Writing

Writing That Hooks Readers – Neuroscience Hack #1

Amazing Stories 1948
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Regardless of the quality of the actual story being told, the writing can either engage us or bore us. Understanding the neuroscience of reading can help you grab readers by the brain and engage them more effectively.

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Book Titles and Character Names: An IWSG Post

Roses
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It’s been said, names have power, and an evocative title is step one toward hooking your readers. Yet many of us spend little time giving thoughtful consideration to either. Do yourself a favor and steer clear of the online name generators. Here’s a better way to approach naming your characters and titling your story.

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Refilling the Creative Well – A Must for All Artists

Art Exhibit
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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.

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Surviving the Creative Wilderness—Attitude is Everything

Forest Night Sky
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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.

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The Pros and Cons of Grammarly.com

Grammarly.com Tagline
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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: …

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Celebrate Your Writing Achievements: An #IWSG Post

Mount Everst
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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, …

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Boskone 2018 – A Phenomenal SFF Writers Convention

Boskone Fantasy & Science Fiction Convention
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No one I knew had ever heard of Boskone and, truth be told, neither had I until my Fantasy and Science Fiction professor at Lesley University told me about ReaderCon, which happens every summer in Quincy, Massachusetts.  In researching that, I stumbled upon Boskone.  Right there on the homepage, I saw enough to get me to register: Mary Robinette Kowal and Tamora Pierce.

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IWSG February Post – Why Write for Kids?

Fairy Tales
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This month’s IWSG post asks the question: What do you love about the genre you write in most often? Books for adults are all well and good, but books for children are far more important.

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Write in the Morning to Maximize Productivity

Project Target in Scrivener
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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 …

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Writing is like Baseball: You Gotta Swing for the Fences!

Babe Ruth
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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 …

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