#writing Archives - Page 3 of 3 - Megan Short | Inspirational Romantic Suspense Author

Changing things up when you’re stuck

It has been years since I even thought about writing a short story. Which is probably why it felt like a lightbulb moment when a writer friend suggested I start.

When truth is too strange for fiction

Mark Twain’s words “the truth is stranger than fiction” have become a cliché because they are accurate. As fiction writers, we get to experience this in real time: the first reader or editor comments, “that just wasn’t believable”; yet you had stolen it from a real life experience. This played out for me when I read a recent interview.

Making the unlikeable acceptable

I remember a tutor, a long time ago, used the example of Jack Nicholson in As Good as it Gets to prove his point that a protagonist does not have to be likeable. It’s a good example because if I ran into Melvin Udall in my daily life, I would change course immediately. Despite his excellent points, to date all of my protagonists are likeable, or at the very least, sympathetic.

The ball and chain of perfection

I used to be a perfectionist. I was voted the class perfectionist in 8th grade. Yep, I was a notorious perfectionist. Perfectionism is a good thing, sometimes. But a hell of a thing most of the time.

Finding your voice

The first time I heard about a writer’s voice I was a teenager, sitting at an awards ceremony. It was getting late and people were a bit fidgety. We were onto the poetry awards. The third place had been presented — he was grateful to the sponsors and his family. The audience was expecting a similarly short and sweet acceptance from the second placer. Nope. She started waxing lyrical about how she had finally found her voice. I think she was on her back porch feeding the birds at the time. She was very passionate about it, and the description was extremely long winded. I started looking at my watch, hoping for it to end. Now, I wish I had listened and taken notes. She was generously sharing what can make or break your sense of self as a writer: the writer’s voice.

Editing for depth

The entire world is in the midst of a period of uncertainty that most of us have never experienced. The feelings that this time evokes – the fear, anxiety and loss – are new to many of us. If you are a writer, using these new feelings to add depth to your characters may provide a healthy and welcome outlet.

Getting back to the work

One of my writer friends recently said that our North Star has to be the work. The actual process of creating is what makes us feel good so it makes sense to always come back to that. Regardless of that, sometimes it is hard because life gets in the way. It is those times that I remind myself of a quote attributed to Confucius: “It does not matter how slow you go as long as you keep moving forward”.