February 2012
25 posts
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5 Things About...Pink Smog →
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Writing Tip #12
Read about writing. This includes grammar and other boring stuff.
Recently, I paid for the Writer’s Workshop subscription on Litreactor.com. By doing this, I gained access to about 36 essays written by Chuck Palahniuk. I’ve been working my way through them over the last 24 hours, and it’s been an incredible experience.
Now, I’ve read a lot about writing over the years....
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5 of My Favorite Books
For something different on the weekend.
1. The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle
2. Weetzie Bat by Francesca Lia Block
3. American Gods by Neil Gaiman
4. The Thief of Always by Clive Barker
5. The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien
All books that have ultimately shaped me as a writer. All books I pick up again now and then because they are that good.
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Writing Tip #11
Be kind to others’ children.
As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been involved in several fiction and writing groups in the Pittsburgh area. It’s a good time, getting that chance to open up and share with others, give and receive feedback.
I encourage all writers to find a group of people who they feel will help their work get better. It may take time; I feel like I’ve...
The Power of BOOKS!
litreactor:
iheartclassics:
I bet the guy in the middle of the top row is reading an HP Lovecraft story.
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5 Things About...Mockingjay →
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Writing Tip #10
Turn that frown upside down. Always be grateful for what you have.
Recently, I applied for a freelance columnist position on a website I think is quite super keen. Quite super keen indeed with sprinkles. It was the first time I applied for a “real” writing position that required actual clips of my work and a cover letter and a resume. And there were quite a few moments as I was...
3 tips for writers dealing with rejection →
amandaonwriting:
Three tips for coping with rejection:
Laugh at your rejections.
Learn from your rejections.
Always have a new project underway, something that will give you hope no matter how many rejections come your way for the previous project.
You may take some consolation in knowing the rejection history of these writers and works:
Dune by Frank Herbert – 13 rejections
Harry Potter...
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Writing Tip #9
Life is short. Read a lot, and read the stuff that you want to read.
There are many people who believe that there are certain pieces of literature that everyone should read. War and Peace. Moby Dick. Wuthering Heights. This is not a post saying you should not read those things. This is a post saying that if you like Russian aristocracy, whaling and doomed romances, then read those things.
For...
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On Fanfiction
So I happened upon this link during my daily perusal on my dashboard. It’s an article on Time Entertainment’s site about fanfiction. When I found the post, it had some rather nasty tags about how this paints the fanfiction-writing community in a bad, freakish way, but I’m inclined to disagree.
I’m actually pretty happy to see such detailed attention given to this niche...
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Writing Tip #8
Write something that scares you.
Now, I’m not just talking about, “Write your own Stephen King story” or “Write a story about being covered in scorpions.” Not that you can’t do those things. Have at.
However, I encourage everyone to write at least one piece of fiction in their lives that really scares the piss out of you. You don’t have to show it to...
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The View →
hornsbooksandgingers asked: Guilty English major confession: I didn't like the Great Gatsby, either. I though the title was supposed to be ironic. Apparently it isn't. Whoops.
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5 Things About...Catching Fire →
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Writing Tip #7
Time management.
You hear about it in school, you hear about in your day job, you hear about it on Oprah. “Balls to time management!” you might say. “Balls I say! I know what I need to get done in a given day! I will write as the muse carries me! BALLS.”
I used to work that way. Or, worse, I went through a phase of saying, “I’m going to get up at 5am! Real...
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A recent short story of mine has been published.... →
January 2012
20 posts
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Writing Tip #6
Be careful with your characters — don’t make them too much like yourself.
Now, anybody who has read anything on the Internet knows the term Mary Sue. Or you should. If you don’t:
Mary Sue - noun, the main character of a story used as an idealized self-insertion for the writer. Male equivalen is a “Gary Stu.” These characters have extremely positive qualities, get...
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My new profile on The Shortest Fiction -- read... →
Love this :- 25 things writers should stop doing... →
tumblrbot asked: ROBOTS OR DINOSAURS?
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Writing Tip #5
I have met so many, many writers who, upon introduction, told me that they wrote for themselves. That they always kept a journal. That their writing was this secret imaginary friend that only they could see, and if someone caught them playing with him or her they would disavow any knowledge of it.
I routinely force my imaginary friends on everyone else.
I started a fiction group in Pittsburgh in...
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Writing Tip #4
You see it all the time, this “romanticized” vision of the writer: back slumped over the desk, fingers blistered from hammering on the type writer, bottles of wine or liquor balanced on a manuscript, five o’clock shadow finding its place on the chin, the ember of a cigarette lighting up a half-sunken face with dark eyes and a slack-jawed expression.
Take care of yourself....
5 Things I Do Other Than Write
1. I sing. I can sing very well. This is very much thanks to my Catholic upbringing, during which I sang a lot in church, sang in the choir, sang solo. One of the items on my bucket list is to be in a musical.
2. I am currently changing around everything with my diet. I’ve always been fat. There, I said it. I’m not ashamed of that fact. I am not a self-hating fattie. It’s just...
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“Don’t you think it’s better to be extremely happy for a short while, even if you...”
– Audrey Niffenegger, The Time Traveler’s Wife (via bookmania)
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Writing Tip #3
Keep your day job.
It is the hardest thing for me to say, believe me. Seeing those words - reading them back to myself - it breaks my heart constantly. And there are bad days at least twice a week that I want to throw that cautionary vibe to the wind, say “I’ll show them!” and walk out.
Keep your day job.
Find a job you can tolerate. One with benefits. One that doesn’t...
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5 Things About...The Art of War for Writers →
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Writing Tip #2
Tonight I sat down to submit a fantasy story to Orson Scott Card’s Intergalactic Medicine Show. For a good ten minutes or so, I was accosted by no less than a dozen nagging voices. Am I good enough to submit to a magazine that’s such a big deal? It’s Orson Scott Card! What are you thinking? Is this piece any good at all? Is it even slightly good? Are you insane? You are insane!
...
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5 Things About...The Hunger Games →
One of my New Year’s Resolutions was to read at least one book each month. My first book is “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins, the first in a YA future-gone-bad trilogy.
“Some people never go crazy. What truly horrible lives they must lead.”
– Charles Bukowski (1920-1994)
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Writing Tip #1
When working on a novel, I tend to find that I want to make a note to myself that I can come back to later. I don’t like making multiple files about the same piece, nor do I like the look of inserting comments.
What I find works is to have the note start with a word I know I won’t use anywhere else in the manuscript. This way I can use the Find option, look for the word, and be taken...
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5 Facts About Me
1. My name is Katie.
2. This is my second time trying to maintain a Tumblr about writing.
3. I grew up in Virginia, currently live in Pittsburgh and do not follow sports teams.
4. I don’t like tea, couponing, haikus or working in teams. I love ice cream, sushi, puppies and trying something new.
5. I’m not good at introductions.
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“My people, we stay indoors. We have keyboards. We have darkness.”
– Neil Gaiman on the Craig Ferguson Show, 10.31.11.