Letters to KEL: Launch of an idea

Today I'm launching a new initiative: LETTERS TO KEL.

Hopefully, this will provide insight and advice on writing, maybe answer some questions, give some guidelines, maybe even make you laugh.

Why am I doing this? Well, for starters, I offered writing guidance to someone we'll call KEL several years ago. We met a few times, and then her schedule changed and things happened and we lost touch. I hope to reconnect with her someday. These will be the lessons I would have at least tried to give her.

The second, bigger reason, is that last year I was honored to be invited to come down to my alma mater, Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy, to speak to the students about being a writer. They asked questions and I tried to answer them, to give them an idea of the messy, monotonous, solitary reality. No, it's not all sleeping in until noon, eating bonbons and writing with feather pens, and then being paid thousands of dollars every week for having fun. I essentially warned them that while yes, you can make a living with an English degree, odds are against you to make that living with your writing -- as in writing what you want. You're going to use your training doing other things, editing, writing ad copy, proofreading, etc. And if you're very, very lucky -- and stubborn, or else too stupid to give up -- you'll make a little money by actually selling the words you wrote, whether it's a poem, a novella, flash fiction, novels, screenplays or stage plays, comic books, whatever gives YOU pleasure and fulfillment.

I realized that I am lousy with verbal communication. Give me time to think through what I want to say, write it down, revise it, polish it, trim it, and come close to being coherent.

So here we are at the launch, hoping to give you something useful. Feel free to ask questions in the comments area. I hope some of my writing friends will offer advice every once in a while. As I go through my daily writing chores, whether it's meeting deadlines or editing someone, I'll make notes of the things that really hack me off, problems to avoid, things to be on the lookout for -- and every Thursday (at least, that's the plan) offer you something that might set off that "ah ha!" spark and help you.

Here we go!