Stories are a microcosm of real life. “We tell ourselves stories in order to live,” isn’t just a great Joan Didion book title; it’s also true. We read to see ourselves reflected in narratives and others’ experiences, and to learn from them to become bigger, more expanded people. Readers expect to go on a journey along with the characters and—as a result of our deeply embedded understanding of how narratives “arc” and progress—that these narratives will take us somewhere different from where we started. The best and most memorable narratives are those that are built on exciting and vivid ..read more

by Jenna Kalinsky If only there were a map to guide you along your journey of becoming a writer. Sure, there are best practices, innumerable tools, and exhaustive pieces of advice and wisdom, but in the end, the only way to find your way and begin writing is to simply do it. The one sure thing you can reliably know is this: the more you sit down (or stand- better for your back!) and write, the more you will write– and the better your writing will become.  Still, because the journey is an unknown one, getting answers to some common questions may calm your mind and alleviate your concern ..read more

by Jenna Kalinsky, Founding Director, One Lit Place As a writer, you may want to believe that people will buy your book because of the promise of an intellectual and/or emotional experience. That is, after all, what you’ve put your heart and soul into creating. But if you’ve ever acted like a reader and flipped to the back page to check out the author’s photo before buying, you can rest assured that that while, yes, people do buy your book for the ideas, they equally buy it once they see the person who wrote it–and the person with whom they’re entering into a relationship.  Eating with ..read more

by Jenna Kalinsky, Founding Director | One Lit Place. As agent Kate McKean says, if, for example, you send a literary agent a book about mother-daughter relationships or hiking accidents or mental illness and that topic is a trigger for them personally, that is not something you could have anticipated, but it is grounds for the agent to reject your work. You cannot predict what will annoy dozens and dozens of individual humans on this singular planet and that is ok. Kate McKean What you can control, however, is how you present your submission. Sending work that isn’t applicable to the ..read more

Memoir, which is a true story told as vividly as a novel, is the literary genre most people gravitate to, and it has been that way for decades. Adult nonfiction consistently outsells all other types of books, and memoirs and biographies are the #1 best-selling non-fiction book category on Amazon.  Intimacy is the reason memoir continues to be the most popular literary genre In a memoir, the writer takes the reader on a journey either based on a period of time in their life or on a selection of experiences, during which and as a result of they experienced great transformation and gaine ..read more

by Gregory Price. I am in an online novel writing workshop that is made up of smart, educated writers. We have a doctor, a couple of business people, a journalist, a radio producer, and an educator. Most of them are well-traveled, and all of them are well read. I would dare say this is a group who knows a few things. In the first few weeks of our writing together, when we started submitting our prose pieces into our online classroom, I began to notice something. Almost none of the other writers were using indentation in their work. At first I thought it was a glitch, or an oversight, but the ..read more

You may have gone into writing because you either can’t or don’t want to math (that’s right, as a verb). However, when it comes to creating a plot for your novel or screenplay, it’s all addition, baby, and—in good news—it’s the kind you can absolutely handle. It only involves the simple use of “if/therefore” which is the best way to approach your story’s plot. When you’re ready to zero in on designing what your story is about, you can use this easy bit of 1+1, making approaching your plot easy, ensuring it’s uniquely defined, and helping you as the work’s creator focus your attention on wri ..read more

by Pascale Potvin. It’s New Year’s resolution time, which for many calls to mind people grimacing over elliptical machines or sweatin’ to the oldies. Even with everything a person could resolve to do in the new year, getting fit is still the most popular (right after save money and “enjoy life.”) Writers may like improving their fitness as much as the next person, but they may also consider at the top of the year finally embarking on the writing project that’s been looming at the horizon for some time.  Yet where starting an exercise routine may seem feasible, even fun, many writer ..read more

by Jenna Kalinsky. Want to know the secret to ensure your kids are engaged, broad-minded, and grow into adults of consequence who will help the world be a better, more compassionate place? Give them books. Well-written literature gives readers the ability to appreciate others’ experiences and generates feelings of empathy. Parents can nurture this openness in their children by giving them books that span the diversity of human experience and normalizing reading as a valued part of their lives. When children are exposed to a wide range of narratives involving an even wider range of characters ..read more

Edit my manuscript on paper?? I haven’t touched paper in years! Why is that better? Even with the proliferation of some terrific apps and softwares, and despite it feeling old-fashioned and un-environmental, editing your manuscript on paper is still the best method for that very first revision of your novel or nonfiction book for two reasons: You’re connected to your draft more physically and therefore more intimately It upsets the eye to see the work in a new context (which is a good thing). By following my 4-step process for self-editing your manuscript on paper and using the fre ..read more