Challenge
My journey from "The Journey"
Approx. 25th June 2021 – I was almost at the end of my paternity leave after the birth of my daughter. Due to short staffing issues, I had to short my prescribed time by a couple of days, so I had only spent about 8 or 9 days with our new baby before the shop called me to it once more. It was little more than an innocent scroll through Facebook when I saw the ad, a face in a gas mask, like a throwback to the music video for My Chemical Romance’s ‘Welcome to the Black Parade’. Hmm, a writing challenge. I’ve always been a voracious reader, right from childhood, and I once had designs upon writing a book.
By Luke Foster3 years ago in Writers
When the Pencil Hit the Paper
When I was young, I never understood writing for fun. It honestly just happened. I never sat at the kitchen table pondering potential themes and stories, never created characters and explored their arcs at the familiar and sacred space of my desk. I had a pile of journals that I loved to collect, but never write in, and occasionally I’d sift through and find the prettiest one and just - wing it. At the age I was, I never recognized it as a hobby. I never recognized plot points or utilized character sheets, never made outlines, or even went back and edited what I wrote. I’d open the journal, pick up a pencil, and just write what was on my mind. And somehow, as an 11-year-old, was able to string together enough words and thoughts to create stories - not very flushed out - but they were stories nonetheless.
By Nicole Fenn3 years ago in Writers
A Discourse on Pizza, or 10 Things About Me. Top Story - September 2023.
This is written as a part of Kayleigh’s Get to Know Me series. So, I despise writing about myself (shit, that should have been point number one), and that means this will probably have no polish to it. By the time we get done together, it’s going to resemble regurgitated alphabet soup garnished with hot takes and bad puns. Get ready. But hey, there’s a challenge and a prize at the bottom for anyone who makes it there!
By Matthew J. Fromm3 years ago in Writers
The first piece that I remember
The first piece that I remember writing, I must be around 7 years old and in year three. It was the first time that in Literacy class (that's the word used to describe English at that age) , that we had come across complex texts. Or as complex as they will be for someone that age.
By Neil Marathe3 years ago in Writers
Writing a Book in 30 Days
There is a plethora of resources that support the idea of writing a book in a month. If you search for “Write a book in 30 days” on Amazon, you get dozens of results. The National Novel Writing Month is based on the idea of writing a book in a month.
By R.S. Sillanpaa3 years ago in Writers
What is Your Voice?
Detecting Your Accent Despite opinions to the contrary, what constitutes a writer’s “voice” relies on their writing style, technique, vocabulary, and grammatical structure. Detecting a writer’s voice is something that most people do after reading a specific author for a long time. It’s like your relationship with someone that you've become intimately familiar with. Family members, friends, and coworkers are all people we become so familiar with their speech patterns that we instantly know if someone is trying to impersonate them. Or if there is something wrong with them, by the way, they are talking alone.
By Atomic Historian3 years ago in Writers
From Fuzzy Feelings to Finer Verses
Have you ever been told you can’t? That you aren’t good enough? Take a moment. Breathe. Now, imagine meeting me in person. Imagine we’re sitting across from each other (or side by side if direct eye contact isn’t your thing). You’d notice that I rarely flaunt my identity. But today, I lay my cards on the table and tell you I am a poet and an author with bona fide publications to my name. (Please, don’t rush off to find them; this isn’t a sales pitch.)
By Dan-O Vizzini3 years ago in Writers
Filling the Blank Page
I was always a writer in school, as early as the elementary grades. When we learned that we had to write an essay, my classmates would groan while I would become giddy with anticipation, sharpening my pencils and pulling out stacks of paper. On one sixth-grade assignment, I had inexplicably forgotten to write a short answer in the middle of the homework. My teacher somehow overlooked my omission and gave me a 97% on the assignment. I immediately brought the issue to her attention, and she lowered the grade but gave me credit for being honest. Instead of 77%, I ended up with 85%. When she saw my reaction, she asked me why I was still upset, and I told her because I didn’t get to write the answer.
By Nanette M. Day3 years ago in Writers
