A few years ago, I hit writer’s block. I was halfway through writing my first novel and I was stuck. I needed a side project, something to give my brain a break from my work-in-progress but keep me on track with my writing habits. This was when I discovered flash fiction. Flash fiction is an…
Tag: word economy
Pregnant Purple Prose
I once called a writer friend and got the following voicemail greeting: “Pardons begged, we are presently truant and prevented from undertaking dialog with callers at present. After the modulation, please recite your sobriquet and cellular digit-string to better enable us an opportunity to reciprocate the honor of this summons.” The title of this article…
Word Economics 101
As my critique partners can attest, I’m a big proponent of what we call word economy. Not a technical term, exactly, but here’s my definition: using only as many words as the story needs. Of course, every story has different needs. Some need a clipped, concise writing style, while others need a more flowery voice….