Category: Starting a Novel

How I Wrote My Debut Novel: Part Seven – How to Choose a Writer’s Group

Our culture promotes self-reliance, independence, and a DIY approach to nearly everything. To depend on others, seek support, or hire an expert is seen as…

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How I Wrote My Debut Novel: Part Five – Producing Drafts

How does a writer write? What is the process by which the first draft becomes the final draft? How does one ensure the next draft…

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How I Wrote My Debut Novel: Part Three – The Two Documents that are a Novel in Progress

Now that we’re writing daily and have a place in which we do so, we turn to the tactics— elements of the practical process I…

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How I Wrote My Debut Novel: Part Two – Focus and the Value of Writing in the Same Location

Place matters. We become emotionally attached to it. Over time, a place becomes imbibed with meaning and memory. A place becomes a sanctuary, an oasis,…

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How I Wrote My Debut Novel: Part One – The Value of a Writing Discipline

Eight years ago this month I finished my thesis defense, earning my MFA in Creative Writing at Butler University, Indianapolis. My thesis, after another draft…

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