"You will feel insecure and jealous. How much power you give those feelings is entirely up to you." ~ Cheryl Strayed

"It’s crucial to remember that your attention is one of the most precious capacities you possess.”" ~ Michael Taft

"One of the most life-changing realizations you can have is 'I don’t have to believe my thoughts . . . they are just thoughts!'" ~ Tara Brach

Childhood is a very, very tricky business of surviving it. Because if one thing goes wrong or anything goes wrong, then you are compromised as a human being. You are going to trip over that for a good part of your life. ~ Maurice Sendak

“Beyond talent lie all the usual words: discipline, love, luck, but, most of all, endurance.” ~ James Baldwin

"Frankly, I thought I knew how to write, but it turned out I didn’t, and I don’t. I don’t. I get to learn it over and over and over." ~ Jo Ann Beard

Plenty of Time to Write, But No Book in Sight “You haven’t written a book, but you are a writer.” By Ann V. Klotz As the head of a school, my writing happened in those spaces in between. Sure, I did plenty of writing as a school le…

Finally it's time to write your book. On putting away the 'buts' by @AnnKlotz at @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/04/10/p... #writingcommunity #authorlife #writinglife

“Nothing is ever so good that it can’t stand a little revision, and nothing is ever so impossible and broken down that a try at fixing it is out of the question.” ~ Rebecca Solnit

A Tool of Nonfiction: Image and Specificity With Useful Prompts and Exercises By Tara Labovich Image is specificity. Specificity is evidence. Don’t write about childhood, the grand sweep of those 18 years. If you want to say something about …

An interesting article about specificity by @taralabovich.bsky.social on Brevity Blog ( @dintywmoore.bsky.social ): brevity.wordpress.com/2026/04/08/i...

#WritingCommunity

Main Character Energy: How Desire Makes Memorable Memoir By Jessica Handler Photo by Royce Soble “We all like ourselves pretty well,” I say when I’m leading a writing workshop (hoping that everyone in the workshop does indeed like themselves pretty well)…

This post is good for both memoir and fiction: how to understand your main character. @JessicaHandler at @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/04/09/m... #writingcommunity #writingtips #authorlife #memoir

“If you're really listening, if you're awake to the poignant beauty of the world, your heart breaks regularly.” ~ Andrew Harvey

"An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way."
—Charles Bukowski

“What I like in a good author is not what he says, but what he whispers.” ~ Logan Pearsall Smith

Your Book Needs a Hook (Here’s Why) By Allison K Williams A few weeks ago, literary agent Jessica Berg and I listened to authors talk about their books for eight hours a day, for three days straight. We’d gone to the AWP Conference w…

What's a hook? It's how you show your book is powerful and relevant. @allisonkwilliams.bsky.social at @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/04/07/y... #writingcommunity #writingtips #writinglife #publishing

"Imagination is the real and eternal world of which this vegetable universe is but a faint shadow." ~ William Blake

"Remember the old adage about how an infinite number of monkeys typing on an infinite number of typewriters will eventually type something beautiful? Well, the Internet disproves that." ~ Kurt Vonnegut

"A true friend is someone who thinks you're a good egg, even if you're cracked." ~ Bernard Meltzer

“I could claim any number of high-flown reasons for writing, just as you can explain certain dogs behavior... But maybe, it’s that they’re dog, and that’s what dogs do.” ~ Amy Hempel

"The muscles of writing are...powerful: determination, attention, curiosity, a passionate heart." ~ Natalie Goldberg

The Ghostwriter in the Tool Shed By Hilary T. Smith I became a full-time ghostwriter and editor after leaving an emotionally abusive marriage. Ghostwriting paid faster than pitching books or essays under my own name; I also found …

The world of the ghostwriter is often vastly different from the world they are writing about. And sometimes, it is exactly what they need. Love this by @HilarySmith @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/04/01/g... #publishing #writinglife #authorlife

"Success as a writer is easy. Be born brilliant, with flawless work habits, little need for sleep, and wealthy grandparents who just happen to own prestigious magazines and publishing houses." - Dinty W. Moore

Just signed up to attend this tomorrow! Who else is in?

Issue 1 | Nerve to Write

Issue One is live and full of nerve!

Featuring work by @emmabolden.bsky.social, @jacqdoyle.bsky.social, @williamfargason.bsky.social, @sonyahuber.bsky.social @mattkendrick.bsky.social, @gabemontesanti.bsky.social, @zachpowers.bsky.social and more!

www.nervetowrite.com/issue-1

"Authors like cats because they are such quiet, lovable, wise creatures, and cats like authors for the same reasons." — Robertson Davies

Taking the “Me” Out of Book Promotion By Stephanie Weaver I have a memoir coming out in April, a milestone I’ve been dreaming of for eight years. As part of the thriving online literary community, I’ve watched dozens of friends launch …

If your memoir has a mission and a cause, here's how to use that in promotion - @StephanieWeaver @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/03/30/t... #writingcommunity #authorcommunity #memoir #creativenonfiction

Gone on this day in 2012: the great Harry Crews.

CJ’s 1st ever tribute was for Crews, w/ great grit incited by Crews + insights from his biographer Ted Geltner, Crews’ student Jay Atkinson, & Crews interviewers @dintywmoore.bsky.social & Tom Graves: www.cowboyjamboreemagazine.com/uploads/5/8/...

"When you start working, everybody is in your studio——your friends, enemies, the art world, your own ideas——are all there. But as you continue painting, they start leaving, one by one, and you are left completely alone. Then, if you're lucky, even you leave." ~ John Cage

WEBINAR | The Pleasures of the Personal Essay: New Ideas, Fresh Forms, and Expanded Markets for Your Writing - Craft Talks Fun, flexible, and highly marketable, the personal essay is an ideal way to extend our range and add to our writer’s toolbox.

The personal essay remains an ideal vehicle for satisfying the human urge to not just live year to year, but to capture a bit of our experience. And beyond that, the essay is flexible, fun, and fascinating. Join me next week? writingcraft.com/.../pleasure...

Preparing for the Fallout: Your Family Wants Privacy, But You Have a Story to Tell By Laurie Hertzel Years ago, when I was working on my MFA, one of my thesis advisors gave me a warning. After she published her memoir, Suzannah Lessard said, most of her family stopped speaking to…

When you write about family: the fine line between honesty and revealing the private times of others. @lhertzel.bsky.social at @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/03/23/p... #writingcommunity #authorlife #memoir #family

I'm always down for something written by @dintywmoore.bsky.social, especially his post today in the Brevity blog about essayists as the "cool kids."