Since Florida Writers Association (FWA) is in submission season for our Collection Volume 18: Fragments  and as a longtime editor of The Florida Writer, FWA’s official magazine, I am thinking a lot about what editors expect from the work they receive from writers hoping to be published in a literary magazine or anthology. I am sure the following list of what editors look for is true for publications beyond FWA’s, too. Creative engagement with the theme or prompt. The piece … Read More »

Here are two devices that have become very popular in recent years: the prologue and the epilogue. These are little pieces of text, generally only a few pages long, that precede the opening of a book (to set up the story) or after its “The End” (to explain what happens subsequently). Some people like them; some—me included—do not. But in response to the will of the people, I face inserting a prologue into a novel I’m working on. So let’s … Read More »

One of the primary goals of a fiction writer is to create a strong, unforgettable lead character. Yet, most of us have likely discovered that the full measure of many great characters is brought to light by their sidekick, partner, or buddy. This is a person who might share in the story’s adventures. Maybe it’s a character who plays the part of the reader by asking the questions the reader would ask or pointing out what the reader may or … Read More »

Perhaps it seems self-evident to warn “Don’t say the same thing over and over”—yet it needs to be said. Not because authors are a stupid lot (we aren’t), but because of the on-again-off-again nature of writing and other totally understandable things. Let me explain. I’m currently reading a good novel. The characters are interesting. The scenes are described well. The action comes on fast. Yet in the 25 pages I’ve read, it has been said no less than five times … Read More »

For those who celebrate Christmas, this is the season of reflecting on the incarnation of the Word. To bring that down to “word” with a small w and the rather less exalted profession of writing, that means that we who create novels are really taking inanimate words and spinning from them believable people and whole worlds that can pass for real. Pretty amazing, no? We give words flesh. Just As in Real Life… That’s where the old adage “Show, don’t … Read More »

The first lesson we typically learn as writers is to write what we know—good advice. After all, we want the reader to step easily into the story, sensing its truth and authenticity. But that idea can also stifle a writer. A woman I was coaching told me she would only be able to write about her divorce. “I really don’t want to re-live it,” she said, “but it’s all I feel qualified to write about.” First-hand experience may be a … Read More »