Leah McClellan If you use the same kinds of sentences over and over, your writing will be as monotonous as the steady beat of a bass drum with no other percussion or instruments seen or heard. But if you jazz things up with a snare drum, tom-toms, hi-hats and cymbals and change up the beat for different … Read more
When it comes to creative ventures (or athletic pursuits!), here are a few things I’ve learned about my writing priorities. Output decreases in direct proportion to (unrelated) input. In other words, when your mind is cluttered with unrelated information coming in from the outside world, it’s hard to access your inner creative world. The latest … Read more
Why avoid clichés? Everyone uses them, and they capture your thoughts and ideas in the blink of an eye. But consider this: if you’re a blogger, freelance writer, or author, your writing will be read by readers of English around the world. Since I’m an American and have lived in the US all my life, … Read more
How can you get writing experience if you don’t have anything to write? If you’re thinking of writing for a living—freelance writing—you might be in a tough spot. You know you can write, but you don’t have any proof of your experience. No clips. No links. No portfolio. And how are you supposed to get … Read more
What’s your favorite excuse for not doing something you really want to do? Like writing, for example. No matter what kind of writer you are—blogger, freelancer, creative writer or novelist—you’re probably prone to making excuses when you don’t feel like sitting at your desk or table and tapping out letters and words. Or on your … Read more
A sentence. Easy peasy, or so you might think. But when was the last time you thought about sentences? When have you wondered what, exactly, a sentence is? “It’s a complete thought,” you might say, confidence oozing from your pores. Some of you cross your arms over your chest, roll your eyes, or even quit … Read more
Not sure how to edit your novel or short story? Even if you’re writing non-fiction, here’s the rule: Editing begins when writing ends. When you’re absolutely sure your story or article is finished, that’s the time to start editing. “Finished” means the story is completely done to your satisfaction. In fact, you might think it … Read more
Do you love your writing? Or do you hate it? A fellow writer recently shared an article on FaceBook called “Why You Don’t Need To Worry About Hating Your Own Work.” It’s about writing, and it’s interesting, but it had me flummoxed. Why would anyone hate their writing? I had trouble wrapping my head around … Read more
Writing an online book review can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. And it doesn’t need to take more than a few minutes to write. For starters, why write a book review? So. You’ve read a novel or a non-fiction book, you’re thrilled with it, and you want to let the author and … Read more
Whether you’re familiar with fairy tales and archetypes or not, what does the illustration above make you think of? How does it make you feel? What kind of story — in 1500 words or less — could you tell based on that image? What are fairy tale archetypes? An archetype is a character, idea, symbol, … Read more