Archive | 9:10 pm

Learn from the Best

19 Aug

003Welcome back my friends!  Let’s see what kind of mischief we can get into this week.

Let’s start with a quote and then get down to business.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Just as food eaten without appetite is a tedious nourishment, so does study without zeal damage the memory by not assimilating what it absorbs.”

Leonardo da Vinci
Read that quote again.  It speaks volumes no matter what path you take in life.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY

I am assuming, and that is always a danger, that those who are reading this blog desire to be better writers.  At the risk of kicking the proverbial dead horse, I’m going to discuss this issue of improvement once again.

We have a wealth of knowledge at our fingertips.  Never before, in the history of mankind, has so much knowledge been available to anyone interested enough to do research.  How can we not take advantage of that?

If you want to be a better writer, learn from those who are better than you.  I can learn very little from the writings of a 5th grader. No offense to the 5th graders of the world, but they are not at the level, yet, that I need my mentors to be at.

If I want to be a better mystery writer, I need to read Burke, James, and MacDonald.  The same is true for those interested in being better poets, or memoir writers, or whatever other avenue of writing you follow.  Find out who is the best in that genre and read their works.  What makes them so good?  Why are they considered the best in their field? Do they play metaphors like finely-tuned instruments?  Do they plot a story that is mesmerizing?  Have they crafted a writing voice that is instantly recognizable?  These are the things we must learn if we are to improve our craft.

TIP OF THE DAY

Go to the library and pick out a book by the best writer in your genre.  Read it….dissect it….and learn from it.

PROMPT OF THE DAY

What’s the best movie you have ever seen?  You can only pick one.  Now, why is it the best? What makes that story so memorable?  Can you write a flash fiction using whatever techniques you found in that movie?

CONTEST OF THE DAY

The Richard Sullivan Prize in Short Fiction is accepting submissions.  Check it out here.

WRITER OF THE DAY

Say hello to Nell Rose.  You can find her by following this link.  I think you’ll enjoy her sense of humor and the wide-array of “strange” topics she covers with her articles.

AND THAT’S ALL FOR TODAY

I’ll be back Thursday with more tidbits about writing.  You know how much I appreciate you being here.  Let’s do it again soon.

Bill

“Helping writers to spread their wings and fly.”