Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, September 13-19, 2015

September 22, 2015 / Melanie Marttila

I can barely contain myself! This week’s Writerly Goodness is so . . . GOOD.

So, first Lorraine Devon Wilke publishes this article in The Huffington Post: Dear self-published author, do not write four books a year.

Then all this happened:

Larry Correia dissected and lampooned the article.

Chuck Wendig responded with, Dear any-kind-of-published author: write as much as you want.

And even John Scalzi felt compelled to post, how many books you should write in a year.

</Rant on>It all comes down to the individual. Write as much, or as little, as you want/need to. It was an interesting controversy, however, and worth the read. Wendig mentions the Stephen King article I shared a few weeks ago along with a few others on the topic. Never lose sight of your goals and don’t let stuff like this distract you. Read it and take what you need from it. The rest is noise. Interesting noise, but noise, nonetheless. </Rant off>

K.M. Weiland shares eight paragraph mistakes you may not know you’re making. These are good 🙂

How the poor choice of your character’s goal can kill your novel. Katie’s Friday vlog. Yes, she changed her schedule, like, a month ago, and I’m just getting used to it now . . . Make of that what you will.

Jane Friedman gets back to basics: writing the synopsis.

Bonnie Randall posts on Janice Hardy’s Fiction University about rejection and how to deal with it. I love this, because it’s basically my take on the experience.

Our fractured days: Steven Pressfield offers advice about staying on schedule when life (or other things) happens.

Gwen Hernandez joins Writer Unboxed with this post: Nine (or more) things I love about Scrivener.

Kameron Hurley asks what will you sacrifice and offers a review of The Traitor Baru Cormorant.

Later in the week, Kameron tackled cold publishing equations.

Porter Anderson weighs in on the latest Authors Earnings Report.

Mira Jacob writes about her experience with diversity (or lack thereof) in American publishing for Buzzfeed.

Usually, VSauce would appear on the Thoughty Thursday roundup, but this week, Michael was talking about language, linguistics, and math. IT’S AWESOME!

And the poetry of The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows is back. Here are two lovely entires:

This is part of why I stopped at getting my MA (and still, in many ways regret going that far). The shit graduate studies asks you to vomit out in the name of “higher” education. Tickld.

Ursula K. Le Guin speaks to myth, modernism, and why she’s suspicious of the MFA. Salon.

Margaret Atwood waxes political and literary on the topic of our (un)freedom. The Guardian.

Aja Romano of the Daily Dot presents “dreadpunk” as a new subgenre. It seems like good ole Gothic to me. Do we really have to redefine these things? What do you think?

Electric Lit shares this poster about yoga for writers.

Buzzfeed presents 21 signs that prove booksellers are clever 🙂

Dogs and books! Two of my favourite things together! The cute! Bustle.

Eeee! Wasn’t this a tasty week? Yes. I equate writing craft and book porn to consumables 🙂 Nom. Nom. Nom.

See you Thursday!

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, August 30-September 5, 2015

September 8, 2015 / Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

W00t! This past week was all about the writerly goodness!

K.M. Weiland explains how to write a sequel that’s even better than the first book.

Are your plot and theme working together? Helping writers become authors.

Katie gives us a virtual tour of her writing space.

Why you should look into the psychology of writing and the cognitive science of the perfect writing routine. Brainpickings.

In the wake of his post on the mistakes of inexperienced writers, Chuck Wendig wrote on the subject of your discouragement.

How to be a successful writer: stop comparing yourself to everyone else. The Write Life.

Vaughan Roycroft explored how to rekindle your motivation on Writer Unboxed.

Then, Kristan Hoffman wrote about getting over the hump. Writer Unboxed.

Gabriela Pereira shares her mindfulness manifesto on the DIYMFA podcast.

Mike Swift writes about the singularity of voice for Writer Unboxed.

Joanna Penn points out five problems you should avoid in your first novel.

Chris Winkle lists 44 words to seek and destroy in your draft. Mythcreants.

Ginger Moran shares the four S’s of sustained creativity on Tim Grahl’s blog.

Steven Pressfield writes about resistance and hooks. In this context, hooks refer to the provocative comments readers make for and against you and/or your book.

Christine Frazier deconstructs back cover copy to help you writer your blurb. The Better Novel Project.

Bonnie Randall offers her book signing cheat sheet to those who wish to stay sane while everyone ignores them. Janice Hardy’s Fiction University.

Agent Carly Watters offers writing diversity campaigns, resources, terms, and tells you how to read between your lines.

Writers talk about the complexity of race. The Guardian.

Neil Gaiman: my parents didn’t have any . . . rules about what I couldn’t read. The Guardian.

J.R.R. Tolkien expounds on fairy tales, language, the psychology of fantasy, and why there’s no such thing as writing for children. Brainpickings.

