Writing Deep Chapter Endings (That Pause to Think) The scenery may be great but cliffhangers are annoying if overused. Photo credit: Elaine Medline I have mixed feelings about cliffhangers in novels. In one sense, they’re exciting, the stuff of breathless page-turners. But they’re also annoying, especially when overused. The end of a book chapter can have different purposes. It might foreshadow an upcoming scene. Transition to the next action beat. Share a pithy quote. Reveal a clue, perhaps. In the case of a cliffhanger, readers are left hanging while the hero clings to st ..read more

Writing may be a solo venture, but publishing is certainly not — no matter how much we want it to be Author photo Fiction writing seems to be one of those vocations that boasts a high number of neurodivergent individuals, many of whom prefer to work alone. Whether we’re autistic, ADHD, CDS, OCD, etc., many of us are filled with abject dread at the idea of finding professionals to help us get our projects to the finish line. Finding a freelance editor can be especially daunting for emerging neurodivergent writers because it’s often the first time we’re interacting with an outside enti ..read more

Seat down, while I will serve you a feast of writing tips. And no spoilers! Photo by Jesson Mata on Unsplash The Bear Season 3 dropped a few weeks ago and is already one of the biggest hit series of the year. If you haven’t watched it yet, here is a spoiler free recap: The Bear follows Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto, a fine dining chef who returns to Chicago to run his family’s struggling sandwich shop after his brother’s unexpected death. But the series isn’t not about cooking. What made the series blow-up, it’s the portrayal of a complex family dynamics, personal trauma and the chall ..read more

Actionable tips for the real world to help you get words on paper Photo by Aron Visuals on Unsplash For many of us, the primary obstacle to getting started with writing is time. Between work, spouses, children, housework, and the inevitable odds and ends that require attending to, life is just plain busy. I asked a friend of mine what was getting in the way of starting her passion project: “[T]ime is definitely the issue. I do have some free time, but with two little kids, it’s limited and I really only have capacity to do one “extra” thing.” And because her “extra” time sl ..read more

And keep them from becoming forgettable caricatures Photo by Ernst-Günther Krause (NID) on Unsplash When skimming book reviews, I often see a similar type of comment on negative reviews. The main character was unlikable. Often literary agents and editors will reject stories because of an unlikable character, too. But the funny thing is, there are so many well-known characters out there who are awful, unlikable people. Yet people still love them (or love to hate?) them. Saul Goodman Walter White Every single character in Succession. Yes, these are all from TV, but they were creat ..read more

Writegeist Ditch the bathwater, keep the baby Photo by Claudio Schwarz on Unsplash Moving into our new apartment was supposed to be the start of a fresh chapter — literally and figuratively. I had a grand vision of how each room would look and feel, a sanctuary of creativity and comfort. But reality had other plans. Some furniture didn’t quite fit, colors clashed, and overall, the space just didn’t sing the song I had composed in my mind. It’s a familiar tale for many of us — the creative dream we imagine rarely translates perfectly into reality, especially at first. For the pas ..read more

Criticizing others is easy. Taking real risks with your work is not. Photo by Road Trip with Raj on Unsplash I noticed a few things about my writing on this platform just a moment ago. It’s gotten pretty negative. Whether I’m ripping on online course creators or taking the piss out of bad lawyers, it seems my appetite for criticism knows no bounds. Which is kind of a bummer. I’m not a negative person in real life. So, why am I so cranky online? I think I have an idea. Criticizing other people and practices is safe. Because as long as that judgment is pointed elsewhere I don ..read more

Word Wise: Practical Writing Tips for Freelancers and Solopreneurs How to battle infobesity in your corner of the writing world Photo by engin akyurt on Unsplash Infobesity is a pandemic. You may hear it described as Information overload … information fatigue … information anxiety … information overwhelm … or my favorite, infoxication. No matter what you call it, infobesity means you’ve got access to too much information and a finite ability to process it. Information used to be a check in the plus column. Traditionally, the more data you could collect and un ..read more

THE RECKLESS WRITER Don’t be dismissive of the kind souls who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of beauty Image by Walter Rhein — Drawing by his daughter People often say things like, “The editors of online journals don’t have any talent.” Or they’ll make even broader claims like, “The only professional editors who know anything about writing are those that are employed with the big five traditional publishers.” Rubbish. This sentiment turns up on almost every article that I write and I think it’s ridiculous. First of all, the massive generalization is logically absurd ..read more

The real path to character growth Photo by ActionVance on Unsplash Storytelling is all about taking a character from point A to point Z, where his goal and prize await him. However, he cannot reach his end goal unless he goes on a transformative journey. You probably know this if you’ve read articles and books about characterization and the character’s journey. What is not always clear is what transformation means. To help your character transform, you must know how transformation happens, what makes characters transform, and what he is transforming into. The catalyst of transformation In ..read more