In Stephen King’s On Writing—a work of creative nonfiction that blends memoir with advice on writing craft—the author talks about keeping track of rejection slips for some of his earliest short stories. 

He hammered a nail into his wall and every time he got a rejection, he slipped it onto the nail and then tried again. 

Soon he had racked up so many rejections that he had to abandon the nail, which was becoming too weighted down with paper, and replaced it with a large spike. He kept writing, kept submitting, and kept accumulating rejections. 

Stephen King did, of course, eventually go on to sell a story; today, he’s one of the most popular American novelists in history. But he, like everyone, had to start somewhere. 

And King got his start the same way many creative writers do: by submitting his work to literary magazines. 

What Are Literary Magazines?

Also called literary journals, or sometimes shortened to “lit mags,” literary magazines are periodicals that publish creative w...

DIY Writing Retreats: What are they?

I'm heading into a Page Booster Writing Retreat this weekend, with my #FINISHERS group from First Book Finish.

Whenever I plan a DIY writing retreat like this, my whole body goes "Ahhhhhh."

Writing retreats are hands-down my favourite way to make substantive progress on a manuscript and reconnect to why I write in the first place.

At one point in my life, I was a single mother of a young child, doing a Masters degree part-time and working a full-time management level job in the non-profit sector. People would say to me “I just don’t know how you do it!” and I would secretly think “Gah, I don’t know either!”

But it’s also true that I had discovered a secret weapon.

I would organize writing retreats for myself.

Not the kind where you spend a month or so in the woods with a group of fellow writers, where there’s a lunch buffet every day (Hello Banff Centre!) or someone brings lunch to your studio door (Hello Yaddo!), but private self-directed re...

You can write with ease and joy again.

If you’re feeling exceptionally perky these days, this isn’t the blog post for you.

But I’ve been hearing from some people that they’re struggling with a lack of motivation and low energy lately and this is affecting their writing. What to do?

First things first: a big virtual hug across the Internet. Or a smile and a wave, if you prefer. 

I see you. And I’ve also been you.

I don’t think it’s normal to maintain a constant high level of energy. It’s in the nature of energy and motivation that both ebb and flow. We know this to be true for other people, but when it happens for us, it’s somehow a shock. True, yes?

My own days of low energy come from a few sources…

• Sometimes I find it hard to live in an unjust world slowly falling apart due to climate change.
• Sometimes I am worried about my current writing project and afraid it won’t live up to my dreams and expectations for it.
• Sometimes I’m facing both of these at once.

Can you relate?...

Where do you find writing inspiration?

If you’ve been following me for a while, you know that I’m obsessed with helping you stay motivated and connected in your writing life. One way I do this for myself is by reading about the writing lives of writers I admire.

I know that I have to find my own way and craft a writing practice that works for the specifics of my life, but I do look for inspiration from those who've gone before -- particularly women writers who may have had some of the same challenges I have faced over the years, including how to get the writing done in the middle of a very busy life.

Here are some of the writers whose writing routines have been sources of inspiration for me over the years. I hope you find inspiration here for your own writing life as well.

(And if you find this helpful, come find me on Instagram and Facebook where I share inspirational quotes and free resources every week to help writers finish their books and create a writing life they love. Would...

 Here in Ottawa, Canada where I live, it’s summer. The lilacs have faded, the peonies have all dropped, and now the roses and lilies are blooming in the gardens around town. 

In the early evenings when I walk Mr. Darcy, the air smells like barbeque and I can hear music playing, the sound carrying across the parks from a downtown jazz festival.

Summer is Canada in all its glory and the last thing I want to do is be stuck inside finishing up a poetry manuscript and revising a novel. I’d much rather be lounging outside in the heat on a hazy afternoon, cool drink in one hand and fat juicy paperback in the other.

But I am still writing.

This blog post was written at 7am, during a Writer’s Flow Studio community writing session. 

(Shout out to the Friday 7am crew! Especially Mari who finished her book and sent it off to beta readers yesterday, and Lenore who had a publisher ask for her full manuscript after she joined a Twitter pitch event, and Jackie whose regular writing routine is an ...

