writing tips
Writing in a Different Season – Writers & (Inconvenient) Transformation
Uncertainty in writing is possibly the sagest teacher. I’m not talking about the blind “I have no idea what I’m doing and I love it” enthusiasm of the beginner, but when the core concept, practice, and process of who you are as a writer goes “poof!”. That when you come to the page, you are …
Resonance: Essays on the Craft and Life of Writing, edited by Andrew Chesham and Laura Farina
Through forty-two personal essays, Resonance: Essays on the Craft and Life of Writing brings together insights from writers and publishers across Canada on the practices that fuel their work.
What Found Me in Buscalan: Honouring Person & Place in Writing
Our words have power. How we shape them, in ignorance, or even with our best intentions, can be harmful. Like many writers, my first attempts were artless and raw. Simple and clichéd listing descriptions, they failed to capture my subject with accuracy or depth. They lacked an ability and intent to honour.
The Cocoon – Revision as an Act of Transformation
Revision is more than just polishing your writing to meet pre-defined standards—it is a crucible. This liminal refuge between mind and page is primed for transformation; the superfluous, what is unsound structurally or stylistically is seared away, so that a writer is cocooned in recomposing.
Grounds for Divorce in Writing: Crippling Clichés
Perhaps you’ve also heard the argument that creative writing should allow space for all kinds of expression? This is true and it does. However, that argument is often used as an excuse when it comes to clichés.
Fearsome Feedback — Critiquing Fellow Writers
If you’ve been a member of a writing group or taken a writing course, one of the most nerve-wracking components is providing feedback for your fellow writers.
When Your Possum is Not So Awesome – Writers & Imposter Syndrome
Kayla Geitzler offers excellent writing advice in her column for The Miramichi Reader.
I Read Somewhere That: Episode 12
Much ado about reviews and reviewers in this podcast! Question for reviewers: hard copy or PDF okay? The Twitterverse casts its vote! Goodreads are reviewing their reviewers – yay and it’s about time! A great newsletter you should sign up for, a motivational quote, is life the spinning wheel of death and top tips from Instagram on how to write great horror! Don’t miss out!
Writing Wholly (Holy) Unto Oneself & A Bit About Writerly Self-Esteem.
A regular feature of The Miramichi Reader, Kayla Geitzler shares her writing tips in her “Kayla Writes” column.
Auteur Inspiration & How Strict Limitations Can Bring You Wondrous Things
Auteurship is all about striking out on your own, finding your collaborative cronies, and breaking the rules to write a space for yourself. What I call “writing you”. Except “writing you” in this context also means the bold pursuit of your art.
Writer’s Block & “Why Would Someone Want to Read ME?”
“What is WRITER’S BLOCK?” I think writer’s block is a lot of things. I believe it’s creative exhaustion, when you’ve pushed yourself to write for too long and need a break, it’s also stress, and day-to-day life crowding writing time. And self-doubt.
Bill Arnott’s Beat: The Authors’ Lounge Interview
Let me start by thanking The Miramichi Reader and editor-in-chief James M. Fisher for being a great supporter and friend to Bill Arnott’s Beat. Much of the success of the column-series and subsequent book, Bill Arnott’s Beat: Road Stories & Writers’ Tips, can be attributed to TMR. I was privileged to be interviewed recently for …
How to Be a (Real) Writer – Pt 2. – Steal Your Little Heart Out & Break the Rules
Just like every other writer, I had to perfect the rules of fine writing—and in the beginning I didn’t like it much. I struggled with two important techniques: moving out of the abstract (“unpacking”) and understanding that the reader was not in my head.
How to Be a (Real) Writer – Pt. 1: Write You
I was five years old when I decided I wanted to be a writer. To be fair, most people don’t find their calling that early in life. But the passion and fascination I’ve had for books, the literary world, and the arts, never left me. Now, as Moncton’s inaugural Anglophone Poet Laureate, a professional editor & writing consultant, as well as the host of the Attic Owl Reading Series, the writing world is my entire life. But what I want to say to you is, that this is my journey and you don’t need to be any of these things to be a writer. To be a real writer, you only need three things.