The fun stuff: brain fart, bants, and fur baby added to the Oxford online dictionary. Writers Write.

Quirk Books found these ten music videos based on literature.

I hope something here helps to support your creative life.

I’ll be back on Thursday with a teeny tiny bit of thoughty.

See you then!

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, August 16-22, 2015

September 1, 2015 / Melanie Marttila

Blissfully back to normal!

And Mom’s surgery went wonderfully, thanks.

Now, on to the Writerly Goodness:

Are you protagonist and your main character the same person? K.M. Weiland explains how the answer could transform your story.

The Pixar way to think about conflict in your story. Katie’s weekly vlog.

Chuck Wendig shares his writing process and invites us to share ours. Terribleminds.

He also smells our rookie moves . . . and tells us how we can avoid them.

Marcy Kennedy guest posts on Jami Gold’s blog on the topic of internal dialogue and three story problems it can help us address.

How to become a bestselling, full-time novelist—it’s so easy! Dan Blank takes a facetious look at becoming an overnight success as an author on Writer Unboxed.

Stephen Kings asks, can a novelist be too productive? The New York Times.

Jeff Bollow’s how to write FAST. By the way, that’s an acronym. It’s not about speed or productivity.

Leta Blake highlights diversity in the LGBTQ community for Writer Unboxed.

The Rabbit Box: a strange and wonderful storybook for grownups. Brainpickings.

Neil Gaiman explains why our future depends on libraries, reading, and daydreaming. The Guardian.

Dylan Landis shares her experience with grief and how it affected her. The New York Times.

The BBC talks to Verlyn Flieger, who helped to bring J.R.R. Tolkein’s Kullervo to print.

R.F. Foster on Yeats, faeries, and the Irish occult tradition:

Flavorwire shares this list of 50 books for 50 classes—a curriculum on your bookshelf.

Who won the Hugos and why it matters. Wired.

Noah Berlatsky chimes in with this take on women authors in SF and the Hugo controversy for Playboy.

Gary K. Wolfe writes about it in the Chicago Tribune, as well.

Takeaway of the week: It doesn’t matter whether your write fast or slow, full-time or part-time, only that you write. Don’t go comparing your work or process to anyone else’s. You are you and your novel is something only you could have created. Value yourself and your time.

So get writing.

And we’ll see you in two days.

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, August 2-8, 2015

August 11, 2015 / Melanie Marttila

This was the big controversy this week: Homme de Plume (now in convenient hashtag #hommedeplume). One woman author queries using a male name and gets more requests for partials and fulls than when using her name.

Canadian author, Marie Bilodeau responds.

Kameron Hurley offers a reality check on the necessity and nature of writing with a day job.

Then Chuck Wendig posted this: Starving is a terrible condition for making art.

Most common writing mistakes, part 43: Too many exclamation points! K.M. Weiland, Helping writers become authors.

Show, don’t tell, matters in foreshadowing, too. Katie’s Wednesday vlog.

Christine Frazier looks at five kinds of societies for your novel on The Better Novel Project.

Donald Maass discusses how to write about unnameable emotions on Writer Unboxed.

Elizabeth Stephens introduces us to the #weneeddiversebooks hashtag on Writer Unboxed.

Veronica Sicoe writes about how perfectionism is murdering your muse.

Stephen King shares 22 lessons on how to be a great writer on The Business Insider.

John Scalzi shares his creative process on lifehacker.

Catherine Ryan Howard answers the question, how many drafts did you do?

Chris Winkle discusses the process of troubleshooting when you’re stuck. Mythcreants.

Can a virtuous character be interesting? The New York Times.

22 authors, including K.M. Weiland and Roz Morris, share their greatest writing challenges. Become a Writer Today.

A genre takes flight: Science Fiction. The Library Journal. The good news: epic fantasy still sells. The bad news: the dark stuff, not so much . . .

Tor.com shares 20 time travel classics.

Ten Old English insults that could be band names. Anglophenia.

Geekster Ink Shares twenty images of women in practical armour.

The Red Band Deadpool trailer is def NSFW.

Tipsday will be beck next Tuesday with more Writerly Goodness.

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, July 5-11, 2015

July 14, 2015 / Melanie Marttila / 4 Comments

Okay. Several instances of trolling and cyberbullying against writers have come to the fore in recent weeks. Here are a few posts that seek to address the issue.

Anne R. Allen outlines the issues and offers some strategies you can use to avoid or address them without becoming a target.

Chuck Wendig posted Online is IRL (in response to the #AskELJames fiasco), and then, after a narsty Twitter attack, posted In which I learn to talk less and listen more.

This made Porter Anderson’s radar and he posted this analysis of the fallout.

