Do you have a meter in your head when you evaluate your work? George Saunders does. I can’t recommend enough the entire recent podcast interview between Saunders and Ezra Klein. Do yourself a favor and listen here. If you don’t have a writing guru, you can’t do much better than Saunders, who is easy-going, smart,…
Story One: A writer pal is an established mystery writer. Established, award-winning mystery writer. Established, award-winning, and hard-working mystery writer. She recently finished a new mystery with a new character. She invested lots and lots of time writing this book, based on a highly original character (and job function). My friend is having a very…
If you maintain an online presence that’s all about your writing career—website, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, blog page, Amazon author page—check your core material every now and then. Your bio. The kinds of books you write. Make sure all your info is accurate and up to date. Check that all your links work. Google yourself. Check…
Is Twitter: A flippant smarmy cesspool? Source of endless inspiration? Giant time suck? All of the above? I would never recommend doing anything that doesn’t suit your style or float your boat, but I need my daily (um, er, hourly) Twitter fix. There are 1.5 zillion writing and writing-related accounts on Twitter, but I’m here…
I see you there—your ink well and your quill and your oak gall ink. Dip, think, scratch. Yeah, you’re writing. Chances are, as a writer, you enjoy being alone. Me, too. Did you ever think about why you like alone time? 2020 has taught us all many awful lessons—but it’s definitely taught me how much…