This article was originally published in The Writer’s Everything, Issue #012.

As writers, all of us know what creativity feels like. It’s that magical time where the sky is the limit. Anything is possible. That’s what caused most of us to become writers in the first place. The opportunity to create is just too enjoyable to pass up. Unfortunately, however, there are times where that creativity seems to dry up.

This article was originally published in The Writer’s Everything, Issue #011.

While authors are, for the most part, fairly reasonable and level-headed (you have to be if you’re going to get in the headspace of each of your characters), there is one question that divides even the best of us. It’s an elemental debate that stems from the very core of how we function. 

That conflict is between planners, those who outline their novels ahead of time, creating a step-by-step guide to carry them through the writing process, and pantsers, those who fly by the seat of their pants, allowing nothing, not even their own notes, to stifle their creative process. 

This article was originally published in The Writer’s Everything, Issue #010.

Finishing the first draft of your novel is an absolutely enormous accomplishment. If you’ve ever written the final paragraphs of your 100,000 word manuscript, bookending it all with “The End,” then you have the right to be proud. Maybe even let yourself feel a little cocky. After all, you’re going to need all the encouragement and energy you can muster to push yourself through the next step.

If you know what this step is already, then you’re more than likely dreading the following word: editing. As awesome as it is to finish a first draft, it’s only half the battle. Oh, who am I kidding? It’s a lot less than half.

This article was originally published in The Writer’s Everything, Issue #009.

You’ve finally done it. You’ve put in the time, the effort, the blood, sweat, and tears. You’ve come out on the other side victorious, a first draft in your shaky grasp. Creating an entire novel is a substantial undertaking. No doubt by the time you typed “The End” on the last page of your document, you were ready to take a break.

Taking time away from your manuscript, especially after an intense, no holds barred experience like the recent National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), is certainly understandable. In fact, most people consider it to be a necessity. There’s something about spending time away from a project that allows you to be able to see things objectively, and thus make drastic improvements on your first draft.

The idea of editing, however, is a daunting prospect to many writers. For first-timers, it may seem utterly impossible. You know that there is so much to do, but you can’t find a clear indication of where to start. So what should you look for when you begin the editing process on your work-in- progress (WIP)?

This article was originally published in The Writer’s Everything, Issue #008.

Books, magazines, pamphlets, scrolls, clay tablets; the written word is a distinctly human invention. With it, we can share our thoughts, feelings, desires, and emotions across time and space. We can transfer our knowledge and wisdom directly to our readers’ minds, achieving a level of intimate understanding that is unique to our species.

It’s no wonder that millions of individuals around the world aspire to be authors. Unfortunately, however, this is a near-insurmountable goal for the vast majority of them. The ideas are there, as are the feelings and emotions they want to elicit in the hearts of their readers. But writing a book is an enormous undertaking which requires at least a moderate understanding of the art of storytelling.