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Literary Agents: What They Do and How to Find One

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What does a literary agent do? And where do you go about finding a literary agent? When you’re ready to submit a manuscript for publication, you might solicit top literary agents to represent your work. But, like most things in the writing business, actually getting a literary agent—especially a good one—proves much more difficult than […]

Proof of Life

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There is a tiny person under my roof this morning.  She arrived two days ago, and I fussed and worried and sterilized and kept the appropriate social distance, until finally her mother placed her gently in my arms.  I cannot adequately describe how it felt to hold another human close, after the terrible, endless Covid […]

My Blessed Boy on the Streets…and my Teacher of all Things Good

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Previously Published in U.S. Catholic.  A sometimes lonely leftover phone booth stands on a street corner in Portland, Oregon. When a street person feels so inclined, he or she can use the one-time pay phone, now free of charge, to call friends and/or family anywhere in the world. And inside the phone booth, profound words […]

Interview: Barbara Henning Discusses “Prompt Book” and Finding the Inspiration to Write

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If you’re a writer looking for prompts, inspiration, or lessons on literary movements, then Writers.com instructor Barbara Henning‘s new book Prompt Book (Spuyten Duyvil Publishing, 2021) is your solution. Naturally, we were curious about how an author goes about collecting and publishing a book of prompts. Below is our full interview with Barbara on Prompt Book […]

Prose vs. Poetry: Their Differences and Overlaps

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The difference between prose and poetry seems easy to explain: one has blocks of text and fully-fleshed characters, the other has line breaks and pretty words. That’s it, right? Despite their visual quirks, prose and poetry share many similarities: prose can be musical, poetry can have plots and characters, and both are millennia-old traditions. As […]

How to Avoid Clichés in Writing

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A few weeks ago, we discussed the myth of originality as it relates to writing a compelling story. While no story is truly original, something all unoriginal stories share is the use of clichés. Countless clichés in writing exist, but the savviest writers know how to snuff out trite sentences and overused character tropes. This […]

How to Write a Compelling Story

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What makes a story interesting? Hasn’t every original idea already been taken? Trying to write an interesting story seems impossible when so many books have been written, and if you’re at the start of your literary career (or trying to start your next book!), you might be daunted by the task of originality. In other […]

Creative Nonfiction Writing Classes Online: 8 Things to Know

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Taking a creative nonfiction course online is a great way to improve your writing, or even just to hold yourself accountable to writing creative nonfiction. If you haven’t taken creative nonfiction writing classes online before, though, it can be difficult to know if a particular creative nonfiction writing class is the right fit for you. […]

How to Read Prose: Close Reading Strategies for Prose Writers

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In this article, we’ll give you strategies to begin reading prose like a writer. We’ll discuss applying close reading strategies to prose: that is, to anything that isn’t written in verse, from short stories to novels to memoirs and more. This article is third in our series on how to read like a writer—in other […]

Concise Writing: How to Omit Needless Words

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This article is all about concise writing, summed up in the timeless phrase “Omit needless words.” We’ll examine some of the best advice on writing concisely, define what concise writing is and isn’t, and describe 11 writing habits that encourage concision. “Omit Needless Words” and The Elements of Style In 1920, William Strunk Jr. published […]
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