by Jamie Chavez | Sep 10, 2016 | The Writing Craft
I wrote a version of my WWYK article a year ago, but I wasn’t satisfied with it, and I let it sit for months until I could find the time to think about it and tweak it until I was satisfied. And now that I’ve finally published it, there is a best-selling book out that...
by Jamie Chavez | Aug 15, 2016 | The Writing Craft
Do a little search for this phrase—write what you know (WWYK)—and you’ll get all sorts of articles, some deeper, more knowing, than others. Some of these articles contradict. Some make the concept more difficult than it needs to be. But I’m here to make a case for...
by Jamie Chavez | Aug 13, 2016 | The Writing Craft
Like author Chuck Wendig, I’ve gotten a whole lot pickier about what I read and how much time I give it before I stop. “For one,” he says, “it’s time.” Work and time and personal responsibilities all intrude. But also, he says, “I’m like a stage magician where it’s...
by Jamie Chavez | Aug 8, 2016 | The Writing Craft
Many years ago—long before my editing days—I was reading my hot-off-the-press copy of Pat Conroy’s The Prince of Tides. (Before lights out, in bed, where I still do my pleasure reading.) There was one paragraph (among many) that was so exquisite, so perfect, that I...
by Jamie Chavez | Aug 6, 2016 | The Writing Craft
Jane Friedman really has some interesting guest writers on her blog. A couple weeks ago, this one from author Jennifer Loudon on developing your writing voice: “5 Ways to Develop Your Writer’s Voice.” (I’ve written some on this myself: here and here, just for...
by Jamie Chavez | Jul 23, 2016 | The Writing Craft
Here’s a great article from author Elizabeth Sims about internal dialogue. (In most cases I would call it inner monologue, but that’s neither here nor there; I’ve written about it before.) I particularly got a kick out of Sims’s pointing out pitfalls— Making a...