The Everything Creative Writing Book

Letter to the Reader

THE

CREATIVE WRITING BOOK, Second Edition

Dear Reader,

When I was in grade school, I wrote plays that my classmates and I would

perform for the younger kids. I was thrilled to have people entertained by my

writing, even if they were kindergarteners. I also wrote silly poems about my

friends and would read them aloud in class. Afterward, I’d have a gaggle of

fourth-graders seeking commissioned work. “Write about me next time!” they’d

beg. I was hooked.

But the moment that pointed me toward the path to becoming a writer came

from a poem that I wrote at age sixteen. My father (also a writer) had submitted

it to a magazine and I had no idea—until I received an acceptance letter and a

check. In that moment, I knew people cared what I had to say; that the words I

chose, organized, and typed onto a piece of paper were of value (ten dollars, to

be exact).

I hope this book reminds you that your words have value—whether

published or not. Perhaps you’ll reconnect with your childhood love for writing,

or maybe begin a new courtship. Either way, enjoy the journey. And if you

happen to entertain people along the way, even better.

Sincerely,

Wendy Burt-Thomas

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Title Page

THE

CREATIVE WRITING BOOK, SECOND

EDITION

All you need to craft well-written and marketable stories,

screenplays, blogs, and more

Wendy Burt-Thomas

Avon, Massachusetts

Copyright

Copyright © 2010 by F+W Media, Inc. All rights reserved.

This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced

in any form without permission from the publisher; exceptions

are made for brief excerpts used in published reviews.

An Everything® Series Book.

Everything® and everything.com® are registered trademarks of F+W Media, Inc.

Published by Adams Media, a division of F+W Media, Inc.

57 Littlefield Street, Avon, MA 02322 U.S.A.

www.adamsmedia.com

ISBN 10: 1-4405-0152-1

ISBN 13: 978-1-4405-0153-X

eISBN 10: 1-4405-0153-X

eISBN 13: 978-1-4405-0153-1

J I H G F E D C B A

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

is available from the publisher.

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information with regard to the subject

matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal,

accounting, or other professional advice. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services

of a competent professional person should be sought.

—From a Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee of the American Bar Association and a

Committee of Publishers and Associations

Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as

trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book and Adams Media was aware of a trademark

claim, the designations have been printed with initial capital letters.

Dedication

This book is dedicated to new writers who are eager to learn, and the

experienced writers who believe there are plenty of opportunities to go around.

Contents

Top Ten Ways for New Writers to Get Published

Introduction

Chapter 1. Preparing to Write

Chapter 2. The Short Story

Chapter 3. The Novel

Chapter 4. Books for Prereaders

Chapter 5. Books for Children and Young Adults

Chapter 6. The Screenplay

Chapter 7. Blogging

Chapter 8. Functional Nonfiction

Chapter 9. Literary Nonfiction

Chapter 10. Poetry

Chapter 11. Getting Ideas

Chapter 12. Planning

Chapter 13. Researching

Chapter 14. Organizing

Chapter 15. Rhetorical Devices

Chapter 16. Word Usage Pitfalls

Chapter 17. Drafting

Chapter 18. Editing

Chapter 19. Evaluating

Chapter 20. Overcoming Writer’s Block

Chapter 21. Working with Others

Chapter 22. Getting Published

Appendix A. Writing Samples

Appendix B. Writing Resources

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Jane Friedman for your faith in me, to Lisa Laing for being so easy

to work with, and to my family for reminding me that there is life outside of

work.

Top Ten Ways for New Writers to Get Published

1. Enter legitimate writing contests.

2. Submit your short stories, personal essays, and poetry to

anthologies.

3. Send a letter to the editor at your local newspaper.

4. Query a consumer magazine for an article idea.

5. Submit your short stories and poetry to small literary magazines.

6. Pitch a great book idea to an agent.

7. Write a book, movie, or music review for your local arts newspaper.

8. Ask to write for your church or company newsletter.

9. Start a blog and post regularly.

10. Offer to write copy for a friend or family member’s business

website.

Introduction

You love reading. You’ve done a little bit of writing. And you’ve often wondered

if you could be a writer like the incredibly creative authors you admire, but

you’re not quite sure where to start.

Well, The Everything® Creative Writing Book can help. It will guide you

through the entire process, from preparing yourself to write—in your workspace

and in your mind—to getting fresh ideas to drafting your copy and editing it.

