On a piece of paper taped to a wall the quote “We often make a huge deal of starting. We make all sorts of excuses. Maybe it’ll be easier to concentrate when the children are in bed. Maybe tomorrow we’ll have a clearer head. Maybe next month we’ll get a new job so we have Monday’s to write. Yes maybe, but don’t spend today wondering about the maybes. Spend today writing. Always spend today writing, and before you know it you’ll be living a writing life and the maybes will have taken care of themselves.” ―Beth Kempton, The Way of the Fearless Writer. Underneath the url writing about writing about writing dot com.

Spend today writing.

Read my review of Beth Kempton's Way of the Fearless Writer here: www.writingaboutwritingaboutwriting.com/the-way-of-t...

#writingcommunity #writingabtwriting #quote #author #booksky

Tool: Describe Your Taste What makes a piece of writing good to you? Knowing what you like is an essential part of figuring out what you’ll enjoy writing.

Today's #writingabtwriting article is all about describing your taste. As in what do you *really* like. Specifically. It's an interesting exercise that can help you enhance your own writing.

#writingcommunity #booksky #writing #author #anwriting

2K to 10K - Rachel Aaron Based on a viral blog post from 2011, Aaron attempts to impart her speed demon writing ways. She claims that most people double their writing output following her method.

Rachel Aaron is able to write books incrediby fast through a combination of planning, excitement, and self knowlege. Worth a read even if you don't want to be a speed demon.

#writingabtwriting #writingcommunity #booksky #writing #author

The Emotional Craft of Fiction - Donald Maass Put more emotion on the page and craft a deep emotional journey for your reader taught by veteran agent Donald Maass.

Today's #writingabtwriting reviews the Emotional Craft of Fiction by Donald Maass. If you are struggling to make your stories click with readers you might not be putting *enough* emotion on the page or making your emotional moments count.

💙📚 #writingcommunity #amwriting #bookreview

Meander Spiral Explode: Design and Pattern in Narrative - Jane Alison Like a natural historian of text, Alison catalogs and describes several alternative narrative structures at both the macrotext and microtext level.

Tired of three act stories? Explore alternative narrative structures in Meander Spiral Explode: Design and Pattern in Narrative by Jane Alison.

#writingabtwriting #writingcommunity #author #booksky #writing

Quote typed on a piece of paper taped to a wall with washi tape: “At the beginning of a story, I am likely to have one or more images in my mind, some clearer than others (like the strip of light up Janice’s arm), which, when I examine them, suggest relations to one another. Using the story process—envisioning and notating, envisioning and notating—I try to move from one of these images to the next, lighting and focusing, step by step, on the dark areas between. As I move along, other areas well ahead in the tale will suddenly come vaguely into light. When I actually reach the writing of them, I use the story process to bring them into sharper focus still.” ― Samuel R. Delany, About Writing: Seven Essays, Four Letters, & Five Interviews. Underneath the url writing about writing about writing dot com.

Delany's description of his visualization process may not be your cup of tea. But it's the most detailed description of what writing feels like on the inside I've found so far.
Read the review: www.writingaboutwritingaboutwriting.com/about-writin...

#writingcommunity #booksky #writingabtwriting

Reading Report: March 2026 Take a field trip on a cheese bus, set your wonky horse free, and some extremely specific life advice.

March's Reading Report is up if you missed it yesterday. It's got monks in dark glasses, an ode to a lamp, and a confession of my complete addiction to Dungeon Crawler Carl.

#writingabtwriting #writingcommunity 🪐📚💙 #author #journal #shortstory

Reading Report: March 2026 Take a field trip on a cheese bus, set your wonky horse free, and some extremely specific life advice.

March's reading report went up this morning. It's got monks in dark glasses, an ode to a lamp, and a confession of my complete addiction to Dungeon Crawler Carl.

#writingabtwriting #writingcommunity 🪐📚💙 #author #journal #shortstory

Murder Your Darlings - Roy Peter Clark Clark summarizes over 50 writing books in six categories, with insightful commentary and bullet-pointed lessons at the end of each chapter.

Want to speedrun your writing knowledge? Start with Roy Peter Clark's Murder your Darlings which summarizes over 50 writing books for their best advice.

#writingabtwriting #writingcommunity #writing #author #booksky

Reading Report - Writing About Writing About Writing Monthly lists of interesting articles, inspiring ideas, and what I've been up to.

I've updated the site with a new tag for all of the Reading Reports. There's a lot of fun stuff in there if you want to end your doomscroll. Next report is up on Tuesday.

#writingabtwriting #booksky #writing #writingcommunity

On a piece of paper taped to a wall with washi tape, the quote “Visualizing a happier, more just world is a direct assault on the forces that are trying to break your heart. As Le Guin says elsewhere, the most powerful thing you can do is imagine how things could be different … What if?” ― Charlie Jane Anders, Never Say You Can't Survive: How to Get Through Hard Times by Making Up Stories. Underneath the paper in white writing the url writing about writing about writing dot com.

Trying a new format for quotes because I have some longer ones that didn't fit in the smaller format. Does this display the whole image for you?

Review: www.writingaboutwritingaboutwriting.com/never-say-you-cant-survive/

#writingabtwriting #writingcommunity #booksky #quote #writing

Spring Break Books to Up your Writing Game Quick and fun books to energize your writing practice.

Pack a fun writing book with you on your adventures this spring break.

Where is your favorite place to write on vacation? (Mine is on a train.)

#writingabtwriting #writingcommunity #author #springbreak #writing #amwriting 💙📚

How to Use a Writing Book For DTL’s first-ever guest post, author Emily Munro shares how writers can make the most of author’s books on craft. Images and captions…

My first #writingabtwriting guest post for another site is up on Medium for Drafting Through Life.

