Category Archives: Writings about Writing

Thoughts and tips about the craft

When Your Writing Goes Against Your Personal Beliefs

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As a fiction writer, my main job is to make up stuff and write about things that I’ve never experienced (and probably never will, since I write fantasy and sci-fi). And sometimes, in the course of writing about people, places, and events that I’ve never seen or experienced, something comes along that directly violates my personal principles and beliefs. 

So what do you do, as a writer, if, for the sake of the story, you need to write about something that is the very antithesis of who you are as a person? I’m sure plenty of mystery and thriller writers have asked themselves this question. After all, the vast majority of people who write murder mysteries are not, in fact, murderers. 

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Summer Writing

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Summer is a time for enjoying the outdoors. I love the outdoors and nature. I like having my windows open day and night for fresh air. And while I’m not a fan of yard work in general, I’m finally starting to get a few nice flowers going so that my yard is more than just a bland expanse of grass and weeds. 

Actual summer, though, is not my favorite. I love a nice sunny spring day, but when the extreme heat and relentless sun of summer hits, I’m indoors and pining away for fall and winter. In the heat of late July and August, I have to do yard work/errands/cleaning/all other work in the early morning or late at night, because it’s just too hot to move around during the day (I have no air conditioning in my house, like many people in my area). So sitting in the dark in front of a fan with my laptop is the best thing to do in the summer heat. I often get more writing done in the summer than spring or fall.

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Write What You Don’t Know

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The old adage goes “write what you know.” Actually, I hear very few people in the writing industry actually promoting that idea anymore – probably because it’s a terrible idea. Well, not terrible, really – just an inaccurate and incomplete idea. 

If you’re writing a memoir or anything autobiographical, then obviously you’re writing what you know, and only what you know. That’s the point of that genre. Anything in the non-fiction realm, actually, should be what you know. Whether you’re writing a book about gardening tips or the history of shoemakers in 19th century London, then hopefully you’re writing from your own knowledge, experience, or research.

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The ABCs of Writing a Fantasy Story

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This isn’t a list of do’s and don’ts or advice. It’s more of a list of elements that I’ve found to be common in most fantasy tales. Feel free to make suggestions about what other words you’d pick for this list! 

A – Adventure. What good fantasy tale doesn’t involve an adventure? It doesn’t have to be a thrill-a-minute tale, or involve more traveling than Frodo’s hike from the Shire to Mordor, but “going on an adventure” is a foundational element in many fantasy stories. 

B – Bad Guys. Whether the villain is the personification of evil itself, or a conflicted, misunderstood character, it’s not much of a story without an antagonist. 

C – Creatures. Most fantasy stories have some sort of fantastical animals. Whether it’s a classic fire-breathing dragon or a creature you invented from scratch, readers expect beasts of magic or mystery. 

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Growing As a Writer

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Over the past few months, I’ve returned to a story world that I started a good ten years ago (maybe more). Several people thought I’d given up on those stories (not true, but I was flattered to know that they were excited enough about the idea to worry that I’d dropped it). You can’t publish a book that you never finish (well, with serial publishing, I guess you technically can)—but even though the art of finishing is very important to your growth as a writer, sometimes breaks are okay. 

Even though I knew that taking a break from a project was an okay thing to do, for some reason I started feeling bad about the length of time that I’d let this story sit. I was excited to get back to it, but also felt like a “bad writer” for having abandoned a story for so long. And some of the people who were excited to learn I was working on this project again also asked me why I’d paused and why it had taken me so long to get back to it. I know they meant well and were just genuinely curious, but being the sort of personality that I am, I felt guilty.

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