ONE OF THE MOST MEMORABLE AH-HA MOMENTS during my MFA in Creative Writing program occurred after a professor assigned us the task of writing a nonfiction story with alternating sentence lengths. We were to rotate very short sentences, from two to six words in length, with very long sentences, at […]
AS THE END OF THE YEAR APPROACHES, I like to spend time reflecting on what happened during the year. Typically, I review my goals for the year and assess how I did in relationship to my intentions; I read past blog posts to help remember what happened and refresh my […]
AS I WATCHED THE SUN SET over the Pacific Ocean on this 21st day of December, I thought about what the shortest day of the year means to me: renewal, turning of the seasons, change. Speaking of change, I had just finished reading yet another article on the new artificial […]
Guest Post by Ainsley Lawrence YOU’VE GOT MULTIPLE PROJECTS, a full personal life, and hardly any energy or enthusiasm to tackle either. Sound familiar? When you have so much going on in your life but feel like you have nothing to give, you may be stretching yourself too thin. And […]
Guest Post by María José Bianchi I STARTED JOURNALING when I needed my truth the most. It was a time in my life when I felt stuck, lost, and miserable, but I didn’t know why. At the time, I supposed my unhappiness had something to do with my career. Five […]
“A person who chases two rabbits catches neither.” ~ Confucious I DON’T KNOW if my brain has become more scattered over time, or if it’s a result of too much digital communication and attempted multitasking, but it sure seems more challenging than ever to get focused when I sit […]
IN HONOR OF Women’s History Month and a belated post for International Women’s Day, I would like to highlight how, thanks to feminist activists and allies, women’s rights in the US have improved since 1970. I want to celebrate those gains and the many, many courageous people, primarily women, who […]
WRITING A NEW CHAPTER of a long story, even when you have a solid outline, is always a challenge. To keep your audience engaged, the chapter needs to contain all the elements of the larger work: an inciting incident; conflict; drama; perhaps some humor; and, most of all, the events […]
ON A WHIM, and in a desperate attempt to revive my regular writing practice, I joined a 28-day, 20-minute per day writing challenge starting January 2nd and running through the end of the month. The challenge is sponsored and organized by Story Circle Network, an organization for women writers, which […]
HERE WE ARE AGAIN. It’s the start of a new year and it’s time to establish your new year’s writing goals. Everyone knows that writing is an addictive habit that, once firmly established, takes over your life. It’s also the gateway to even darker habits, like self-publishing and buying pay-per-click […]
Guest post by Desiree Villena. FOR A LITTLE OVER A YEAR, I’ve been journaling every day. I don’t always use the time in the same way; sometimes I’ll vent my feelings, plan my goals, or mindlessly philosophize (incredibly embarrassing to read back), other times I’ll structure my day or plan […]
Guest post by Michael Nohoyos Whether it’s your first memoir or novel or a sequel, there’s passion in every word and hundreds of hours of research and planning in your work. With so much effort put in, you want it to succeed, but there’s one hurdle left before you can […]
