Writer Unboxed

My mother-in-law hosted a sugar fest for Mother’s Day, and I’ve just barely emerged from my coma. Because the focus is still shaky, today you’re getting a smattering of unrelated (but hopefully still useful) offerings. Check out a good article on Ten Mistakes Writers don’t See at Holt Uncensored.
The Word Detective waves his magnifying glass […]

Research has long been a love of mine, and that’s a good thing. It’s an integral part of my work as a freelance health writer, and I’ve come to appreciate that it’s an essential part of my fiction writing as well. Once upon a time, I wrote a regular research column called Click Here! for […]

Sunday’s entry in The Writer’s Almanac described the life of Parisian novelist Émile Zola. Born in 1840, Zola became one of the first fiction writers to incorporate realism into his work through extensive research—visiting sites he wrote about, conducting interviews, etc… Sometimes referred to as immersion research, this type of personal experience can add […]

This from USA Today’s blog, “Pop Candy”:
Amazon.com has lauched a feature where authors can connect with fans through blog updates, book recommendations, reviews and more. So far more than 1,000 authors have joined Amazon Connect, including Rick Moody, Elizabeth Kostova and Wonkette’s Ana Marie Cox. Moody, by the way, highly recommends Brian Wilson’s SMiLE and […]

Sometimes there just aren’t enough words. Like when you practically pierce your knee against a table’s edge and would like nothing better than to spew a dump-and-a-half’s worth of verbal filth while the pain crescendos, but your toddler–who’s learning about 800 new words a day–is staring up at you, just waiting for you to spill […]