While I Was Away…

It’s been a productive six months, as you might have noticed from my list of publications. I’m also excited to tell you that I’m finishing up my first-ever creative nonfiction manuscript.

So You Want to Be a Writer?

How to get from there to here

1. Stop letting your inner critic be your boss! Before I started “writing,” I thought the tough part would be coming up with fresh ideas. Since I stopped letting my inner critic make my writing decisions, the ideas haven’t stopped flowing. Don’t be afraid to write–you don’t have to show anyone your first drafts.
2. Take writing classes to help boost your confidence and show you different ways to get your stories down. My writing style has flourished because of writing classes that pushed me to trust my knack for experimenting with words/structure/content. I highly recommend Nicole Breit‘s CNF courses. I also highly recommend looking into MOOC courses.
3. To learn how to edit, one must actually edit! I think self-editing is a challenge for everyone. Before I started critiquing other writers’ work, I had trouble seeing the weaknesses/strengths in my own stories and essays. It’s important to exchange writing to strengthen your editing skills as well as to receive feedback. The important (and difficult) thing is to accept the feedback you don’t want. I used to think my semicolons looked adorable on the page; I also thought they made me look intelligent, but they clearly didn’t.
4. If you don’t submit, you’ll never get published! The year I started writing, I read an article suggesting I aim for 100 rejections–nothing was said about acceptances. That was something I could accomplish! Ever since, I’ve made my yearly rejection quota. (I’ve also had over 30 acceptances!) If you aren’t sure how to get started, I recommend this podcast or this course by Rachel Thompson.

Writing Individual Pieces vs. Compiling a Manuscript

Once you get some publications under your belt and a stack of completed essays/poems/stories in your hard drive, you might consider compiling your work into a manuscript. That’s where I am at, and I tell you…it’s not as easy as I thought! I’ve been plucking away at it for four months now, and there is still one final piece to edit before I can queasily say the first draft is ready for my beta readers. (Let me know if you’d like to be one of them!).

This is a handy tool for anyone who might be thinking of compiling a short story or essay collection. It gave me a place to start.

Now to get to that final piece…

In case you missed me and haven’t had a chance to read these essays (also part of my manuscript), here are some links:

My first ever CNF publication, The Gods, Looking Down

My favourite CNF publication, Remember the Magic

My latest CNF publication, Old Maid’s Puzzle

An interview about my writing space 🙂