My latest post on “Thinking Through Our Fingers,” a blog on writing:
You don’t have to be a gun expert to write about guns. In most cases, you’re actually better off being as non-specific as possible. Getting into a lot of details about models and actions and calibers is a sure-fire way to put most of your readers to sleep. When details matter, though, it’s important to get them right. Failing to do so can turn readers off to your writing.
My latest post on “Thinking Through Our Fingers,” a blog on writing:
Simply put, formatting matters. If you follow standard formatting conventions of font size, margin width, and so on, professional readers (including agents, editors and publishers) have an easier time gauging the pacing of your book. Even more importantly, formatting your work correctly can make you look more professional—and more “serious” as a writer.
My latest post on “Thinking Through Our Fingers,” a blog on writing:
Not everyone enjoys running, of course, but over the past several years it’s become a big part of my life. It’s also become an integral element of my writing process. Even if you have no interest in ever running a marathon (or even a 5K), if you’re “competing” in the 50K/30.0 “marathon” of NaNoWriMo, you’re still a marathoner in my book.
My latest post on “Thinking Through Our Fingers,” a blog on writing:
If you involve another person in the brainstorming process, it’s critical to find someone you trust, who will listen without judging your ideas and respond like both a reader and a writer. I chose a member of my writing group—let’s call him “Mike.” (After all, that’s his name.) I told him where I was in the process and explained what I was looking for. Then I took him to lunch, because who doesn’t love free food?
My latest post on “Thinking Through Our Fingers,” a blog on writing:
Because words are tools. As a writer, I refuse to give up any tool for the sake of political correctness. As a writer, I reserve the right to use the R-word. I also reserve the right to use the N-word, the F-word, the G-word, the Q-word, and every other tool at my disposal. In real life, people are hateful, mean, racist, stupid, behind the times, every possible kind of -phobic, and sometimes just thoughtless. They reveal their best and worst character in their speech, in their thoughts, and in their authentic voice.
