Long recognized as a master teacher at writing programs like VONA, the Loft, and the Stonecoast MFA, with A Stranger's Journey, David Mura has written a book on creative writing that addresses our increasingly diverse American literature. Mura argues for a more inclusive and expansive definition of craft, particularly in relationship to race, even as he elucidates timeless rules of narrative construction in fiction and memoir. His essays offer technique-focused readings of writers such as James Baldwin, ZZ Packer, Maxine Hong Kingston, Mary Karr, and Garrett Hongo, while making compelling connections to Mura's own life and work as a Japanese American writer. In A Stranger's Journey, Mura poses two central questions. The first involves identity: How is writing an exploration of who one is and one's place in the world? Mura examines how the myriad identities in our changing contemporary canon have led to new challenges regarding both craft and pedagogy. Here, like Toni Morrison's Playing in the Dark or Jeff Chang's Who We Be, A Stranger's Journey breaks new ground in our understanding of the relationship between the issues of race, literature, and culture. The book's second central question involves structure: How does one tell a story? Mura provides clear, insightful narrative tools that any writer may use, taking in techniques from fiction, screenplays, playwriting, and myth. Through this process, Mura candidly explores the newly evolved aesthetic principles of memoir and how questions of identity occupy a central place in contemporary memoir.
This book, by a psychologist with two decades of investment in writers, depicts his programs for instilling patience, pacing, constancy, and resilience in writing. He shows how writers proceed to comfort and fluency by detailing strategies, rules, and turning points for a diversity of writers--professional, professorial, and otherwise. The result is a thorough-going discussion of what helps writers and a review of the broad literature that program participants found most helpful.
Being a writer is not just about typing. It’s also about surviving the roller-coaster of the creative journey. Self-doubt, fear of failure, the need for validation, perfectionism, writer’s block, comparisonitis, overwhelm, and much more. When you’re going through these things, it can feel like you’re alone. But actually, they are part of the creative process, and every author goes through them too. This book collects the mindset issues that writers experience, that I have been through myself over the last ten years and that perhaps you will experience at different times on the creative journey. Each small chapter tackles a possible issue and then offers an antidote, so that you can dip in and out over time. It includes excerpts from my own personal journals as well as quotes from well-known writers. I hope it helps you on the road to becoming a successful author. The book includes: Part 1: Mindset Aspects of Creativity and Writing Self-doubt and imposter syndrome Need for validation Fear of failure Fear of rejection and criticism Your inner critic Fear of judgment Perfectionism Writer’s block and procrastination “I’m not creative. I don’t have any ideas” “My writing isn’t original” “Why write? There are too many books in the world already” “I don’t have the time or self-discipline to write” “I’m not finding writing much fun. It’s hard work.” “I keep starting things and not finishing them” Dealing with friends, family and writer’s groups “How do I find my voice?” Comparisonitis or “Everyone is better than me” Part 2: Mindset Aspects after Publishing Anti-climax and creative dissatisfaction What is your definition of success? What happens when you tell people that you’re an author? “I’m overwhelmed” Dealing with fans, authenticity and drawing the line Haters gonna hate Ambition, fame and fortune Giving up Part 3: Tips for Success on the Author Journey Know thyself Understand and hone your creative process Develop professional habits Manage professional relationships Take control of your writing career Find your community Keep learning Schedule rest and take time off Think long term. Create a body of work
The definitive source of information, insight, and advice for creative writers, from the nation’s largest and most trusted organization for writers, Poets & Writers. For half a century, writers at every stage of their careers have turned to the literary nonprofit organization Poets & Writers and its award-winning magazine for resources to foster their professional development, from writing prompts and tips on technique to informative interviews with published authors, literary agents, and editors. But never before has Poets & Writers marshaled its fifty years’ worth of knowledge to create an authoritative guide for writers that answers every imaginable question about craft and career—until now. Here is the writing bible for authors of all genres and forms, covering topics such as how to: -Harness your imagination and jump-start your creativity -Develop your work from initial idea to final draft -Find a supportive and inspiring writing community to sustain your career -Find the best MFA program for you -Publish your work in literary magazines and develop a platform -Research writing contests and other opportunities to support your writing life -Decide between traditional publishing and self-publishing -Find the right literary agent -Anticipate what agents look for in queries and proposals -Work successfully with an editor and your publishing team -Market yourself and your work in a digital world -Approach financial planning and taxes as a writer -And much more Written by Kevin Larimer and Mary Gannon, the two most recent editors of Poets & Writers Magazine, this book brings an unrivaled understanding of the areas in which writers seek guidance and support. Filled with insider information like sample query letters, pitch letters, lists of resources, and worksheets for calculating freelance rates, tracking submissions, and managing your taxes, the guide does more than demystify the writing life—it also provides an array of powerful tools for building a sustainable career as a writer. In addition to the wealth of insights into creativity, publishing, and promotion are first-person essays from bestselling authors, including George Saunders, Christina Baker Kline, and Ocean Vuong, as well as reading lists from award-winning writers such as Anthony Doerr, Cheryl Strayed, and Natalie Diaz. Here, at last, is the ultimate comprehensive resource that belongs on every writer’s desk.
If You Want to Get Published, Read This Book! Jeff Herman’s Guide is the writer’s best friend. The 28th edition, updated for 2019, includes strategies to finding your way through today’s field of publishers, editors, and agents. Get the most up-to-date information on the who’s who in publishing: The best way to ensure that your book stands out from the crowd is to find the right person to read it. In this guidebook, Jeff Herman reveals names, contact information, and personal interests for hundreds of literary agents and editors, so you can find the publishing professional who’s been waiting for you. In addition, the comprehensive index makes it easy to search by genre and subject. Learn to write a winning pitch: This highly-respected resource has helped countless authors achieve their highest goals. It starts with the perfect pitch. You’ll learn the language that publishers use, and ways to present yourself and your book in the best light. Trust the expert that insiders trust: Bestselling authors and publishing insiders recognize Jeff Herman’s Guide as honest, informative, and accurate. New and veteran writers of both fiction and nonfiction have relied on this no-nonsense guidebook for decades. Everything you need to know to publish your book is compiled in this one go-to resource. In Jeff Herman's Guide to Book Publishers, Editors & Literary Agents you’ll find: Invaluable information about 245 publishers and imprints Independent book editors who can help make your book publisher-friendly Methods for spotting a scam before it’s too late Methods to becoming a confident partner in the business of publishing your book. This guide is an excellent addition to your collection if you have read Guide to Literary Agents 2019, Writer's Market 2019, or The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published.
The central thesis of Lawrence Hogue's book is that criticism of Afro-American literature has left out of account the way in which ideological pressures dictate the canon. This fresh approach to the study of the social, ideological, and political dynamics of the Afro-American literary text in the twentieth century, based on the Foucauldian concept of literature as social institution, examines the universalization that power effects, how literary texts are appropriated to meet ideological concerns and needs, and the continued oppression of dissenting voices. Hogue presents an illuminating discussion of the publication and review history of "major" and neglected texts. He illustrates the acceptance of texts as exotica, as sociological documents, or as carriers of sufficient literary conventions to receive approbation. Although the sixties movement allowed the text to move to the periphery of the dominant ideology, providing some new myths about the Afro-American historical past, this marginal position was subsequently sabotaged, co-opted, or appropriated (Afros became a fad; presidents gave the soul handshake; the hip-talking black was dressing one style and talking another.) This study includes extended discussion of four works; Ernest J. Gaines's The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman, Alice Walker's The Third Life of Grange Copeland, Albert Murray's Train Whistle Guitar, and Toni Morrison's Sula. Hogue assesses the informing worldviews of each and the extent and nature of their acceptance by the dominant American cultural apparatus.
'A definitive guide, in here you'll find everything you need' S. J. Watson With over 4,000 industry contacts and over eighty articles from a wide range of leading authors and publishing industry professionals, the latest edition of this bestselling Yearbook is packed with all of the practical information, inspiration and guidance you need at every stage of your writing and publishing journey. Designed for authors and illustrators across all genres and markets, it is relevant for those looking for a traditional, hybrid or self-publishing route to publication; writers of fiction and non-fiction, poets and playwrights, writers for TV, radio and videogames. If you want to find a literary or illustration agent or publisher, would like to self-publish or crowdfund your creative idea then this Yearbook will help you. As well as sections on publishers and agents, newspapers and magazines, illustration and photography, theatre and screen, there is a wealth of detail on the legal and financial aspects of being a writer or illustrator. Includes advice from writers such as Peter James, Cathy Rentzenbrink, S.J. Watson, Kerry Hudson, and Samantha Shannon. Additional articles, free advice, events information and editorial services at www.writersandartists.co.uk
As a lawyer, Allen Mendenhall asks questions. As a writer, he's interested in the craft. Combine these two and you get this, a collection of writers discussing writing. Writers on Writing: Conversations with Allen Mendenhall is an anthology of penetrating interviews with prominent and diverse authors who discuss arts, literature, books, culture, life, and the writing process with Allen Mendenhall, editor of Southern Literary Review and associate dean at Faulkner University Thomas Goode Jones School of Law. Featuring the telling insights and sage advice of novelists, historians, poets, professors, philosophers, and more, Writers on Writing is not just an informative guide or a useful resource but a fount of inspiration. Readers will find in these pages authentic voices, frank exchanges, and unique perspectives on a wide variety of matters. Aspiring and established writers alike will learn from this book.