#writingcommunity #authors #books #writing

The Ant and The Gnat A fable for writers guest post by Drafting Through Life.

Our very first guest post is up on #writingabtwriting. Drafting Through Life kindly wrote us one of their fables for writers.

#writingabtwriting #authors #writingcommunity 💙📚

Still half-assing: Reflections on one year of Writing About Writing It’s been a year since I started Writing About Writing About Writing. I’m still half-assing this with my whole heart, and that has to mean something.

One year in, still bad at actually adding these to bluesky!

Thanks to everyone on here for your support this year, here's to many more.

#writingabtwriting #writingcommunity 💙📚

A piece of paper torn from a notebook and taped to a wall. On it is typed the quote "Learning how to be a good reader is what makes you a writer." Zadie Smith. Below it in fainter lettering the url writing about writing about writing dot com.

Read anything interesting lately?

writingaboutwritingaboutwriting.com

#writingabtwriting #authors #writingcommunity #junkjournal 💙📚

A piece of paper taped to a pinkish wall with the quote "The vocation of each writer is to describe the world as he or she sees it; anything more than that is advertizing." Hanif Kureishi. below the paper in faint white lettering the url writing about writing about writing dot com.

Your perspective is what makes your writing unique, don't give it up.

writingaboutwritingaboutwriting.com

#writingabtwriting #authors #writingcommunity #junkjournal 💙📚

A piece of paper taped to a wall with the quote "Every sentence must do one of two things: reveal character or advance the action." Kurt Vonnegut. Underneath in faint text the url writing about writing about writing dot com.

"Every sentence must do one of two things: reveal character or advance the action." -Kurt Vonnegut

writingaboutwritingaboutwriting.com

#writingabtwriting #authors #writingcommunity #junkjournal 💙📚

A piece of paper taped to a faintly pink wall with the quote "The real joy of writing comes from surprizing oneself." Alfred Kazim. At the bottom of the paper the url writing about writing about writing dot com.

How have you surprised yourself this week?

writingaboutwritingaboutwriting.com

#writingabtwriting #authors #writingcommunity #junkjournal 💙📚

Techniques of the Selling Writer - Dwight V. Swain A 50’s era pulp writer speed runs your writing knowledge. If I was teaching a college course today on writing fiction, this is the book we’d use as a textbook.

Almost 10 years since I read it for the first time, I'm still recommending Techniques of the Selling Writer to people. If you know of a book more full of actionable writing advice drop it below.

💙📚 #authors #writingcommunity #bookreview #writingabtwriting #books

Tool: Writing Takes Time Writers have a far different relationship with their books than readers do, starting with the disparity in the time it takes to write a book and the time it takes to read that same book.

Writing just takes longer than it feels like it should, no matter if you're working on your first book or your 50th.

#writingabtwriting #writingcommunity #author #books #writing 💙📚

Books for a Grammar Workout Build your writing muscle with these books on grammar, punctuation, and rhetoric.

Give your writing muscles a workout this week with these surprisingly fun books on grammar, punctuation, and rhetoric.

#writingabtwriting #authors #writing #writingcommunity #writingq 🖋️💙📚

Reading Report: February 2026 Tiny baby primates, mysterious medieval tunnels, and questioning why we write about so many kingdoms.

I am terrible at posting things. February's #writingabtwriting reading report is up.

Things that brought me joy in Feb included a baby slow loris, deep rock galactic survivor, and life advice from a decor blog.

📚💙🪐 #writingcommunity #author #writing #journal #books #joy #specfic

Tool: Extreme Specificity What specifically happened in that particular time when light fell through those particular leaves.

Amp up your writing by getting specific. Extremely specific.

#writingabtwriting #authors #writing #writingcommunity #writingq

Revisionaries - Kristopher Jansma A smart book full of interesting literary tidbits about the failures of writers you have certainly heard of.

For the evening crowd:
The newest #writingabtwriting review is on Revisionaries by Kristopher Jansma.

An interesting concept, done very well, with writing tips sprinkled throughout.

🖋️💙📚 #authors #writingcommunity #bookreview

www.writingaboutwritingaboutwriting.com/revisionarie...

A piece of paper taped to a blueish wall with the quote “I don't write about what I know: I write in order to find out what I know.” — Patricia Hampl in blue pen. Also in brown ink, faintly at the bottom, is the url writing about writing about writing .com

People say "write what you know" but sometime you just have to start writing to figure that out...

writingaboutwritingaboutwriting.com

#writingabtwriting #authors #writingcommunity #junkjournal 💙📚

Revisionaries - Kristopher Jansma A smart book full of interesting literary tidbits about the failures of writers you have certainly heard of.

The newest #writingabtwriting review is on Revisionaries by Kristopher Jansma.

An interesting concept, done very well, with writing tips sprinkled throughout.

🖋️💙📚 #authors #writingcommunity #bookreview

A piece of paper taped to a wall with the quote "Ah, good taste, what a dreadful thing! Taste is the enemy of creativeness." Pablo Picasso. the url writing about writing about writing dot com is below the paper in white text.

Feeling stuck?

Make bad art.

It's only by making lots of bad art that you'll find the good stuff.

writingaboutwritingaboutwriting.com

#writingcommunity #writingq #art #quote #booksky #writingabtwriting

Tool: The Master Study Today we are going to steal a tool from the visual artist’s cabinets and see if we can bang it into shape that works for writers. It’s called a Master Study, and it’s part copying, part analysis, and ...

Trying to figure out a technique from an author you like? Steal from the visual artist's playbook and do a master study. Here's how they work for writers.

#writingabtwriting #mastercopy #author #booksky #writingcommunity

I hope everyone is staying warm!
Today's tea is 2025 White Anji green from last spring while I pull together #writingabtwriting posts and things for next week. 🍵 🥶