Plus you’ll learn all about the different formats of writing and find hundreds of

writing tips, resources, examples, inspirational excerpts, advice, and

encouragement via interviews with successful authors, how-to pointers,

challenges, and even rescue techniques to help you out of those dreaded strikes

of writer’s block. If you have the interest and the desire to become a more

creative writer—and it’s looking like you do—and if you are willing to take the

time to learn and practice, this book can show you how to improve your writing

skills and express yourself imaginatively in a variety of ways.

With dedication, skill building, and time, it’s entirely possible that you

could become another Nora Roberts, E. B. White, Toni Morrison, Dean Koontz,

Sue Grafton, or Nicholas Sparks. You could develop a style so expressive, so

true, and so yours, that whenever someone reads something that you wrote, he or

she might wish, like Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye, that “when

you’re all done reading it, you wish the author that wrote it was a terrific friend

of yours and you could call him up on the phone whenever you felt like it.”

You could succeed as a creative writer beyond your wildest, bestselling￾author, cross-country-book-signing dreams. But you could also fail. You could

put in the time, tell everyone you know that you’re working to become a writer,

write and write and write, and still not get published. The thought is daunting, to

say the least. But there’s still another possible drawback. While you’re

courageously giving this writing thing your all, you could run into resistance

instead of reinforcement. Friends, colleagues, parents, children, even your

partner or your spouse might try to discourage you by telling you what you

already know: that you could fail, that you could get your feelings hurt, that you

might not have what it takes. Such disheartening counsel, whether spoken to

spare you pain or from jealousy disguised as caring, can give an author a

terminal case of writer’s block.

So why try to do it? Why not just carry on quietly and safely behind the

perfectly useful and perfectly ordinary words that many people set down on

paper when they must write something—in their business documents, their

personal correspondence, perhaps in an occasional journal entry or school paper

or speech?

Because you love words. Because you feel you have something to say and

you’d like to say it in the best possible, most interesting way. Because you love

to communicate and connect with all kinds of people. Because you find joy in

the colors, tastes, rhythms, and smells of language. Because you have opinions,

experiences, and feelings that you need to share with your readers. Because you

want to explore and question and make sense of what you see around you, and

help others to do the same. Because you see things in a special way.

By giving your love of language a chance to blossom and grow, and by

setting a goal of becoming an accomplished creative writer, you might one day

find yourself in a Manhattan bookstore, signing your name on hundreds of

copies of your latest biography. Or perhaps you’ll be watching a sold-out

performance of a play that you penned. Or maybe the story you got published in

a major magazine will earn you a hefty check.

All those things could happen. But what will definitely happen when you

make the commitment to write more creatively is that you’ll learn new skills,

gain new knowledge, and find new ways to express yourself—even if you “fail”

and not a word that you write is ever published. Learning and growing will

expand your horizons and increase your abilities, give you an amazing feeling of

well-being and fulfillment, and enable you to put your special stamp on a bit of

the world.

Chapter 1. Preparing to Write

What do you need in order to write well? There are, of course, tangible things

such as a computer or a pen and paper. But you also need time, inspiration, a

positive attitude, and the expectation of success to keep writing at your best.

Find a Comfortable Place to Write

In many authors’ experience, surroundings and equipment that suit their

personalities and styles make it more likely that the blank page before them will

eventually be covered with compelling copy. In fact, the ideal writing place may

automatically, just by your being there, set your writing muscles in motion.

What would work for you if you had the luxury of setting up a custom

workplace? Think about how you like to read or study, how sound affects you,

how easily you’re distracted, how disciplined you are, if you need people around

you, and your general nature. Can you work with the radio on or with other

people around, or do you need complete silence? Is a designated workspace

necessary or can you write at your dining room table? Will a tabletop waterfall

help create a harmonious environment, or will it only serve to drive you crazy?

The trick is finding a writing space that’s tailored to your style, needs and

comfort. Just because other people can crank out pages on their laptop at the

local coffee shop doesn’t mean it’s right for you.

You need a place where you can write comfortably and where your

materials will be safe from prying eyes, jelly-dripping fingers (except your own,

of course), and constant interruption.

Consider the View

Some authors find a workspace with a great view very distracting because

anything that catches their eye can break their concentration or interrupt their

thoughts. Looking at a white, windowless wall that is devoid of ornamentation is

the only way for some to see the words instead of the world.

But for others, pleasant surroundings inspire and encourage the creative

process. You may find that a window into your garden or the sight of the sun

rising over your city’s landscape gives you the calm and the visual nourishment