Chris Baty's Blog, page 143

Why Writing the Unknown is Important, Too

Advice, strangely enough, is never one size fits all. We’ve asked participants to share the best writing advice they never listened to. Today, Gillian Pegg, NaNoWriMo participant, shares why abandoned writing the known:

“Write what you know.”

I’ve probably heard this piece of advice a thousand times, seen it written in countless articles and discussed it in numerous writing workshops. But what on earth does that even mean, to write what you know?

I know many things. I know how to brew a pot of tea, I know how to hold a conversation, I know how to time a witty remark. Are any of these things helpful when it comes to writing? I’m sure many would argue that they are. That knowing things, from the everyday to the wondrous, brings about a level of familiarity, of understanding and resonance with the reader.

But I want to challenge this stagnant notion. If we only ever write what we know, how do we ever reach that tipping point of discovery within ourselves? How can we possibly keep stretching and improving our writing if we only ever stick with the same topics, the same experiences?

How about we take after our readers and live vicariously through our characters. What is it like to take that final step to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro, to breathe in and look out at the Tanzanian sunset? What is it like to feel the first sharp jab of heartbreak, or to visit the site of your family home after a fire?

I want to use my imagination and creativity, and really find myself and my characters within their world, not mine.

To me, being a writer means exploring my mental jungle, finding stories and characters and places that I didn’t know existed. It’s solving plot riddles, it’s holding the hand of a beloved character as they dangle precariously over the side of a cliff and wondering whether I should kill them off or not.

Writing is creating worlds. I want to use my imagination and creativity, and really find myself and my characters within their world, not mine. I want my characters to discover things for themselves, and bring me along with them. I want to see things for the first time through their eyes.

That means taking a leap and writing about things that I have never experienced in my personal life. It means allowing a front seat to your innate sense of wonder, along with the jitters that come with it.

So don’t write what you know. Write what you want to know, write what you’re afraid to know. Push yourself, challenge your inner writer, and let your imagination soar. Maybe that’s where you’ll find your strength.

After all… you never know.

Gillian Pegg is a passionate writer, a voracious reader, and a lover of all things fantasy. She is working toward one day seeing her name on the front cover of a novel, and is currently finishing her university degree in Northern Ontario, Canada. This summer, she has been accepted to the Creative Writing Summer Program at Cambridge University. If you would like to read more about Gillian’s current writing projects, check her out on Wattpad and Wordpress!

Top photo by Flickr user Jacob Surland.

Why It Matters to Share Your Writing Journey

Writing doesn’t have to be a solo activity. In fact, creativity and productivity are often stimulated by writing with company. Today, participant Angela Shores shares how she learned to share her writing aspirations with pride… and why that matters:

For years, I talked about being a writer “one day”. It was a childhood dream, always out there in a casual, “when I grow up” kind of way, but never really anything tangible. So, when I first decided I was actually going to write a novel, I held it close to me like a secret. I was afraid that if anyone knew they would either try to talk me out of it or not be supportive. 

Now, you might ask if I routinely have people in my life attempting to dissuade me from pursuing a goal or dream. The answer is no, those are not the people in my life. However, I still had this irrational fear that, suddenly, my people would make a mass exodus from Team Angela once they knew I had this insane desire to chase the dream of writing a novel.

When I had actually written “stuff” for my novel, I very casually mentioned it to my husband and a couple of girlfriends. I was so flippant about it that I didn’t give any of them a real chance to fully grasp what I had said or latch on to the idea. It felt safer that way. 

And then for some bizarre reason (perhaps it was a full moon?), I shared what I was doing with my oldest daughter and she knew instantly that it would be a best seller (that’s just who she is, a die-hard fan and cheerleader). She started telling people that I was writing a book. Well, then I had to admit it; claim it. 

I told my husband, again, this time giving him the chance to be the cheerleader he’s always been. My daughter’s excitement for me and my husband’s faithful support got me more excited about my writing. Around that time I had a friend tell me about NaNoWriMo and again I was nervous. What if I realized I was not meant to write? But I stepped out and joined the NaNoWriMo community, more than doubled my word count, and finished the draft. 

The amazing support from NaNoWriMo blogs and pep talks propelled me forward and walked me into a place where I felt safe sharing my journey. Slowly, I let others know what I had been up to, which pushed me continually forward in the process of editing so that very soon I will have a novel to self-publish.

