Elizabeth

1)   Risk. Yes, we talk about risk when we talk about getting started, but you have to keep risking as you go deeper. You have to risk more than you thought you had to give. You have to risk seeing what works and what doesn’t work. You have to risk rethinking what you’ve done and […]

1) Poetry. If you got in this for language, a love pure and passionate for the magic of creating images and capturing ideas in words, there is nothing like poetry to stimulate the senses and start the flow. Other sources of language to trip the language fantastic include: reading down the margin of a book,

This week, as we wind up the spring quarter in the BWW and head into our amazing summer courses, we are having a submission action meeting right before our term party. One of our fabulous students, writer Leslie Rodd, has had a great deal of success submitting her work to literary magazines and contests, leading

Last week, I told you that I was cutting my 103,000 word novel down to 60,000 words, at my agent’s request. Well–it’s at 54,000 words now. And I LOVED this editing process. I loved cutting scenes that were not an integral part of the main story. I loved cutting adjectives that did not pull enough

Just so we are all on the same page, the Fool of the Tarot deck is the hero of The Hero’s Journey. This is no coincidence. It occurs to me that most of my blog posts are about the same thing from a slightly different metaphoric angle.  In fact, any old metaphor will do.  I

“If we had to say what writing is, we would have to define it essentially as an act of courage.” Cynthia Ozick “A great deal of talent is lost to the world for want of a little courage.” Sidney Smith “There is no satisfactory explanation of style, no infallible guide to good writing, no assurance

There are times in our lives, and in our writing, when we need rules, as much for the permission they give us as for the railings they put up on the stairs we climb. Your rules may be unspoken, may take the form of rituals or habits (coffee in the morning, a particular journal, a

There are a few key actions you must take regularly to build and sustain a writing life. 1)   You must—it seems obvious, and yet—you must write. 2)   You must then, after a time, reread what you write and make it better. Other eyes are helpful in this process, some would say absolutely necessary. But your

I’m going to tell you the SINGLE SECRET to success that can transform your writing life. I’ve seen it work for published authors and green beginners, and it will work for you. Trust me? Do what you already do. That’s it? Well, almost. Do what you already do and add support. What inspires you? Is

Cross-currents and misdirection: More than one topic/ agenda will be happening at the same time. Stir these various currents, let them bump into and ruffle each other. Characters, like human beings, rarely answer each other back and forth in a systematic, logical format. Each line of dialog is that character’s action in order to effect