In other, related news, there were discussions across Facebook and Google+ regarding the above (Delilah S. Dawson was caught in the fracas), and about a libellous review posted for Roz Morris. If it had merely been a poor review, meh. This review, however, accused Roz of plagiarism. How do you respond to these kinds of accusations without chumming the waters? We really have to learn to be kinder to one another online.

Agent Sarah Negovetich offered these thoughts on safely navigating social media.

Unit sales (of print books) inched up in the first half of 2015. Publishers Weekly.

Elending won’t put a big dent in books sales. The Guardian.

Court denies class action in Author Solutions case. Publishers Weekly.

Jane Friedman explains the profit and loss statement and how publishers use it to make purchasing decisions.

What happens if your story stakes aren’t high enough? K.M. Weiland answers in part 42 of her Most Common Writing Mistakes series.

Katie looked at Jurassic Park as an example of how to compound your conflict in your story. Think perfect storm 🙂

E.C. Ambrose offered these nine ways to use point of view to strengthen your characters. Helping Writers Become Authors.

Chris Winkle writes another great post for Mythcreants: Why social justice is intrinsic to storytelling.

Roz Morris writes about the importance of names. I love names, too.

Agent Carly Watters lists seven things that writers should stop wasting their time on.

Sarah Callender explores the practice of success for Writer Unboxed.

Anna Lovind writes about finding true support on your writing journey. Scoutiegirl.

Are we pandering to, or presuming, short attention spans? Publishers Weekly.

Grammarly presents eleven untranslatable words from other cultures and eleven words for the self-proclaimed smarty-pants.

Jane Ann McLachlan wrote this article on ethics and science fiction for SF Signal.

You should know about the Fermi Paradox before you read The Dark Forest. Chris Lough for Tor.com.

Ten things you may not know about Pride and Prejudice. Mental Floss.

BuzzFeed lists 35 Canadian bookstores you need to visit.

Check out the Con Man trailer. Entertainment Weekly.

A first look at the new MTV series, The Shannara Chronicles:

Here’s some news from the Doctor Who panel at Comic Con. i09.

Also at Comic Con, Joss Whedon expounds on the meaning of life and more. i09.

True Detective teaches how NOT to write dialogue. Electric Lit.

Y’all come back on Thoughty Thursday, now, ya hear?

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, June 7-13, 2015

June 16, 2015 / Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

Yeehaw! It’s another great week for Writerly Goodness 🙂

So this was a thing: Irene Gallo, a Tor employee made a personal statement in the comments of her personal Facebook account about the Sad Puppies (if you don’t know who they are, Google it) and was given a public scolding by her employer.

Here are some reactions:

Kameron Hurley.

Chuck Wendig.

Maureen Johnson and Holly Black defend their writerly friends.

A little local literary news about Wordstock. The Sudbury Star. It’s happening this weekend 🙂

Anna Lovind wrote this absolutely amazing post: A letter from the psych ward. The Blog.

Allison M. Dickson blogs about generalized anxiety, or, when your brain makes you think you’re dying. Because writing.

K.M. Weiland posted another in her most common writing mistakes series. Part 41: Inferring non-POV characters’ thoughts.

The only thing you need to know about writing strong, female characters. Katie’s Wednesday vlog.

Bruce Holsinger wrote this great post for Writer Unboxed on how to find you mythic theme.

Jefferson Smith, the creativity hacker, explains why readers bail on books (so we won’t make the same mistakes).

Though Extra Credits is a gaming channel on YouTube, the “awesome-per-second” rule is definitely Writerly Goodness!

Here’s part two of Mary Robinette Kowal’s interview on Adventures in SF Publishing. Told you I’d share 🙂

Sword and Laser interviews Beth Cato.

Check out these summer reads by award-winning SF women from Glamour (who knew?).

Stephen L. Carter responds to Ursula K. LeGuin’s anti-Amazon article (you may remember, I shared it last week). Bloomberg Review.

Anne Roiphe: A life 50 years in the writing. Publishers Weekly.

How Canadian writers changed The New Yorker. The National Post.

Wayson Choy talks about life, death, and the hallucinations that saved him. CBC.

You may have to turn up the volume a bit for this one, but it’s well worth it. Sheila from Dala (she’s the la) performs an intimate arrangement of W.B. Yeats’s “When you are old.”

Caitlin McDonald shared this cool thing of the day: The Last Bookstore.

You know you’re a serious book collector when . . . The Antiquarian.

Look at these 29 book-inspired tattoos. Buzzfeed. Breathtaking? I dunno.

Ok. I know this just marks me as a HUGE geek, but Reboot is coming back and it makes me #furiouslyhappy! The Huffington Post.

An Outlander wrap post, courtesy of Access Hollywood.

What do you think of the season two casting? Access Hollywood.

Whew! Gotta love the linkage 🙂

See you Thursday!