Finding the right people to support your dream of writing is essential. It can feel safer to keep it a secret. But the reward that comes from the cheering, encouragement, and support far outweighs the risk I felt in letting anyone know. And now people ask me how the book is coming, which holds me accountable. People ask me what parts I’m working on, which keeps me excited. 

Choosing an entourage of support is a strategic process. Start with those people in your life that you know will be excited for you, who have always supported your wildest dreams and craziest ideas. Add in the ones that will be curious enough to ask for updates. Find someone who can give you genuine feedback in love, even if it is hard to hear. Having that support will keep you going and lift you up. And as an added bonus, they may even become your fan club when you’ve published!

Angela Shores spends most of her time outdoors or on the road seeking family adventures with her high school sweetheart turned husband and her two daughters. She uses her formal education in mental health counseling to work with individuals seeking wellness. Otherwise you can find Angela reading classics, fantasy, memoirs, or whatever she can get her hands on. She also loves writing and learning, and is a member of Mensa. She’s pretty into football, baseball, and chocolate as well.

Top photo by Flickr user alexds.

1 Crucial Lesson I Learned by Writing 50K Words in 30 Days

One of the best parts of NaNoWriMo is our incredible community of writers. Today, participant and author S. Kay Murphy shares what she learned about writing from taking on the NaNoWriMo challenge:

During the school year I teach English and Journalism to teenagers who run the gamut of characterizations from smart, funny and lovable to downright sociopathic. My days are so packed with teaching and grading that there is little time to write; that’s what summer, blissful summer is for. Some years ago, however, I made the decision to participate in NaNoWriMo.

The previous summer I had spent some time flipping through old journal entries. What I found was that I’d spent an inordinate amount of time writing about not having enough time to write. Did you catch the irony there? As I pondered on this, I began to suspect that I’d been using the “I need long blocks of time” excuse as a defense mechanism to keep myself from tackling longer, more challenging writing projects. 

I wanted to write a novel in thirty days just to prove to myself that in fact I could sustain the momentum required to produce a 50,000-word text, character arc and all. I didn’t expect it to be good writing, I just wanted to prove to my nay-saying self that it could, in truth, be done.

I knew I wanted to write a YA novel because my students give me character fodder on a daily basis. In the weeks prior to the November 1 kick-off, I thought of a premise, but I never committed anything to paper until Day One.

My schedule was daunting. I wrote 800 words in the morning before 6:00 AM, then left the house by 7:00 to teach. I returned home at 4:00, and after dinner and dog walks, I wrote another 800 words. On more than one occasion I fell asleep in my desk chair. Sometimes in the morning when I reviewed what I had written the night before, I had no memory of having written it. Whenever I felt blocked I’d simply observe my students. Their antics never failed to inspire.

And I did it. I struggled often, but I never stopped. By November 30, I had completed a novel. I didn’t think the novel itself would be any good. Turns out it was, with a bit of editing. (OK, a lot of editing.) I’m proud to say that sweet little book is now published.

Here’s what I learned: Write every day and keep going! A draft is a form in clay that can be sculpted into a work of art. Time slips away every day that we don’t practice our craft. Keep moving those fingers across the keys!

S. Kay Murphy is the author of two memoirs and a Young Adult novel entitled Ghost Grandma. She lives in Southern California, and she believes that her two “rescue” dogs and “rescue” cats have actually rescued her.

Top photo by Flickr user dawnkristal.

How to Get Off the Writing Treadmill and Explore

One of the best parts of NaNoWriMo is our incredible community of writers. Today, participant Joy Kistler shares what she’s learned about her writing style through NaNoWriMo… and how she found her pace:

I am a runner. What I love about running is the freedom I feel when I step out into the dark morning and take myself wherever I want to go. I’m fully present with the world. Sometimes a cool rain falls on my head and the wind whispers in my ear to keep going. Snow landing on my eyelashes makes me smile. It takes lightning and ice to put me inside to face the “dreadmill”.

The treadmill is a prison for me. I’m stuck in a tight space and literally going nowhere. On the treadmill I start out well, then the room seems to bend a bit, making me dizzy. The air feels thin and I start to panic. Sweat drops from my head to the rubber belt under my feet. Then, all I can do is obsess about slipping, falling, and knocking my front teeth out. 

I am also a writer. 

“I knew it was the perfect opportunity for my writing habit to become as strong as my running habit.”

When I heard about NaNoWriMo I knew it was the perfect opportunity for my writing habit to become as strong as my running habit. So, I signed up early. I’d read an article about preparing my story early. The advice suggested outlining my characters and plot in October so that when November 1 came I’d feel ready to just write.

In the weeks before NaNoWriMo I created character names and traits. I used Roman numerals to outline the plot, just like I’d learned in high school English class. I even chose a title. When November arrived I had my preparations materials beside me and my hand poised above my notebook. 

Then something strange happened. The room began to bend a bit, making me dizzy. The air thinned and I began to panic. My pen slipped through my sweaty palm and all I could think about was falling and failing. 

I realized the outline boxed me in. I needed the freedom to write what I wanted just as I needed to run where I wanted. I decided to ignore the advice. On November 2, I trashed all the prep work and found a flow writing where the characters took me. I finished the 50,000 words, but more importantly, I realized something about myself: I do best when I let the road and the story take me where they want me to go. 

Writing, for me, is about learning who I am. I am a non-planner.

Joy M. Kistler is a reader, writer, runner, and counselor. She was born an Okie and now resides in Kansas with her family. Joy has participated in NaNoWriMo twice and proudly wears her winner t-shirts around town. She seems to be constantly in the revision process since it’s the part of writing she doesn’t get excited about.

Top photo by Flickr user visualthinker.

How to Learn What Kind of Writer You Are

Writing doesn’t have to be a solo activity. In fact, creativity and productivity are often stimulated by writing with company. Today, participant Randi Oomens shares why it’s vital to learn the type of writer you are… and how she’s tackling it:

On a NaNoWriMo webcast in 2014, author Scott Westerfeld gave my favorite advice: you need to learn what kind of writer you are. I took that to heart, and began practicing at different times of day with varying routines in preparation to attempt my first NaNoWriMo in 2015. My goal was to win, so I needed to know what kind of writer I was.

I discovered that I’m productive when my schedule is regimented, which was no surprise since I was once called, “the most regimented non-military person” a friend knew. After tinkering with an outline, I am now also quite the plantser—shocker.

I met my local Wrimos a week before November 1, and while I had fun and felt among my people, I was relieved to get home and out of my “in public” clothing (something tells me many of you will relate to that). The group had already planned write-ins at places with Wi-Fi and outlets, and I read the invitations on Facebook and contemplated going… but then I thought of how productive I was at home with my strict schedule.

“Celebrating all the wins from the comfort of my couch… was like living the dream!”

Instead, while browsing the NaNoWriMo account on Twitter, I found my people. They were looking for sprinting partners, asking questions about plot and character, and sending out encouragement. I attended Virtual Write-Ins announced by the NaNoWriMo account, and I had so much fun with those that I couldn’t wait until the next one. Celebrating all the wins from the comfort of my couch, with my animals, coffee, and pajama pants towards the end of November was like living the dream!

The work I did on the novel has not seen the light of day. I used it, and NaNoWriMo, to practice the craft I study so closely. It taught me what kind of writer I am, and the work I’ve done since has improved. I have a few beta readers, their feedback invaluable. My best beta reader has a critical eye and we have similar tastes in books. He knows me well and doesn’t hesitate  to point out what doesn’t work, or isn’t clear.

An online writing group of trusted friends works for me because it fits my lifestyle. Learning what kind of writer I am, and what kind of community I need, has been instrumental in helping my creativity grow.

Randi Oomens lives in Arizona, where she listens to audio books, teaches herself everything she can about the craft of writing, and argues with the characters in her head. She enjoys  podcasts, baseball broadcasts and looking for story ideas in everything she hears. She has contributed to the Disability in Kidlit blog and can be found wasting time on Twitter.

Top photo by Flickr user schatz.

Why a Critique Partner Can Be Better than a Writing Group

Writing doesn’t have to be a solo activity. In fact, creativity and productivity are often stimulated by writing with company. Today, participant Libby Mayfield shares why writing groups aren’t for her… but a critique partner is:

I wish I was the sort of writer who could romantically snatch a few minutes in a quaint coffee shop to combat writers block, but for me, the only way to write is to spend huge chunks of the day with my face two inches from a computer screen, powered purely by tea and pasta.

The last thing I need when I’ve finished this writing marathon and produced something I believe to be at least halfway to a masterpiece (I think the excessive tea consumption might make me a little delusional), is for a dozen people to shake their heads at me sadly and tell me I’ve run the wrong route.

