Julie Duffy's Blog, page 119
November 11, 2017
091 – Regrouping PLUS: NaNo Rescue!
For all you NaNo novelists out there, deep in the belly of a fast-written novel, I have a suggestion for a way to revitalize your writing and your excitement about your project. For everyone (else?) I talk about regrouping: it’s November: There’s still time to rescue some of your writing goals for this year, and … Continue reading "091 – Regrouping PLUS: NaNo Rescue!"
October 31, 2017
SWAGr – Accountability for November 2017
Every month we gather here to discuss what we’ve achieved and commit to making more progress in our creative lives in the coming month. We call it our Serious Writer’s Accountability Group or SWAGr, for short! (We’re serious, not sombre!) Leave a comment below telling us how you got on last month, and what you plan to do next … Continue reading "SWAGr – Accountability for November 2017"
October 20, 2017
090 – Mastering The Magic of Opening Lines
Writing the first line of your story is tough. Opening lines must: Set up the main question the reader is going to be asking all the way through Establish the voice of the protagonist/narrator Set the tone Ground the reader in a time or place So, how do you make your first line reflect all … Continue reading "090 – Mastering The Magic of Opening Lines"
October 19, 2017
Mastering The Magic of Opening Lines
Opening lines are hard to write because they have to do so much: Set up the main question the reader is going to be asking all the way through Establish the voice of the protagonist/narrator Set the tone Ground the reader in a time or place That’s why I advocate writing the first lines last—or … Continue reading "Mastering The Magic of Opening Lines"
October 17, 2017
[Writing Prompt] Don’t Fight With Strangers On Social Media
A few days ago, I commented on a Twitter post about a hot-button issue. I don’t normally do that, but I thought I was making a neutral, expanding-the-argument kind of comment. You can tell where this is going can’t you? Yeah. Someone read my comment and assumed I was saying something I wasn’t; pigeon-holed me … Continue reading "[Writing Prompt] Don’t Fight With Strangers On Social Media"
October 11, 2017
[Write On Wednesday] Four-Part Story
I’m currently fascinated by a short story experiment being run by Penguin Random House. They’re running a series called “The Season of Stories“. You subscribe, and they send you a story every week. But that’s not the interesting part. The interesting part is that they serialize the story. Every day, Monday-Thursday, you receive part of … Continue reading "[Write On Wednesday] Four-Part Story"
September 30, 2017
SWAGr – Accountability for October 2017
Every month we gather here to discuss what we’ve achieved and commit to making more progress in our creative lives in the coming month. We call it our Serious Writer’s Accountability Group or SWAGr, for short! (We’re serious, not sombre!) Leave a comment below telling us how you got on last month, and what you plan to do next … Continue reading "SWAGr – Accountability for October 2017"
September 21, 2017
089 – StoryADay September Week 4 prompts
In This Week’s Podcast Writing Prompts [1:44] http://storyaday.org/stadasep17-04/ What To Do If It’s Getting Harder To Write [4:08] Book Review: Windy Lynn Harris’s Writing and Selling Short Stories and Personal Essays [6:08] How’s Your SWAGr? [12:18] Come and leave a comment or question at the blog: http://storyaday.org/stadasep17-04/ And listen next week for more information about an upcoming … Continue reading "089 – StoryADay September Week 4 prompts"
Five Last Prompts for StoryADay September 2017 – Week 4
Use these prompts any way you wish. Change genders, change tenses, quote them, or not. Or, ignore them altogether and use your own story sparks. The Prompts A character is trying to sell something to another character. A couple are leaving on their honeymoon. Two children are fighting. One character’s boss is doing something illegal. … Continue reading "Five Last Prompts for StoryADay September 2017 – Week 4"
September 19, 2017
[Reading Room] Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays by Windy Lynn Harris
Normally my Tuesday Reading Room posts review a short story I’ve read, but I’m breaking with tradition this week to tell you about a fabulous — and much needed — new book, Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays, by Windy Lynn Harris, a writer and the founder of Marketing Coach for Creative Writers. … Continue reading "[Reading Room] Writing & Selling Short Stories & Personal Essays by Windy Lynn Harris"
