12 Lazy Writing Habits to Break

Writing is hard work. It is often exhilirating, but it can be exhausting, too—both physically and mentally. Sometimes we get tired or burned out, and it’s tempting to cut corners. But don’t. That mindset is not going to get you to your best writing. When you feel yourself leaning toward taking the easy way out, … Read More

The Problem with Know-It-Alls

Omniscient point of view isn’t generally favored in contemporary fiction, and it’s difficult to write well. But that doesn’t stop writers from trying to write it. I can certainly understand the appeal—when you’re writing from an omniscient point of view, it makes things less complicated. You don’t have to worry about how to impart information … Read More

The Connection Between Beginnings and Endings

Spoiler alert: I’m going to discuss the beginnings and endings of Celeste Ng’s novel Everything I Never Told You, Colson Whitehead’s The Nickel Boys, and the classic 1950 film All About Eve, screenplay by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. I won’t give away the ending of Ng’s novel specifically, in terms of what happens in the story, but … Read More