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, May 10-16, 2015

May 19, 2015 / Melanie Marttila

Another great week for writerly goodness 🙂

The Canada Council for the Arts is changing its funding programs and simplifying its applications. This prompted a discussion on one of my professional association’s listserv. The ultimate recommendation: apply often. Persistence wins out. I’m going to have to give this some serious thought.

Roz Morris offers five tips for writers whose characters are too similar.

MJ Bush presents her usual thoughtful, and resource-full post on how to rock your first chapter.

Why your novel’s protagonist should fight a good guy. Christine Frazier’s Better Novel Project.

Chuck Wendig confesses: None of us know what the fuck we’re doing. Ultimately, process is unique to the writer. It’s good to keep in mind.

Vaughan Roycroft shares how reframing can help us keep a positive frame of mind. Writer Unboxed.

Anna Lovind posts on Anna Purna Living about needing to slow down to get more done.

“When I feel stress and, instead, take it as a sign I need to slow down and reconnect with myself, something wonderfully strange happens. Time bends and stretches around my needs. I find there actually is enough time, where a moment ago there was none.”

Then, Anna visited Elephant Journal to share her thoughts on dreams, dreaming, and having a dream-worthy life.

Alex J. Cavanaugh guests at C.S. Lakin’s Live, Write, Thrive, on the subject of writer insecurity. Alex hosts the Insecure Writers’ Support Group on her blog and Facebook group.

David Gaughran pulls back the curtain on Author Solutions. Which otherwise legitimate publishers have associated themselves with this questionable service?

The frog that jump-started Mark Twain’s career. LA Times.

Lifehack presents 30 words that are often mispronounced.

Electric Lit presents an infographic about the history of pen names.

Find out what books inspired which famous authors. The Guardian.

BuzzFeed shares 13 perfect literary descriptions of heartache.

12 reasons to date a woman who reads, from The Huffington Post.

Mental Floss shares 11 things you may not know about Lois Lowry’s The Giver. Just watch the movie on Sunday. I certainly liked it 🙂

It’s a long post, but it’s probably the best analyses I’ve seen of why Avengers: Age of Ultron fails its audience. Wired. I’m still going to watch it . . . when it comes out on demand, and I’m probably going to enjoy it, for what it is, but I will be able to appreciate it’s technical construction better, and understand why I may feel dissatisfied in the end.

Sunday night (in Canada) Outlander reached the pivotal Wentworth episode. Why it was both difficult to watch and critical to the story.

See you on Thoughty Thursday!

Tipsday: Writerly Goodness found on the interwebz, April 12-18, 2015

April 21, 2015 / Melanie Marttila / 2 Comments

How K.M. Weiland uses Scrivener to outline her novels.

Katie’s Wednesday vlog discusses how to help your readers love an unlikable character.

Roz Morris shares some common errors indie authors make in their self-published work.

Therese Walsh posts about finding the time to write (part 3 of her multitasking series) on Writer Unboxed.

Suzanne Alyssa posts on Sarah Selecky’s blog on the subject of the vulnerability of submission.

A two part post from Delilah S. Dawson on self-promotion: Please shut up, and Wait, keep talking.

Delilah S. Dawson guest posts on Chuck Wendig’s Terribleminds with 25 blood-spattered tips for writing violence.

Are these filter words weakening your fiction? Write it Sideways.

Jamie Raintree asks, are artists still allowed to be neurotic? Thinking through our fingers.

Diana Gabaldon interviews Susanna Kearsley at the Poisoned Pen Bookstore.

Anne Lamott: “Everyone is screwed up, broken, clingy, and scared.” Salon.

Tim Parks on CBC Radio’s The Sunday Edition: Writing in the Margins.

Sherwood Smith offers some thoughts on Heyer and Austin.

Astrophe: The feeling of being stuck on Earth. The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows.

The history behind Orphan Black. The New Yorker.

For the Outlander fans: Interview with Sam Heughan.

The real romance behind Outlander. The New York Times.

Sesame Street’s Game of Chairs:

And that’s your Writerly Goodness for the week.

See you Thursday!

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, March 29-April 4, 2015

April 9, 2015 / Melanie Marttila / 3 Comments

Last week’s distressing news: another terrorist attack in Kenya. BBC.

Rinelle Harper gives a voice to the missing and murdered. The Globe and Mail.

The Boston Globe revisits Fukishima. Yes. Four years later, they are still cleaning up.

Beautiful photos of gay and lesbian couples from the early part of the last century. Distractify.

George Takei is encouraging the boycotting of Indiana. MSNBC.

Some writers, like Chuck Wendig, have cancelled conference and convention appearances. Others, like Kameron Hurley, feel that despite their personal objections to Indiana’s new law, they a) don’t have the profile to make their non-appearance meaningful or financially viable, and b) don’t want to punish their fans by failing to show. It’s an interesting discussion.

Vsauce presents, the science of awkward: