The fall semester starts in just under a month. I have maybe two full weeks before faculty conferences begin for the new year, which means that my wonderful summer of writing time is drawing to a close. That’s okay because I have far surpassed the goal I set for myself at the beginning of the… Continue reading Writing My Novel: On Reaching Goals
Tag: Writing My Novel
Writing My Novel: 7 Ways Reading Makes Better Writing
The first day of a composition class, I ask my students a simple question: “Who in here likes to read?” I consider the inquiry a success if I have two people raise their hands. Most of the time all I get are a few sneers, blank stares, and no hands in the air. I ask… Continue reading Writing My Novel: 7 Ways Reading Makes Better Writing
Writing My Novel: Kill Kill Kill
One of the major philosophies of fiction writing is called “kill your darlings.” In it, anything is fair game when it comes to editing. No matter how much the writer loves a sentence or word or scene or even character, if it does not advance the plot in a tangible way, it must be cut. … Continue reading Writing My Novel: Kill Kill Kill
Writing My Novel: Keep On Writing
When I finished my novel’s first draft, I knew two things could happen: I could take a break and revel in the success of finally writing a book while I enjoy the summertime a little. I could jump immediately back into writing, using what I learned while writing my novel to produce some quality stories… Continue reading Writing My Novel: Keep On Writing
Writing My Novel: When Outlines Fail
When I first started seriously working on my novel, I said that “I definitely want to outline.” I knew that going into writing something as complex as a novel without a plan would lead to failure. So I sat down and thought about what I wanted to happen in my novel. I broke it down… Continue reading Writing My Novel: When Outlines Fail