A surefire way to blend scene and reflection in essays
The hallmark of an effective memoir or essay is the blend of scene and reflection, or the “show AND tell.” …
Category Archives: Creativity
How do you work? Cluttered or clean?
I find this quote attributed most often to Albert Einstein. My home space is cluttered, and my mind definitely feels …
The beauty of persistence
Back before I had a book to my name, I would see published authors and feel this intense need/want to …
Do you succumb to envy?
This essay by Erika Schickel in L.A. Observed received some flack when it first came out years ago. In the …
What some writers have in common with the Backstreet Boys
I heard a conversation the other day regarding the relationship between writers and their readers (aka the “audience”). And this …
How to generate ideas for memoir
Photo Credit: MarkGregory007 Flickr via Compfight cc I distinctly remember writing an essay in a writing workshop and then thinking, …
What bold thing can you do today?
I love Jen Sincero! Her books and daily calendar inspire me. This particular quote really stood out. I did a …
Use rejections to treat yourself!
I’m in the process of querying my manuscript and that means getting a lot of rejections. It takes patience to …
A tip for managing unwieldy essays
I’m a big fan of dumping my ideas onto a piece of paper when I’m writing an essay. It helps …
What I’m good at
God bless Jami Attenberg. If you don’t subscribe to her “Craft Talk” writing newsletter, I highly recommend doing so. She’s …
If You Have Five Seconds to Spare 