Creating a character takes a ton of work.  Not only do you need to know who a character is and what they look like, but you also need to make ...

The fast answer is: “It’s not just you.  Virtually all aspiring authors make lots of mistakes in their manuscripts.” Last week, an author who used WritAnon’s editing service sent me this ...

Last week, I stumbled across one of my new favorite blogs:  SlushPile Hell. The entries are generally short, but do an excellent (and often humorous) job of pointing out mistakes that ...

Work can certainly be boring sometimes, but you don’t need to let your own emails contribute to this.  Show some passion for your work, and you just might find yourself ...

At one time, writers were known for staying up all night, typing away at a typewriter or scratching away with a pen, surrounded by crumpled-up paper. These writers knew one thing:  ...

Recently, I’ve taken over leadership of a writing group in my area, and I’ve been meeting a lot of new talented writers in this role.  As part of this, I’ve ...

Over the past few weeks, several people have pointed me to a brand new site: http://iwl.me iwl.me — short for “I write like” — is designed to give people an ...

My wife and I recently bought new furniture, and part of that included a new desk for me. My old desk was a hand-me-down from my parents, and I’ve used it ...

There’s a little-known theory for how the story of vampires came to be. Vampires, like all creatures of fiction, are based in reality–real events, real symptoms, and real people.  Without access ...

1 year ago today, on June 16, WritAnon was officially launched. In recognition of this milestone, we will be giving away 10 WritAnon t-shirts. How to win: You can ...

Lately, I’ve been experimenting with the concepts of repetition to create more effective arguments and impassioned speeches in my stories. Two of these repetitive methods are called tricolons and antithesis. Tricolons where ...

Recently I came up with another storyline that I would like to work on. I have 5 or 6 story lines that I am working on right now. After starting work ...

A moral quandary: Let’s say that you’re reading something written by another writer, and you find a significant problem.  Do you tell the writer about the problem, or do you ...

This week, I thought I’d share my progress on my novel, which I announced that I’d start work on in the beginning of this month.  There are two reasons for ...

This week has been one of worry for me. I live in Rochester, Minnesota and since January, I have been following a bear named Lily and her cub, Hope via ...

Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve had a lively discussion in the forums regarding “Mary Sue” or “Gary Stu” characters in your writing. First, my (unofficial) definition of a Mary ...

With the summer approaching, many people will be writing thank you cards for graduations, weddings, and other special events.  While many consider writing thank-yous antiquated and out of date, I ...

Using Writing to Reduce Stress “You worry too much” If I had a nickel for every time I heard that, I would be rich. Despite this, I realize it is a ...

One of my biggest challenges with writing a story is getting started. As an example, I had a hard time working on my newest novel idea this past week. ...