Wednesday, November 25, 2025 Daphne: Hear (hear…hear) Me (me…me) Human (an…an).  I (I…I) am the Energy Oracle (el…el)! To attain enlightenment, you must brush me (me&#…

Over the year I have been saving funnies from my various social media platforms and particularly Facebook… some from members of our writing community and I hope they don’t mind if I sha…

on Writing Forward: As we read poetry and other forms of literature, we’ll inevitably come across allusions. An allusion is a reference to something else; it can be indirect or explicit. In poetry, most allusions refer to other works of art and literature or to historical persons or events. Cultural references are also common. Although allusion is a literary device, it’s often used in casual conversation and other forms of communication, expression, and the arts.

Saturday, November 22, 2025 The video above is Joni Mitchell performing “Black Crow” in 1998. Hello, everyone.  For those who were paying close attention, you’re right — thi…

on Jane Friedman site: I began querying my novel Have You Seen Romit? last summer, a day before school ended. I had spent five years drafting and rewriting my book, so querying felt like the right time. Six months before querying, I met an agent through AWP’s Writer to Agent program who said she loved my opening pages and wanted to see the finished manuscript.

on Writing Forward: The more experience I gain as a writer, the more I’m convinced that writing is one of the most difficult skills to master. It’s not enough to tell a great story, share an original idea, or create an intriguing poem; writers are also obligated to pay diligence to the craft. While the content (or message) of our writing is paramount, the way we use language can be just as critical.

on Jane Friedman site: So much of what makes readers respond to and love a character’s voice is steeped in emotion—from the raw and vulnerable to the fierce and confrontive. Voices that allow us to feel are often the most memorable. However, emotion isn’t just about characters laughing or crying; it encompasses a much broader spectrum. What truly defines a character’s emotional depth is not just what they feel, but how they express it—the words they choose, the rhythm of their speech and thoughts, and the unique ways they reveal their inner world.

on Publishing … and Other Forms of Insanity: New literary agencies are started by established agents with considerable experience in the publishing industry. They have reliable contacts in publishing houses and a roster of successes getting writers published. New agencies are looking to expand, and are eager to take on prospective clients. Always check the agency website and agent bio before submitting.

When it comes to writing a villain, the traits are easy to pick up and put on the page. It’s the character who does everything to thwart the hero, and their motivation is power or money, or nothing…

When it comes to writing a villain, the traits are easy to pick up and put on the page. It’s the character who does everything to thwart the hero, and their motivation is power or money, or nothing…

on Fiction University: Hints are great, but be wary of making it too obvious what's going to happen in your novel. If you've ever watched a TV show or movie and heard a random stranger say something like, "Well now, we haven't use that road since a big old sinkhole opened up ten years ago," you've stumbled upon a telegraphed clue.

on Live Write Thrive: Novels are made up of scenes—obviously. Like a string of pearls on a necklace, each scene must be complete, presenting characters moving within a capsule of time, accomplishing specific purposes or objectives that move the plot to the exciting climax and resolution of your story. While not all scenes are structured the same—as certain types of scenes serve different purposes (see the book…

on Writers Helping Writers: Every writer strives to create protagonists with unique qualities that make them compelling, fully-formed people. We spend hours, days, and sometimes years to make them believable. Recently, I attended a day job webinar that gave me new tools and perspectives for fiction. (I love it when that happens.) The course detailed the eight characteristics every person needs…

on Writers Helping Writers: I cringe at the title of this article, because we all know that writing is an art form, and there are thousands of ways to do it. Yet, I used this title because writers ask me daily if I can take a look at their work and let them know if it’s “any good”. These words come from writers, expressing a very common fear that readers won’t connect with their carefully written work.

Saturday, February 1, 2025 Hello, everyone.  I hope you’ve had a wonderful week.  It’s been a while, so you might not remember, but…  Early this year I shared a couple of stories …

on Writing Forward: The world of journaling is fascinating and expansive. There are people who make their own notebooks and fill them with stunning artwork and gorgeous lettering. Others spend months writing in a journal and then burn it when they get to the end, only to start another one. Some people use cheap spiral-bound notebooks for journal writing while others invest in fancy blank books that are filled with upscale paper.

I am delighted to welcome back Terry Tyler with some more of her entertaining funnies. My thanks to Terry Tyler for sharing her humour today. I know she would love to hear from you. A small selecti…

Many writers have a vague understanding of what a protagonist actually is, and the misconceptions in the writing community haven't helped. Learn what truly makes a character a protagonist (and what doesn't). Recently, I was brave enough to share my dissection and analysis of Twilight 😉🙃, and in it, I pointed out that--regardless of what the internet, readers, fans, or even the author says--Edward, not Bella, is the true protagonist (at least in the first installment).

on Writing Forward: Nothing ruins a great piece of writing like weak words and poorly structured sentences. We’ve all been there. You’re working through your first draft or perhaps making your way through revisions. The scene plays out in your mind like a movie. But when you try to put it into words, it just doesn’t flow right. In literature, language is what makes a piece of writing tick.

on Jane Friedman site: Anthologies—groupings of works from different authors—are one of the most powerful tools that a short fiction author has to pursue both income and reader connection goals. The fact that the anthology includes many authors means that it can sell to the fan bases of all those authors, improving its potential for income generation. The fact that all those readers will be exposed not only to the work of their favorite author but also to the work of the other authors in the anthology means that the opportunity for connecting with new readers is high.

on Jane Friedman site: The fairy tale Once upon a time (on May 30, 2024) I sent the email that would change my life, “Dear Editor, please find attached my book proposal.” In late June the editor responded saying that he was interested and on the 30th of July he sent me an offer and a contract. Here I was, a previously self-published author with no significant social media following, holding a contract from a Big Five publisher.

Thursday, November 13, 2025 The image above shows the first result from each of Google, Bing, and Duck-Duck-Go when I did an image search today for the word “elegance.” Wednesday Ponder…

on Jane Friedman site: A writer will say their book is on submission when what they mean is their tender heart is being served on a bed of hope to the publishing industry. My own novel had been on submission for nine months when I took up knitting. I’d written the book during the pandemic and had been sure it would sell quickly and be my breakout success.