Screenplays and Schedules

This semester, I feel as if I’m writing on someone else’s schedule. In the past, even when I’ve had other classwork and writing assignments, I’ve always felt like I was able to do them at my leisure, when I felt like writing. Somehow it seemed as if writing was my idea, rather than the professor’s. But especially as… Continue reading Screenplays and Schedules

On Writing Prompts

For Christmas, my roommate bought me a book of writing prompts. I’ve never really been the kind of person to write based on a prompt; usually I just sit around until I have some kind of idea (usually a bad one), and then I write on that for a while before I get stuck. You would… Continue reading On Writing Prompts

Relearning the Craft

I begin each new semester with a bit of trepidation about what I’m going to be learning. Last semester the daunting project was a grant proposal. The semester before that I fretted over both nonfiction and fiction workshops, which I hadn’t had any experience with before. This semester the worry is threefold. Due to some… Continue reading Relearning the Craft

Finishing Your Novel

I’m nearing the end of my current project, and I can feel myself slowing down; as the end draws nearer, my daily word count decreases, and I spend more time reading, researching, and plotting. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, considering the fact that I was unsure of exactly how the story would end until about three… Continue reading Finishing Your Novel

The Weight of Words

The position I’m in right now, which is a great one by the way, is all because of a few words one of my professors told me. Here’s his final critique for the portfolio (first ten pages of a novel) that I submitted for my creative writing class: “An excellent start to a gripping story. You’d… Continue reading The Weight of Words

Tips on Short Story Writing

Since I made my New Year’s Resolution to write more (it was actually to write everyday, but that’s not happening…), I’ve been writing a lot of short stories. It’s kind of difficult, since I tend to focus more on longer works. Next thing you know, I’ll be writing poems (just kidding)! Anyway, I’ve submitted five… Continue reading Tips on Short Story Writing