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how to write a poetry book

How to Write a Poetry Book and Get It Published

Writing a poetry book requires courage, stamina, and a lot of patience with yourself. The poetry book ranks at the top of many poets’ to-do lists, but getting a manuscript in front of poetry book publishers takes years of writing and planning. This article covers the essentials of getting new poetry books into print, covering both…

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how to write a memoir

How to Write a Memoir: Examples and a Step-by-Step Guide

If you’ve thought about putting your life to the page, you may have wondered how to write a memoir. We start the road to writing a memoir when we realize that a story in our lives demands to be told. As Maya Angelou once wrote, “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story…

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wordplay definition

Word Play: Examples of a Play on Words

It goes without saying that writers are drawn to language, but because we love words so much, the English language is filled with word play. By interrogating the complexities of language—homophones, homographs, words with multiple meanings, sentence structures, etc.—writers can explore new possibilities in their work through a play on words. It’s easiest to employ…

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From Our Instructors

best gifts for writers

The 35 Best Gifts for Writers in Your Life

Professional authors chime in on gift ideas for writers—both during the holidays and any time of year. If you’re looking for the best gifts for writers in your life, look no further. There are lots of great gifts for creative writers—you just need to get in a writer’s head. With the help of some lovely…

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the setting of a story: functions of setting in literature

What is the Setting of a Story? 5 Functions of Setting in Literature

A short story or novel without a setting is one without context—it occurs nowhere and at no particular time. But every person and everything in our everyday world occurs somewhere at some given time. As in real life, characters are connected in some way, or ways, to a given place. They’re always aware of where…

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Becoming a Poet: Learn to Write Poetry!

Becoming a Poet: Learn to Write Poetry!

Becoming a poet is no simple task, but with careful attention to language and the world around us, anyone can learn to write poetry. Even so, sitting down to put feelings to stanzas can seem impossible. With so many possibilities to tinker with language, where does the poet even begin? Whether you’ve just begun your…

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Character Development

Writing with Confidence

Writing Prompts

Jump-start your creativity with our writing prompts. Check back regularly for new prompts!

Show and Tell

Write a story or poem about an object with a lot of nostalgic value for you/the narrator. Do not, at any point, tell the reader explicitly what this object is.

Forgive and Forget

Write a story or poem about a time when you had to forget something to maintain a friendship or relationship.

Trash Day

Collect pieces of “junk writing”—spam emails, credit card advertisements, roadside billboards, bumper stickers, etc. Then, write a story or poem that uses all of the junk writing you collected.