Archive for the ‘Tips for Beginners’ Category

The Pleasures of Anthology Editing

by Susan Forest

I like seeing a passage, whether my own or someone else’s, improve with a changed word choice, a question answered, or an idea clarified or extended. To create an entirety—a book—from the discrete stories that make it up, by juxtaposing ideas, styles and emotional content, was a satisfying and creative process that was new to me.

Ten Thoughts About the Business Side of Writing

by Russell Galen

Have an agent. If you feel you don’t need one, find another human being to whom you have no emotional attachments, who knows a lot about the IP business, will tell you the truth, will be a sounding board for your literary and business questions, and will speak to the buyers of your work so that you can keep some distance from them.

Text Expansion Tools

by Aidan Doyle

Text expansion tools are a way to save time by using shortcuts for text you commonly type. For example, on my computer I type -em and it’s automatically replaced by my email address. When submitting short stories I have a standard cover letter template. I type -pubs and modify the template according to the market. If you’re an editor sending many similar emails, text expansion tools can save you a lot of time.

Guest Post: Set Powerful Deadlines

by Leo Babauta

I’m not always a fan of deadlines and goals, but it’s good to be able to use whatever works best for you. If you’re working great without deadlines and goals, then by all means, keep going. But if you’re struggling to push a project forward (or a learning project like language lessons), then you might try a self-imposed deadline.

Guest Post: The Work of Writing

by Theodora Goss

I keep reading blog posts that basically all make the same point: anyone can find time to write. You’ve probably read them too. The message is, if you want to be a writer, you can find the time. Get up early and write before work. Write on your lunch break. Write on your commute home. Write after everyone else is asleep. If you can write even a hundred words a day, eventually you’ll have a novel.

It’s not a bad message, but it’s aimed toward aspiring writers. And aspiring writers, I would argue, are very different from working writers, who are different, again, from professional writers.