Author Extraordinaire
The write stuff of another kind, Philip Kaufman’s seminal 1983 movie “The Right Stuff,” was the story of America’s first steps into space. The movie also served as a reminder of the high cost of sending men into space. Writing the right stuff is very much the same. The “lives lost,” in this case, are […]
MoreWhen I first began writing, I sometimes had difficulties fictionalizing periods of my life around which I wanted to build a story. Keeping it real while turning fact into fiction was not something I was familiar with, and hence became a stumbling block of sorts. Fellow writers advised me to “let it rest,” that maybe […]
MoreEvery writer has days where nothing seems to go right. Ideas won’t come, words don’t get written, story-telling gets put-off, for whatever kinds of justification (it’s a rainy day; the relatives are coming; the cats need food, etc.). Mental chaos, in other words. Maybe it’s because you’re over “stuffed.” You already have way too much […]
MoreThe process is commonly known in the sports world as “muscle memory.” A phenomenon not limited to athletes, writers engage in very similar practices in order to excel at their craft. Storytelling, whether faction or fiction, uses the same principles. Training through exercising—writing—testing, adjusting, and exercising—rewriting—again. Top athletes train for long hours in a concerted […]
MoreI’ve heard a few writers offer the advice, “Write something, every day, without fail.” While their intentions are good, the logic behind the advice is bad. In that respect I disagree with the principle. During the early stages of my writing career, I took that kind of advice to heart. After all, these were writers […]
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