becoming a better writer
by Alex Burns · updated 15d ago
becoming a better writer
- Gornick, again: “Truth in a memoir is achieved not through a recital of actual events; it is achieved when the reader comes to believe that the writer is working hard to engage with the experience at hand.”
from ౨ৎ Girl blog
Alex Burns added 1mo ago
"How to clarify a concept you can't articulate:
1. Change mediums. Draw it. Photograph it. Sing it.
2. Change levels. Explain what is one level up (bigger picture) or one level down (finer details).
3. Change fields. What would this concept look like in different fields?"(James Clear newsletter)
Alex Burns added 1mo ago
- “Write from the scar, not the wound” the old saying goes. Share only from scar tissue once it’s all healed over and you’re strong enough to withstand any poking. A memoir is not a diary; it is not a big messy cake, it’s more like something that’s been moulded using those metal cookie cutter shapes. Selected, crafted, arranged for consumption.
from #60 A Slow Sunday Scroll ☕️
Alex Burns added 1mo ago
- if any artist tells you, “I am a camera,” or “I am a mirror,” distrust them instantly, they’re fooling you, pulling a fast one. Artists are people who are not at all interested in the facts—only in the truth. You get the facts from outside. The truth you get from inside.
from Ursula K. Le Guin on How to Become a Writer by Ursula K. Le Guin May 24
Alex Burns added 1mo ago
- Have killer voice. How do you develop killer voice? Be confident. How do you develop confidence? Read oodles and write oodles more. If you’re sending a “list newsletter” you better have one hell of a point of view because, well, there are oodles-upon-oodles of list newsletters out there. Generally, like with much good writing, the magic for readers
... See morefrom On Being a Good Newsletterer
Alex Burns added 1mo ago
- Words are magic. Words are really magic. They add so much. You can take a TikTok video, and you think the TikTok video is the end in itself. You don’t need any gloss on that, but you absolutely do. It’s so much funnier if you can articulate what is embarrassing or weird or impressive about what that person is doing. That is a great hack.
from Looking Closely Is Everything by Craig Mod
Alex Burns added 15d ago
- Almost everything about the concept of “writer’s block” irritates me. The supposed greatest obstacle to success or productivity is structured so passively you’d think it was written by the New York Times trying to describe civilian death. “Writer’s block.” What exactly is being blocked and by whom? The process of writing — not writing well, just wr... See more
from The Myth of Writer's Block
Alex Burns added 1mo ago
- There are times I sit down to write this thing and all I’ve got is a spark of an idea. There’s nothing fiery in my belly waiting to get out. This is one such time. I was whining about it to my husband and he wisely said, “just write about all your half ideas.”
from Half Ideas
Alex Burns added 1mo ago
Alex Burns added 17d ago
