“Wiki loop” is one of those phrases that has popped up to describe a phenomenon we’ve all experienced: getting stuck reading endless Wikipedia articles. If you’re like me, you may wonder why this could ever be considered a bad thing. But I guess some people have better things to do on Friday nights than click through… Continue reading Embracing the Wiki Loop
Tag: research
Eating vs. Reading: A Research Comparison
Just like fiction, feature writing is hard. I spent a lot of my time doing both this semester, and I learned quite a bit about what translates between genres and what doesn’t. If you’re looking to switch from one to the other, here are a few tips (and my thoughts) on the differences required when… Continue reading Eating vs. Reading: A Research Comparison
Writing What You Don’t Know
“You must stay firmly based in reality when writing,” my creative writing professor says. This means no fantasy, science fiction, or even dystopian stories. I don’t agree with her, but I nod along as she speaks, because she’ll be the one grading my stories. Still, her words bring up an interesting point, and the old… Continue reading Writing What You Don’t Know
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
Ahoy, mateys! (AKA How to Research When Writing a Novel)
For some reason, I decided to write about pirates. Let me first say that I know absolutely nothing about pirates, so there hasn’t actually been much writing going on. I’ve mostly been trying to research actual pirates so that I don’t sound like an idiot. And since I’ve been doing so much research lately, I… Continue reading Ahoy, mateys! (AKA How to Research When Writing a Novel)