When I tell fellow writers that I’m not part of a writing group, or that, no, I won’t show you any of my unpublished work, I fear they think I’m being a bit pretentious. Rest assured, I don’t think I’m better than you: I think I’m awful, and I’m phenomenally sensitive when it comes to criticism. 

“If I were J.K. Rowling and had to read at a book launch, I’d want to do it via telephone.”

Writing groups are not for me. Presenting people with my work in person terrifies me. If I were J.K. Rowling and had to read at a book launch, I’d want to do it via telephone.

I have one person I let read my work. He receives it as a message attachment in the middle of the night, whilst I hope that fate will intervene and the file won’t send or he’ll be asleep. If it gets the okay from him, I can breathe. If it gets the “I love that” stamp of approval, I dare to send it to friends less hyperaware of how a blasé comment may ruin my day, week, year.

I don’t need every aspect of my work to be complimented; I know if he says “It’s good, but…”, then it’s good. After that, I’ll take as much constructive criticism as needs be, as long as I have the “good” to focus on every time my determination to edit weakens.

It helps that my friend-meets-editor writes similarly to me. If I asked someone who writes a different genre to critique my work, and they subsequently ripped it to shreds, no matter how fair their criticism had been, I would inevitably yell, much like a toddler, “You just don’t get it!”

And why can’t I take criticism in person? Well, if it all goes badly, I reserve the right to cry into a pillow before calmly messaging back, “Ah, I see”.

Libby is a journalism student living in fear of completing university and succumbing to a nine-to-five job behind a desk. Prevention techniques include creating paintings and making music under the moniker Ayres, jumping on a train to another city in search of pancakes, tea and postcards as soon as a problem arises, and blogging about it all. She usually only has the attention span to write short stories so it’s a miracle she’s written two novels.

Top photo by Flickr user skippytpe.

Finding the Courage to Share Your Writing

Writing doesn’t have to be a solo activity. In fact, creativity and productivity are often stimulated by writing with company. Today, participant Chris Knight shares how to find the courage to share your writing… and what to look for in a reader:

Sharing your work with other people can often be troublesome. There’s always this weird feeling living on the inside of your skin that scares you into keeping your writing to yourself. You’ll think maybe if you don’t show anyone what you’re doing then you’ll be safe. 

All writing is subjective. I learned a long time ago that you can’t appease everyone. You’ll never write something that 100% of people enjoy; no matter what, there will always be people that don’t enjoy what you’ve done with your words. The sooner you realize that as a writer, the sooner you can let the words flow free.

As a writer, I’ve found that sharing certain aspects of my writing is necessary to get a good understanding that my story is on the right track. When I was writing my book, Past and Pending, I conducted a few experiments with readers that helped me weed out who would be honest with me and who would be nice just to spare my feelings.

One of those experiments consisted of me sending the first few chapters to everyone and then listening to what everyone had to say. A lot of them had critiques, notes, and lists of things they didn’t get or understand. After hearing everything they had to say, I would take a few days and resend everyone the same exact chapters while telling them that I had made changes based on what they had to say. It was unfortunate when most of those people came back telling me that the updated chapters were such an improvement to the previous ones.

Blunt truths and critiquing sessions is where I live and breathe as a writer. Hearing what I’m doing wrong, or what people aren’t necessarily enjoying is my favorite part. I can’t begin to understand what I think is right if I don’t know what everyone else thinks is wrong. I prefer my critiques to be filled with salt, instead of sugar. 

In the end, it’s all about being able to best tell the story I have brewing inside of me.

Chris Knight is a recently published author that operates out of New York City. His first novel is titled Past and Pending , with another novel already on the way. Chris first began throwing words on paper when he was just a young little boy and while he has grown in age, his size has remained the same. It has been said that if Disney World were a person, that person would be Chris. 

Top photo by Flickr user geese.

Somewhere to Land: Finding a Writing Group that’s Just Right

Writing doesn’t have to be a solo activity. In fact, creativity and productivity are often stimulated by writing with company. We asked some of our participants to share their thoughts on finding the right writing group. Today, Christine Gatuiria shares her thoughts on finding fellow writers who are just the right mix:

Writing groups are like the porridge in the Goldilocks story: sometimes hot, sometimes cold, and sometimes just right. The key is to keep spooning the porridge into your mouth no matter the temperature because it’s good for you.

