The Forge for Your Characters
The literary term for life experience is backstory. This is your character’s origin story. Discover tips for backstory from IFW instructor Lynne Smith.
181: Revision Tips from an Editor
181: Revision Tips from an EditorJanuary 3, 2020
5 Ways to Get Over Writer’s Burnout
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > What to do when your creativity ebbs. Being a writer for a living is a funny thing. Unlike a lot of other jobs, writing comes down solely to you, and to your own mind. If you’re broken in…
121: Writing as You 2.0
121: Writing as You 2.0
October 19, 2018
Strunk & White: The Elements of Style
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog Virtually everyone calls it a “classic”—and with good reason Ask anyone for recommendations about books on writing and invariably someone will pipe up with, “Strunk & White—The Elements of Style!” Having somehow managed to arrive squarely in the middle…
Stephen King: On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft | IFW
Stephen King’s ON WRITING: A MEMOIR OF THE CRAFT isn’t just a book about writing; it’s also a memoir, making it a must-read for all writers. Let’s find out why!
114: Leaving the Nest
114: Leaving the Nest
August 31, 2018
10 Things That Make Editors Cringe
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Everybody knows to use spellcheck or Grammarly when going over their writing. However, the following mistakes aren’t generally caught by these two programs. And if you want to stop an editor’s eyes from rolling to the back of…
111: Revision: First Step to Fantastic Writing
111: Revision: First Step to Fantastic Writing
August 10, 2018
110: Distance: The Key to Revision
110: Distance: The Key to Revision
August 3, 2018
Okay, I’ve Finished My Revision. Now What ? | IFW
Once you’ve finished your last big revision, what do you do now? You bask in the glow of a job well done. Then you get back to work. Your next steps are here.
109: Revise Your View of Revision
109: Revise Your View of Revision
July 27, 2018
Revision: Revising By the Bones
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Some writers love outlines. They outline everything they write and feel it gives the story order and direction. Some hate outlines and feel that an outline makes a story rigid and lifeless.…
Writer Reason Vs. Story Reason
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Generally the things we put into our work have strong writer reasons for being there. The main character has a sidekick to give him someone to talk to so the scenes have…
Who’s Ready to Do Some Literary Gardening ? | IFW
Facebook Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > Taking the Pruning Shears to Your Manuscript to Lose the Verbiage* Sometimes, in the process of revising, you realize your manuscript is just too darn long. That’s when you have to get creative about trimming it. Really creative.…
108: How Good is Your Title?
108: How Good is Your Title?
July 13, 2018
Revising Your Picture Book for Clear Structure | IFW
Share on facebook Facebook Share on twitter Twitter We teach our students how to write and get published! View our Course Catalog > One of the major problems editors encounter when reading picture book submissions is the lack of plot, or even purposeful organization. Many picture books basically start with the character waking up, then…
Revision: An Overwhelming Project
The way to go about eating an elephant is one bite at a time and so it is for revising your writing. Break down your revision into small steps and get it done.
107: An Interview with Deborah Heiligman
107: An Interview with Deborah Heiligman
July 6, 2018
072: Look in Your Junk Drawer
072: Look in Your Junk Drawer
October 13, 2017
