Writing is such a personal and intimate thing. I always liken writing with the intent to publish to be like singing in front of a crowd. It’s a very vulnerable thing and so you can be very susceptible to the little whispers of self doubt. You really can be yourContinue Reading
How can anyone—a bureaucrat, a librarian, a gardener, a writer—be both so undisciplined and so anal? Contradiction is, I suppose, a necessary element in writing fiction. It can lead to tension in the plot, conflict among the characters, doubts and fears in the protagonist. Probably not so helpful when theContinue Reading
[Photo caption: Author Jason Offutt and his wife Kimberly Offutt on a recent vacation at Rathbun Lake, Iowa. Yes, Iowa has lakes.] There are different levels of emotional stress that come with where a writer is in their career. Early on was rejection, until I learned that EVERY writer getsContinue Reading
I didn’t tell very many people I was writing for a long time because I didn’t want to have to talk about not getting an agent, not finding a publisher, not selling any books…admitting I wasn’t succeeding at my effort to become a published author. Then, when I finally didContinue Reading