps to “what if?” scenarios that fall somewhere in between. It’s how I’m wired. This resistance doesn’t come from a rebellious nature (though I’m not ruling that...
Done-With-You Coaching vs Editing: What Kind of Writing Support Do You Actually Need?
How many times have you read a book and thought, “This could have used an editor”? Probably more often that you’d like. That may be why writers often assume they need an editor. And sometimes, they do. But what many writers are actually looking for is something...
Ground Your Stories and Make Your Readers Feel
Have you ever had someone launch into a story that made you throw your hands up and say, “Wait, when and where did this happen?” or “Who was involved?” It’s not because the story itself had no value. It’s because it wasn’t grounded. You were lost in time, space, and...
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....
“Who Are You Writing For? (And Why It Matters More Than Ever)”
Stories are great and powerful, but only when aimed at the right audience. You wouldn’t want to tell the story of your worst date ever to a room full of kindergartners, nor would you want to share your childhood dream to a group of attorneys. Who you are talking to...
Narrative Detox: How to Stop Copying Others and Find Your Own Voice
We all start by modeling others. We grab their templates, their formulas, their prompts. We swipe their emails and sales pages as great samples to follow. We borrow their voice to make ours sound more credible. But over time, we forget how to use our most powerful...
Why Writers Who Set Their Own Deadlines Finish More (and Worry Less)
I’ve always written better when crunching a deadline. Feeling the pressure of the clock ticking away, knowing someone was waiting on me to deliver—an editor, a client, a studio. Knowing they needed my part before they could move forward. I always loved that. Writing...
Why You Can’t “Fix” Structure After the Fact
In 1940, engineers in Washington state built a bridge from Takoma to the Kitsap Peninsula. It was the third-largest suspension bridge in the world, at the time. Unfortunately, it only lasted four months. The construction workers who built the bridge, nicknamed her...