Your writing is more cluttered than you realise. Mine, too. I know because I see it every time I read through and edit. When working through our first and second drafts, be on the lookout for everything that doesn’t need to be there. Be succinct in your writing, focus on one flower instead of the entire…
Author: samuel
Kill Your Darlings.
For some, it’s a fundamental and obvious piece of writing advice that they’ve practiced for years. To others, it sounds so odd that following it would be detrimental to your writing. Because why would you want to kill your darlings? Aren’t they supposed to be cherished and nurtured? This post will show what the phrase…
Does writing advice work?
Through my studies, work experience, and social exchanges with writers (online and real-life), I can confidently say that we are all quite different from one another. I recognize our differences, but I also see what connects us, and nothing highlights this better than how we respond to the question, ‘Does writing advice work?’ Writing advice…
Should writers worry about offending readers?
The answer is yes. Writers should worry about offending readers. Just not for the reasons you’re thinking. On ‘controversial’ topics in fiction, Moy McCrory once said, “The only writing that offends me is bad writing.” And that’s my truth too. So despite its subject and plot, Lolita didn’t offend me, and Fifty Shades of Grey is…
Carver and Lish: how much editing is too much?
Raymond Carver was a short story writer and poet, recognized as one of America’s greatest writers. But how much of that is down to his editor, Gordon Lish? And how much editing is too much? Creative Writing degrees love Carver. His stories are short, and his writing is a perfect model for minimalism. And at university, Carver became…
Can Poetry be Taught?
I enrolled on a Creative Writing degree with a passion for poetry, several full notebooks of practice, and the hope that the place would show me how to become a poet. I knew it would take work, and I also knew that not everyone could learn. If a student didn’t have any interest and talent…
F—k Writer’s Block!
‘Writer’s Block’ is a huge topic. Since graduating from university in 2012, I’ve spent most of my time writing in isolation, and writing a lot. I only realised that writer’s block was affecting a lot of writers out there when I joined the online writing communities when I launched the About Writing blog last year….
If you’re going to try, go all the way.
I haven’t been updating the blog as often as I usually do because I’m deep into something—my novel. And I had to remind myself very recently that ‘If you’re going to try, go all the way.’ By the way, I will start posting regularly again, and I see this site as a long-term project that…
Be Specific in your Writing.
When I moved into an apartment by the Maritsa River in Plovdiv, I became fixated on the trees that lined it. They made me feel something, a seemingly unfounded melancholy. And I knew that one day I would use them for a story. Because fiction is much stronger when the writing is specific, I knew…
What is a motif?
Understanding the motifs in your writing will help your creative process and how you talk about and sell your work. In this post, I’ll define a motif, show how it differs from a theme, and then suggest how you might use a motif in a story. A motif is a dominant or recurring idea with…