Use the creative process … to get to know yourself better . -Catie Curtis When we discuss writing, we often talk about the preparation needed to gear us up to write; the important aspects of writing, such as character, plot, dialogue, and scene development; the need to be a good self-editor and to find an even better professional editor; the ins and outs of writing sparkling queries and synopses for agents and publishers; and the ins and outs of going the self-publishing route. In short, we focus on the writing, submitting, and publishing of stories, which is good. We need to talk about these things. We don’t, however, talk much about what we learn about ourselves in the act of writing. And that’s just as important. We are the vessels in which stories flow. If we’re not checking on ourselves, our connection(s) to what we write; our common threads, themes that can be seen within our works; and how what we write might even change us, we may find ourselves churning out the same story w...

My life has always been about the word busy . Being busy with so many things often keeps me away from writing creatively. In 2012, the word busy  has literally taken on a life of its own. Among other things, my Ph.D. work, my teaching load, and my editorial work keep me plenty busy. After struggling to write well academically, to teach students to write well, and to assist clients with their stories, I have had no get up and go to delve into my own creative spaces. In July, I tried to give myself time to think about my own stories and was failing miserably until the end of July when I learned of Esquire 's short short fiction contest . On a whim, I thought, Surely, I can put together 79 words that don't suck too badly, right? It took some time to write the piece, for as we all know, the shorter a piece, the more important each word becomes. In the writing of that first piece, a fire was lit inside me to write more. So, I did. [ my 79-worders ] Since July ...

Christine Fonseca first shared these tips on her blog and was kind enough to agree to visit us as a guest today. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Pulling Yourself Back From the Cliff As writers, we’ve all been there – ready to throw in the towel and send our laptops flying. Maybe it’s the rejections inherent in any creative endeavor. Or maybe it’s the writer’s block that seems to have overtaken every writing moment. Whatever the reason, we have all found ourselves on the cliff ready to jump off. So, what’s a writer to do? Having faced my share of cliffs in my career, here are some of my tips for backing away from the edge: •    Answer this question - Are You a Writer? This is a critical first step. I not asking “Are you published?” or “Are you good enough?” I’m asking whether or not you’re a writer at all. Do you see the world as a series of scenes? Do you look at people in terms of their character traits? Do you remember good lines and think “I really need to use t...