Writing Tips
What is Tone in Literature?
Everything you read has a tone. Blog posts will have an engaging and conversational tone; Textbooks often have an informative, matter-of-fact tone. A piece of satire might have a humorous…
Read MoreHow to Submit to Literary Journals
For the last few months, you’ve opened the document on your computer and spent time constructing sentences, reading, researching, and working on the right metaphor for your poem, short story,…
Read More10 Things Every Children’s Picture Book Writer Should Know
Picture books—don’t they conjure up happy memories? Maybe you have read them to your kids. Maybe you recall them being read to YOU. Remember having favorites that you wanted to…
Read MoreInterview: Barbara Henning Discusses “Prompt Book” and Finding the Inspiration to Write
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…
Read MoreWhat is Urban Fantasy? Writing the Urban Fantasy Genre
If you’re interested in writing urban fantasy, just know this: urban fantasy books ruined my trip to New York City. There weren’t any goblins under the Brooklyn Bridge, the lions…
Read MoreHow to Avoid Clichés in Writing
I hope this isn’t unoriginal, but reading clichés in writing make me feel like I’ve woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Really, clichés in writing are a dime…
Read MoreHow to Write a Compelling Story
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…
Read MoreHow to Read Prose: Close Reading Strategies for Prose Writers
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…
Read MoreHow to Read Poetry Like a Poet
Poetry is the densest and richest use of language there is, and learning how to read poetry is an art in itself. Learning how to read poetry like a poet—to not…
Read MoreHow to Read Like a Writer
One of the first things I learned in a fiction writing workshop was the phrase “reading like a writer.” The term was popularized by Francine Prose’s work of the same…
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