Cramming Together What I Can't Make Stand Alone :-)

As I scan the news and other outlets of content on the Web, I often bookmark articles that seem to have promise as something to feature in a post here.

Well, not all bookmarks inspire me to the same degree but many of them still remain worthy as references some folks may find valuable.

Here are just a few:

Are MFA programs ruining American fiction? ~ Excerpt: "It's true that MFA programs have produced far more competent mediocrities than shining stars, but that's also true of every other literary ecosystem. Shining stars are by definition exceptional… Yes, MFA grads with nothing to say are now able to say it more skillfully, but authors were pretty good at being boring before university writing programs came along and would surely go on being boring if every MFA program were wiped off the face of the earth. The programs don't make them dull, even if they also can't make them interesting."

Digital fails to curb number of books published in US ~ Snippet: "Traditional US print book output increased 5% in 2010, despite the huge growth in e-books, though there was a continuing fall in the number of fiction titles published."

8 Things Readers Want From Self-Published Authors ~ "…an excellent to-do list of how self-published authors can be taken seriously by readers."

Why I Will Never, Ever Hire A "Social Media Expert" ~ Even though this article is written for "business" people, it's easily translatable for writers as long as the writer considers their promotional effort a business venture…

I've got some more "can't-seem-to-make-a-whole-post-out-of-this-article" selections but I'll save them for another day :-)

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Tagged: creative writing, Jane Friedman, Laura Miller, Master of Fine Arts, MFA, publishing, Salon, Writers Resources