Since its inception in 2018, the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA) Mentoring Initiative has been connecting experienced authors and editors with writers who are new to the industry, and after two years of trying, I finally made it into the program.
Because I’m a teacher, summer has always been my chance to get some solid writing done. Every year, I set myself a bunch of writing goals. Last year was a wash, sadly, because I spent the summer recovering from a somewhat substantial surgery and lacked the energy to do much of anything. This summer, though. …
Last time I posted, I shared some general life milestone moments culminating in the discovery that I need reading glasses. This time, I have far more exciting news to share. Life: A Long and Winding Road I started submitting short stories to science fiction, fantasy, and horror magazines in 2000. Back then, the internet …
I’ve always struggled with finishing what I start. It’s probably a foundation stone in my personality. Great at starting things. Trash at finishing them. Except books, for some reason. Reading them, I mean. Writing them? Well… let’s talk about that. And some other stuff.
When’s the last time you did anything to refill your creative well? Making art is active, and focused, and intentional, and draining. Tapping into your creative mind is tiring, though many of us don’t notice that we’re fatiguing until we’re lying face down like a stick of butter that’s been left out on the counter in August. Try scheduling activities into your life that will nurture your creative spirit.
Countless talented artists wander into the creative forest with good intentions and never make it out again. They get lost, hit that moment of doubt and despair, give up, and die. The thing is, getting lost is a hazard of living a creative life. In some ways, getting lost really is inevitable, because the creative path is not well-travelled. I’d argue that if you’re doing things right as an artist, you’re blazing a new trail through the deepest, darkest woods of your own psyche.
There are a gazillion writing apps and programs out there in the digital world, some that cost money and some that are free. Of them all, I’ve tried a handful. However, after two years in grad school, chasing the dream of getting an MFA in creative writing, I’ve come to rely heavily on one in particular: …
Another month has come and gone, and it’s time for the March IWSG post. Today, I’ll try to answer the question: How do you celebrate when you achieve a writing goal/finish a story? I supposed the answer depends in part on how you define writing achievements, or goals for that matter. Before we get rolling on that, …
Every morning, I wake up, get the coffee beans ground, get the water heating, and then I sit down and write for an hour. At the end of that session, I check my “session target” bar in Scrivener, and a satisfied warmth suffuses my brain. I’ve discovered a couple of things about writing first thing …
Writing is like baseball. Most of the time, you recognize the pitch coming in and you manage a solid single when you swing at it. Occasionally, you strike out. Every once in a great while, though, you hit a grand slam. Or, if you’re new at it, like me, you dream about hitting a grand …