Being immersed in the creative process–writing a novel, creating a class, knitting a sweater, planting a garden–is my most favorite thing in the world. Until I hit a block. And decide that the novel stinks, nobody will want to take the class, the sweater won't fit, the garden won't grow. And then I hate the […]
Bon jour! Here is this week's collection of writing prompts, a bit later than usual because I went out to breakfast at my favorite French cafe. And I bought macarons, which are calling to me from the kitchen (they can be a rowdy bunch), but they are for dessert at my sister's dinner tonight. Anyway, […]
One of the best books I've read this year is The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. He spent a few years studying habits, how people form them, and how they can un-form them, and then distilled his findings into this book. You'd think it would be about as exciting to read as watching […]
Hi, I hope you've had a great week with lots of writing. And guess what? It's a long holiday weekend, at least here in the states. Surely you plan on using at least some of it to write? Of course you do. Here are some prompts from my Tumblr blog for your inspiration. #295 Two women […]
Like clockwork, like magic, like butter on bread, here it is, my weekly round-up of writing prompts from my Tumblr blog. I'm in Seattle this weekend, but you should be writing. Kidding! Or not. Anyway, Enjoy! Or don't enjoy, but use them to write like crazy. #288 What was your main character’s relationship with her mother […]
Once upon a time, I lived and worked in Sun Valley, Idaho, taking a semester off from college. I lived in a dorm that had a fire pole from the second floor with a bunch of other ski bums. Sometime near the end of my tenure there, three young women appeared to live in the […]
Herewith, my semi-regular list of books I've been reading. Why? Because I love and adore reading posts what others have been reading (so write more of them, y'all). And I figure you might get a few ideas from my list. Here goes: Fiction Crossing on the Paris by Dana Gynther. (See bonus author video […]
This week's collection of writing prompts from my Tumblr blog: #281 If your protagonist could travel anywhere in the world, where would it be? #282 You can’t go home again. Or can you? Has your main character stayed home? Or was he a person who couldn’t wait to move as far away as possible? #283 They were […]
Scarritt Bennett Center I am back from Nashville, y'all. I went there to teach a workshop with my good writing friend Terry Price. We called it From Spark to Story, and planned it to be just that: a journey from gathering inspiration, to getting it onto the page, to shaping it into a story. […]
Hello from Nashville, y'all! Here's my latest collection of writing prompts from my Tumblr blog. #274 Use the words cat, rain jacket and orchid in a sentence. Now use that sentence as a prompt. #275 Write about what your main character did yesterday, from the time he woke up until the time he went to […]
