"A helpful question to ask during the writing process is: what is the heart of your story? What are..."

“A helpful question to ask during the writing process is: what is the heart of your story? What are the questions, topics, or emotions that you want to explore throughout the story, that you find yourself constantly coming back to? If you feel like you’re stuck on the plot itself, or that things aren’t moving forward in the story, try to set the ‘heart’ of your story as your compass, write around it, and let it guide your way.”

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Christina Li is a student at Stanford University studying Economics. In her spare time, when she is not stressing over her latest stats problem set, she is writing up characters and stories for children and young adults, or perhaps procrastinating on said writing by drinking copious amounts of tea and binge-watching Avatar: the Last Airbender. She started NaNo-ing in sixth grade with the NaNoWriMo Young Writer’s Program and hasn’t stopped since. Her debut middle grade novel, Clues to the Universe, is coming out from HarperCollins/Quill Tree Books in January 2021.

What’s at the heart of your story? Let Christina know, or thank her for her Camp Care Package.

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