Chris Abouzeid's Blog, page 5

Teaching Young Writers: Are We Winning the Battle but Losing the War?

By Juliette Fay I think we can all agree on this: the ability to express oneself effectively in the written word is a good thing. I would even go so far as to say that for a wide range of professions, it’s one of the most useful skills you can ...

1. Because they’re simple. 2. Because they’re playful. 3. Because they work.

By Kathy Crowley  I’ve been reading Zadie Smith’s novel NW and finding her range of narrative techniques both exhilarating (as a reader reading for pleasure) and exhausting (as a writer reading to learn). One device that she uses frequently and to great effect is lists, most often as a handful ...

Bleeding by Proxy

by Mari Passananti  In the current anthem of the under-eight set, played on continuous loop in our house for the past several months, Princess Elsa belts out the battle cry, “Let it go, let it go,” an unambiguous message to her young fans that if you hide your true self, ...

Song of the Dustpan People: Are Grammatically Accurate Writers Less Creative?

            By Nichole Bernier The other day a friend asked me if I’d help line-edit his manuscript. He’s tight on time and I can barely make my own deadlines, but I agreed—mostly because I like him and his book, but also because proofreading comes naturally ...

Best Halloween Costumes for Writers

By Kathy Crowley and her Ghost Writer, Chris Abouzeid It’s Halloween, a holiday especially close to the heart of most fiction writers. Why? Because it’s all about pretending to be someone (or something) else. No doubt, many of you will be celebrating this special day by dressing up, going door to ...

The Reluctant Public Reader: Tales from the Front Lines

By Kim Triedman Ok, let’s start here: I have a very small voice. Or here: I have a very small voice with an ample side of social anxiety. Or even here: On the spectrum of distasteful events, speaking in front of an audience falls somewhere between eating bull testicles and ...

Your Lit Mag Starter Kit, Part II: Celebrating Quirk!

By Becky Tuch How often have you heard something described as “quirky”? Just what does this mean exactly? Possessing an element of surprise? Offbeat? Humorous in a playful kind of way? I asked around on Twitter and got some folks to hone in on the definition of “quirky.” Here is what ...

From the Archives: A Reader, Writing…A Writer, Reading

By Bethanne Patrick Originally published on November 6, 2013 Twitter bio ends with the words “Above all, a reader.” That’s how I’ve always thought of myself. Since the time I learned how to decipher words on a page, I’ve been a voracious consumer of the written word, someone who is ...

GIMME A CAPPACHINO: 5 CAFFEINATED GOTTA KNOW READS

  By Randy Susan Meyers Halloween nears. Winter approaches. In the Northeast we face snow shoveling, icy roads, and bleak grey skies. Our rewards? Sundays curled on the couch with a great book. I could offer lists of classics you can finally settle into, uber-literary masterpieces to read with your ...

Turning the Tables on a Bad Writing Day

By Juliette Fay You can tell when it’s stacking up to be a bad writing day. You look at the list of non-writing stuff that needs to get done, throw up your hands and think, No possible way. Or the thought of whatever project you’re working on ignites that gnawing ...