Why write your Congressman? People write their elected representatives for a variety of reasons. In a representative democracy like the United States, your congressman acts on behalf of their constituents. Constituents include children, adults, citizens, and immigrants. Regardless of voting status, if you live in this country your congressman speaks for you. They are not mindreaders. It’s up to you to tell them what you think about the issues of the day. Succinct The most important advice for writing your congressmen: be succinct. Your Senator or Representative has thousands of constituents and likely receives hundreds of emails and letters each day. Save your detailed argument with facts, figures, graphs, and…
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What Should I Write About?
Where do you find ideas for stories? Well . . . there are plenty of places to discover something interesting or worthwhile to say. But to track them down, you have to keep informed about what’s happening in the world, brainstorm original ideas, and keep your ear to the ground for the curious, the weird, or the otherwise fascinating. Finding Something to Say Ideas for stories are everywhere. In the news, in that summer novel, in your neighbor’s backyard. Whether you’re writing fiction or nonfiction, an idea is out there waiting for you. Elizabeth Gilbert writes in Big Magic that inspiration is ripe for the writer who is open to…
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Stereotypes in Writing
Stereotyped characters fit a mold manufactured by media and society. They are flat and predictable. If I say “cowboy” do you see a man wearing a Stetson and boots astride a horse? Does “librarian” conjure up an image of a mousy middle-aged woman in glasses and a bun? These are stereotypes—what we expect to see. Expectations can expand to behaviors as well. Cowboys are tough, hard drinking, and independent. Librarians are honest, prim and proper. Why Stereotypes are Valuable Stereotypes can help the reader recognize your character. Men who ride horses, wear Stetsons and boots are cowboys. Prim and proper women who wear glasses and style their hair in a…
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Propaganda
Propaganda is a dirty word. As a writer you have a responsibility to recognize it. As a reader your future may depend on whether you recognize it or not. I’ve been away visiting family and wasn’t sure I’d post this week. But something I saw on Facebook prompted this post. Twisted Truth Let’s start with a definition. Click here. We rarely think of propaganda as the truth. Surprisingly, propaganda can be the truth repackaged. Let me explain. In seventh grade Mrs. Tucker taught a unit on advertising and propaganda. I find it interesting how these topics are linked, but I digress. At the height of the Cold War, she presented…
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Narration and Dialog Keep Your Story Moving
Fiction writing comes in two stripes: narration and dialog. They both move the story along. Narration does it in large strokes. Dialog gets into detail at the character level. Narration Narration allows the writer to relay information that is important to the story in a paragraph or two. It sets the scene, describes a particular place or a specific time period. Or perhaps it condenses the important events leading to the character’s current situation. In a novel, writers use narration to summarize earlier scenes to remind the reader how they got to that point. In each case, narration is a kind of shortcut to give the reader information or description…
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Conflict is the Basis for Storytelling
All good stories contain conflict. Sometimes it’s good against evil, or a misunderstanding that snowballs out of control. Sometimes it’s a humorous mix-up. Whether visiting family, traveling, or attending summer camp this summer, recognize the potential for great stories. Family Conflict What better place to look for conflict than within your own family. Sibling spats, In-law imperfections, and cousin capers all scream conflict. Some of the best family stories involve everyday events blown out of proportion. Think about all the ways siblings get under each other’s skin. Something as simple as a trip to the store can be the basis of a conflict-laden story. Maybe your in-laws are driving you…
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Summer Writing Time is Here!
The summer solstice this week marked the beginning of summer writing season. It started getting light at 4:45 in the morning and didn’t get completely dark until 9:28 at night for a grand total of sixteen hours and forty-three minutes of daylight. Self-care It’s easy to let all your self-care routines lapse during the summer, especially if you are on your own while your parents are at work. What do I mean by self-care? That includes sleeping, eating, hydrating, exercising, and social media usage. Here’s Dr. Mary’s prescription: Get eight to ten hours of sleep a night; eat enough nutritious calories to maintain good health—not too many and not too…
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Dialog Tags
Dialog tags are those bits of information outside the quotation marks that tell who is speaking. Sometimes called speaker attribution, they help keep straight who is speaking. The problem is they can also unnecessarily weigh down your dialog. Changing Styles What do exclaimed, replied, pondered, whispered, and chuckled have in common? They are all used to identify the speaker. Beginning writers may think they are clever to pepper these synonyms for said throughout their work. But these are not invisible words absorbed by the dialog, they stick out like a blinking neon sign saying, “Look at me, look at me.” A generation ago characters replied, exclaimed, and chuckled their way…
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Good writers are consistent
Good writers are consistent. They follow the rules, proofread, and take time to revise. Lack of consistency can fail a beginning writer especially in point of view. Consistent POV Point of view lets the reader know who is telling the story. When your main character is telling the story, the pronouns I, me, and my show first person viewpoint. Third person point of view is when the narrator refers to the main character by name, he, or she. Why is this important? Well, in the revision process it’s important to maintain a point of view, otherwise you confuse your reader. Example: She looked like she was tapping out Morse code on…
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Show Don’t Tell with Sense of Sight
The writer’s mantra show, don’t tell has an obvious partnership with the sense of sight. We show the reader what we see with our eyes. We see shape, size, color, direction, and motion. How best to show these? Comparisons Beginning writers naturally gravitate to the sense of sight in description. We are after all, visual creatures. Be careful not to catalog what you see: the big blue house sat at the end of a long gravel drive. This example includes size, color, and distance descriptors-big, blue, and long. While these all paint an image for the reader, the image is bland and without character. Instead, use comparisons to tease out emotional…