A writer needs to be around other writers, if only for the realization that they are not the biggest book nerd in town after all. You don’t even have to meet these fellow writers in person. If you prefer to maintain a hermit lifestyle, just log on to the internet and join one of the thousands of online writing groups. You will quickly discover that you are definitely not the biggest book nerd in town (unless you want to be, in which case, carry on).

What to Look For in a Writing Group

It’s important to find a writing group that you are semi-comfortable with, and by that I mean a league of distinguished wordsmiths who are not necessarily your friends but are not your enemies either. 

You don’t want to get too friendly with your fellow scribes; you want to keep them honest enough to give you critiques with constructive criticism (even if said criticism does nothing to spare your little writer feelings). 

However, you don’t want to be too aloof because then they might forget to even look at the sacrificial draft chapter you’ve so gingerly placed on the altar of critique…

Side-note: Do you harbor dark thoughts about the members of your writing group? Dark, depressing, and thoroughly judgmental thoughts about these intrepid writers you choose to spend random Tuesday evenings with, listening without interruption as they tear apart the opening paragraph of your (in your mind, anyway) soon-to-be New York Times Bestseller? So it’s just me? Fine.

Now, I’m not saying you can’t have a jolly good time with your writing group, just pointing out that one should always remember why one joined in the first place. If you’re like me, it was to find encouragement and motivation (and admit it, someone other than your mother to read your stories). 

Writing groups are good for the camaraderie, and all writers should commune and consult whenever possible. It’s the best way to reassure ourselves that the words we write will one day turn into a bowl of porridge that countless readers find just right.

Christine Gatuiria is a freelance writer with a penchant for tales of the weird. She is biased towards stories about serial killers, aliens, and serial killer aliens. When she’s not writing creatively and/or trying to get published, she works as a grant writer in St. Louis, MO. You can find her on Twitter @CWGHouse.

Top photo by Flickr user Sandi G.

The Quantified Writer: Buster Benson on Writing as Thinking

Sometimes, success can be measured, and tracking our progress can hold us accountable to our goals. We interviewed NaNoWriMo board member and founder of 750words.com, Buster Benson, to learn about writing journeys and personal growth: 

You worked at Twitter for a good while. What genre of writing do you think best translates into 140 characters?

After using Twitter for almost ten years, I think it’s most important as a tool to express what’s really going on in your head. It’s a running autobiography drawn with only a few lines. 

I generally try to find parts of my own thought patterns and experiences that are least likely to already be represented in the world somewhere. Rather than writing what everyone else is writing, find the small things that are true to you that nobody else is writing about.

You founded 750 Words, which is a site that helps people to free-write 750 words, or three pages, daily. Do word-count goals really help to promote productivity?

Absolutely. The toughest thing about productivity is often finding the insight in a tangled, complicated problem. That’s rarely accomplished with the first words that come to mind. 

A word count helps you keep digging until the right words, the right perspective, and the previously unseen insight are found. There’s a bit of luck in there as well.

I really appreciate 750 Words’ sensitivity to privacy. Are there creative benefits to keeping some of one’s writing thoughts concealed from the world at large?

No question about it! Writing is an amazing tool for thinking. However, most of our communication with words is shared immediately, without thought. Or even worse, we filter out thoughts that aren’t sharable, and hide them, even from ourselves. 

Creating a safe place to express feelings, thoughts, doubts, insecurities, frustrations, and any number of other emotions that might not otherwise be shared publicly allows us to process them and understand ourselves better.

After brain-dumping about a complicated, emotion-filled topic privately to myself, I have a much better idea about what I’m trying to say and why, and sharing that is then so much more rewarding.

750 Words tracks recurring emotions that arise in one’s writing. What was the inspiration behind this? Can being aware of these themes affect your writing?

I’m inspired by how technology has attempted to analyze and understand words over the last 100 years. It seems so easy to us humans, but computers have a much harder time with it—though it’s starting to get better. 

Sometimes, we’re the last person to see something about ourselves that is obvious to everyone else. One purpose of private journaling is to learn about ourselves, and if a private journal is truly unfiltered, it provides really rich fodder for textual analysis. 

The way that 750 Words analyzes text isn’t perfect, but it gives us a chance to see ourselves through a mirror; an even if that mirror is bumpy and imperfect, sometimes it will help us catch a glimpse of something about ourselves that we hadn’t seen before.

Were you always so disciplined about self-tracking? What instigated the impulse? 

I’ve wondered that myself over the years. I’ve always been curious about how the brain works, how people interact, and how we design and live our lives.

