writing

All writing is presumption, of course, since no one knows what it is like to be another human being. Cynthia Ozick

Wondering if it's worth the entry fee? Chill Subs has created a handy calculator to assess the value of writing contests. https://www.thecontestcalculator.com/

There is only one motive for writing a novel: to be published and read. To me there is no distinction between the mystery novel and the novel, only between good books and bad books. A good book takes the reader into a new world of experience; it is an experiment. A bad book, unless the writing...

A day of bad writing is always better than a day of no writing. Don Roff

Bad writing is not easier than good. It's just as hard to make a toilet seat as it is a castle window. Only the view is different. Ben Hecht Ben Hecht

Hi Everyone, I had to share. I was lucky enough to hear @Lee Murray talk to a writing group in NZ tonight about the advantages of writing short stories and tips for it. Ah, it was brilliant!! I've only played around with short stories a little, but I'm so fired up after Lee's talk to give them...

I'm starting 'AInt', a protest against AI resurrecting dead writers to inveigle money from new writers. AI can't teach writing anymore than an expensive exercise bike can make you get in shape. The effort still has to come from you. https://www.bbcmaestro.com/courses/agatha-christie/writing...

New blog post by Jake E Be my, be my Beta. I really need to spend less time on X. Once again, I’ve stumbled upon a heated discussion on social media that I can’t help but add my two cents/pence/shillings to, and this time, I can’t understand why or how it’s a discussion. It concerns those...

https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/an-irish-diary/2025/04/25/frightfully-unfashionable-frank-mcnally-on-the-century-long-decline-of-adverbs/

My writing process is chaos. I usually start with an overarching theme. Then I establish several story threads, but I don't outline. I just start writing and keep notes for what may come. It's an organic process that's usually pretty flexible. Lisa Lutz

My writing process often begins with a question. I write down ideas and let them stew for about a year. Then, when I sit down to write, I make a list of characters and try to see how they fit. Cynthia Voigt

https://lu.ma/londonwriterssalon

New blog post by Rachel McCarron The Untidy Desk In an effort to repossess the poet’s soul I sold to Reality thirty years ago, I decided to tackle a form with some constraint. Like a penance for my neglect all these years. So, here’s a Villanelle, initially as perplexing to me as her...

Hello I've written a fantasy novel, and I've joined this group because, after making changes based on feedback from a writing group, editing, re-editing, and then editing on Grammarly, I'm seeking more feedback on all aspects of the novel. This could be on the style of writing, the plot, the...

Inspired by a conversation with a friend of mine, your April challenge is to complete the following to create One Perfect Sentence: The split second before I hit . . . The rules are simple: Each entry must be ONE sentence only, as defined by the basic rules of English grammar. We will...

I am in awe of writers who casually pause and paint in a new character, detailed and without breaking the 3rd wall in the story. This is maybe slightly easier in first person, but 3rd person! It feels like I'm turning to the camera and addressing the audience. But I need to learn this skill...

https://www.writing.ie/writing-comps/free-flash-fiction-competition-27/

“There’s a kind of ear music … a rhythmic synchronicity which creates a kind of heartbeat on the page.” Allan Gurganus

I was trying to come up with a way of thinking about (too much) well meaning but not always on point feedback. Especially prevalent when you submit to a competition and the poor readers have to come up with something to say in their feedback... A quiver of bromides Proposed definition...