"The effects of the displacement of peoples--their forced migration, their deportation, their voluntary emigration, their movement to new lands where they made themselves masters over others, or became subjects of the masters of their new homes--reverberate down the years and are still felt today. The historical violence of the era of empire and colonies echoes in the literature of the descendants of those forcibly moved and the exiles that those processes have made. The voices of its victims are insistent in the literature that has come to be called “post-colonial.” Although the term “post-colonial” is insufficient to capture fully the depth and breadth of those writers that have been labeled by it (for it is itself something of a colonial instrument, ghettoizing writers in English who are still considered to be “foreign”), there is a common bond among the works of those novelists who understand the process of exile and see themselves as exiles--both from their homes and from themselves. In this eloquently argued book with meticulous theoretical groundwork, Dr. Cristina Dascalu presents a most lucid and concise examination of exile. In addition to her negotiation of the term “exile,” what is most original and significant about Imaginary Homelands of Writers in Exile is the selection of authors. Reaching across national (in terms of country of exile) and ethnic (in terms of region/religion of birth) boundaries, Dr. Dascalu elegantly shows the persistent relevance of the experience and implications of exile to the writing of fiction in the world today. Rushdie, Mukherjee, and Naipaul are very distinct authors whose works are not often discussed together in this context. Using Benedict Anderson’s notion of “unimagined communities,” among other critical lenses, she makes significant connections between the way exile functions as a theme and as a condition for their writing."--pub. desc.
The screenplay that sparked a novel series: A Hatchett Report Investigation . . . It's 2036, an age of global water conflict and controlled media. A blacklisted journalist finds herself at a perilous crossroads between her explosive past and the future of humanity. Truby Goodman is relocated to Americas Sector N3-24F, the defunct Old Faithful Inn in Wyoming, isolated with four companions she knows little about. Once one of Interpol's most wanted, she is now bound by a plea agreement not without consequences. Goodman is haunted by the memories of a child she loves that is one of three Alpha Generation geniuses chosen to design a solution to end the international water crisis. The Global Security Council's WREN project soon becomes plagued by off-gridders who oppose it and a rogue darknet underground news outlet. When WREN is compromised during an opening ceremony live broadcast, the world is suddenly plunged into a global state of emergency. Questioning the authenticity of media reports, Goodman risks revealing her true identity as she races to expose the greatest coup ever attempted. Confronting the impossible in search of redemption, one journalist will dare to rewrite human history centuries in the making.
The latest edition of the bestselling guide to all you need to know about how to get published, is packed full of advice, inspiration and practical information. The Writers' & Artists' Yearbook has been guiding writers and illustrators on the best way to present their work, how to navigate the world of publishing and ways to improve their chances of success, for over 110 years. It is equally relevant for writers of novels and non-fiction, poems and scripts and for those writing for children, YA and adults and covers works in print, digital and audio formats. If you want to find a literary or illustration agent or publisher, would like to self-publish or crowdfund your creative idea then this Yearbook will help you. As well as sections on publishers and agents, newspapers and magazines, illustration and photography, theatre and screen, there is a wealth of detail on the legal and financial aspects of being a writer or illustrator. New articles for 2022: Peter James Becoming a bestselling author: my writing story Femi Kayode Shelf space: a debut writer's journey to claim his place Sam Missingham Building your author brand Jonathan Myerson Audio dramatist or novelist? Ed Needham Setting up and editing a new magazine Ingrid Persaud The winning touch: the impact of winning an award Cathy Rentzenbrink Reading as a writer Sallyanne Sweeney What a debut novelist should expect from an agent David Wightman Getting books to market: how books are sold Jonathan and Louise Ford Managing your finances: a guide for writers