Tracking things was something I picked up after college when I was explicitly trying to figure out why I behaved the way I did. And to better understand if things like sleep, caffeine, alcohol, etc really did impact my happiness. I tracked things like that for several years and tried to find patterns that were statistically significant, but never did. 

And yet, we all jump to conclusions about cause and effect every day. We’re creatures that are deeply wired to find patterns in the world, but those pattern-matching systems are far from perfect much of the time. Similarly, our ideas of our selves are often flawed as well. Tracking behaviors, analyzing words, etc., are just strategies for finding ways of getting around those problems. And even though I’m still very far from finding real answers about any of that, it continues to fascinate me.

As a word-count aficionado, what do you think are the benefits of NaNoWriMo’s word-count tracking and goals?

Fifty thousand words is a lot. Seen as a single number, it can be rather daunting. But if you break it down to a day, it’s not nearly as scary. I think NaNoWriMo’s word-count tracking and goal tools are great ways to make a big task less scary, and to also show how small progress consistently applied can get you to a big impressive goal.

What’s the weirdest thing or habit you’ve decided to track?

For a while I tracked how often I complained. I let everyone around me know that I’d pay them a dollar every time I complained. And I ended up paying a lot of people. It helped me get a better understanding of a mental habit that I had, and also led to a lot of interesting conversations about what qualifies as a complaint. 

Eventually, it turned something subconscious into something that was a bit more conscious, and now I am a bit better at offering constructive criticism whenever I would have normally just complained about something uselessly.

Buster Benson is the founder of 750words.com and has participated in and completed NaNoWriMo twice. One year’s manuscript was self-published and is available on Amazon under the title Man Versus Himself. During the day, Buster builds products for tech platforms that encourage writing (currently at Slack, previously at Twitter), advises a number of startups, and documents his life and beliefs at busterbenson.com.

Interview conducted by Madeleine Flamiano.

Top Photo by Flickr user  tellafotomedia .

Best Advice I Never Listened To: “Write Only When You Have Something to Say”

Advice, strangely enough, is never one size fits all. We’ve asked participants to share the best writing advice they never listened to. Today, Diane Homan, NaNoWriMo participant, shares what she learned from writing with abandon:

Once you tell someone you’re writing, you’ll be hit immediately with tons of “helpful” advice. People feel forced to share their tips with you, whether they’ve published six bestselling novels or they’re coasting on that one creative writing assignment in 8th grade that they got an A on.

In college, one of my professors introduced me to a quote by David Hare: “Write only when you have something to say.” This spoke to me. I adopted this as my writing motto. I was only going to write when I had a message to share with the world.

I would sit and wait for some sort of inspirational muse to hit me over the head with her magic wand so I could go, “Aha! I know exactly what I want to say! This writing stuff is easy!”

For years I did this. I only wrote when I already knew where the story was going. I tried to make every scene and every line of dialogue point to some great, grand theme.

And finally, after eight years of sporadic, muse-inspired writing, I woke up. I realized that in all that time, I had only written about 10,000 words. At that rate, I would never finish my novel.

So I rebelled. I signed up for NaNoWriMo in November 2015 and did the exact opposite of writing when I had something to say. I wrote every day, regardless of whether or not I knew where the story was going. I threw themes and morals and grand messages out the window.

It was like magic. I started saying “Why not?” and “I’ll just throw that in there and see what happens,” and my story found plots and subplots. It took shape even as I threw out my attempt to forcibly shape it. Twenty-seven days later, I had a completed 51,000 word first draft of my novel.

Writing is highly personal. Any advice you’re given is only good advice if it works for you. David Hare’s advice did not work for me. I discovered that my process is the exact opposite—I find what I have to say after I write it.

With that in mind, my new favorite writing advice is taken from that eminent intellectual, Ms. Frizzle of The Magic School Bus: “Take chances, make mistakes, get messy!” As with signed field trip permission forms, some writing rules and advice are made to be ignored.

Diane is a middle school teacher turned stay-at-home mom who writes in her spare time. She completed her first novel, Engell Gate, for NaNoWriMo 2015 and is working on revising it for publication. She loves reading and writing kidlit, particularly fantasy and sci-fi. Favorite authors include Terry Pratchett and Dave Barry. When not reading or writing, she can be found running around with her one-year-old, or blogging recipes and crafts over at her site Homan at Home.

Top photo by Flickr user FraserElliot.