You want to write. You want to finish books and get them out into the world.

And yet…

Weeks or maybe even months have passed and you’re no closer to finishing your latest work-in-progress. It’s still IN progress, only now maybe there’s a layer of dust on top of the box you keep your manuscript in.

If you’ve been working on a novel, you may feel disconnected from the characters and their dilemmas.

If you’ve been writing a memoir, you may have begun to doubt that you really can – or even should – write this book.

If you’re pulling together a collection of short stories or poems, you probably have pieces of work – some finished, some unfinished – lying around and the sense of chaos may be overwhelming at times.

Bon courage, my friend…every single writer and creative person has been in this place at one time or another. Or, in all likelihood, many times. It’s one of those experiences that tend to come back around.

Perhaps you got stuck because you tripped over a writing craft proble...

It's a big beautiful lit mag world!

Let's Talk Literary Magazines

If you caught my introductory post on literary magazines (lit mags) last month, then you might already be thinking about sending out your first submission to a journal. 

So where do you begin?

Well, to start, you want to make sure your piece is ready for submission. That means you’ve revised the work carefully, and proofread the final product to catch any errors.

Lit mag editors often receive hundreds—even thousands!—of submissions to go through every month. If you want to stand out among the slush pile, you want your piece to be as polished as you can get it. 

But once your piece is ready to be sent out for consideration, you might be mystified by the process. How do you format the manuscript? What do you include in your bio and cover letter? Should you include content or trigger warnings?

In this post I’m going to walk you through the process and help you get your manuscript ready to submit!

How to Submit to L...

Focus is the way through.

What comes first: the distraction or the fear?

You’re not distracted, you’re afraid. 

Oops! If you’re feeling called out right now, I apologize. #sorrynotsorry 😅

The number one thing I hear from writers -- and I mean at least once a day, every day -- is that they can’t get any writing done because they feel so distracted.

I’ve written before about how to manage distractions, so if you 100% know that’s really what the issue is for you, then I’ve got you covered: click here for a list of six sure ways to manage distractions.

But are you sure that’s what is really going on?

Is it distraction or is it fear?

Have you ever paused to ask yourself WHY you are so easily distracted when you really want to be writing? Could it be possible that you’re actually afraid and that’s why you’re such easy prey for the common distractions we all face…

• Social media apps on our cellphones
• A Netflix hit/binge
• Minor tasks around the house that suddenly feel urgent
• The n...

"The biggest thing is to believe in your work." -- Traci Skuce

Busy Women on Writing Books

This is the 16th instalment in a new interview series on writing, profiling women writers who’ve written and published books while also working, parenting, volunteering, caring for family, attending school, and ALL OF THE THINGS.

This week, I'm pleased to introduce Canadian author Traci Skuce.

Traci lives in Cumberland, BC. She founded the Writing Journey with Traci Skuce, an online creative writing school that explores craft through body, mind, and spirit, so writers can finish their best stories and get them out into the world.    

As a writer, her fiction and personal essays have appeared in several literary journals across North America. Her short story collection, Hunger Moon, was released by NeWest Press in April 2020, and was a finalist for the 2021 Kobo Rakuten Prize.  

I know how amazing you are, but please let everyone else know a bit about yourself and the books you’ve written t...

Do your research and SUBMIT!

I’ve been talking about literary magazines for a few months now on this blog, and I’ve already sold you on why you should be submitting to them and how to format your manuscript and cover letter. 

A lot of you are probably thinking, okay, great—now where the heck do I submit my piece to?

It’s a good question, and it’s one that a lot of emerging writers struggle with. Most people have heard of the really big magazines that publish creative writing, like the New Yorker or the Walrus, but there’s a massive market of literary magazines out there beyond the big guys!

I mentioned last month that I’m going to share my own list of recommended magazines with readers, but I’ve decided to do something even better.

I’m going to teach you how to build your own list, custom-tailored to your needs. 

After all, I don’t know what your goals are, but you do. So keep on reading to help figure out how to turn those goals into a submission strategy, and build your own lis...