This week's writing exercise is simply a link to a fabulous article, an interview in Brainpickings with the Pulitzer-winning author...

I'll never forget the first year of my MFA.  I had a great adviser, a well-published writer, who was also a minimalist.  I am no...

A few of my private clients are playing with the idea of using both first person and third person narrators in their novels or memoi...

Writers gather around the big classroom conference table.  It's the first evening of my weeklong writing retreat.  I ask each writer ...

Feedback is a tricky process.  Lots of danger if you choose feedback partners that have something to prove--they're smart, literary, ...

I'm a lifelong learner--there's always so much new stuff to practice and absorb about making great books.  I take different onli...

Most of my students and coaching clients know about the read-through.  It's a full-manuscript read that you do at several stages ...

Right now, I'm working with a writer who is studying pacing:  specifically, how to pace her chapters.  She tends to deliver too much...

On Sunday, I'm heading to Madeline Island, a lovely spot in Lake Superior that happens to house an equally lovely arts school ...

Lots of writers struggle with the opening to their books, no matter what genre.  I'm working with one client in my retainer coachi...