psychology Archives - SRD Editing Services

Posted on September 2, 2024June 2, 2026 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — Leave a comment

Project Semicolon: Your Story Isn’t Over

September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month banner

Semicolons Represent Continuation

You may know the grammatical function of semicolons, but did you know they represent so much more?

If you’ve never heard of Project Semicolon, it’s a cause I greatly believe in. Mental health and self-care are common discussions for writers, and especially for me, who edits psychology and self-help manuscripts.

September is suicide prevention awareness month, per SAMHSA. So if you care about writers and their mental health, consider how you can support both the awareness of suicide prevention and mental health in general.

Why a Semicolon?

When a writer chooses to end a sentence, they use a period. When a writer wants to string together many grammatical elements in a sentence, they can use a comma. However, a writer might choose to use a semicolon instead of ending a sentence; they might extend what they have to say with a simple change in punctuation.

It is with this theory and sentiment that the Semicolon Project continues their mission. People, but especially writers, who have lived through suicidal attempts or ideation might understand the deep symbolism inherent in the semicolon.

A semicolon is sometimes used when the writer could choose to end their sentence, but instead, chooses to continue, to go on, to add to the action of the story.

Semicolons in Real Life

If you are someone or you know someone for whom this symbolism might resonate, someone who is a writer and who may have been suicidal at one time, there are many ways to show your love or support for them and their struggles,

Nearly 50,000 people died by suicide in 2022, which is one person every 11 minutes. The majority (76%) were White; 32% of them were middle-aged adults; 20% of them were women. (According to the CDC statistics.)

Of course, any life lost to suicide can have tragic consequences for the people they leave behind.

How to Support Writers You Know

First of all, if your friend is a writer and especially if they’re publishing things, you can read them. Leave a review. Leave comments on their social media. Support like this costs you nothing and means so much.

Big up your writer friends to others — family, friends, and people who you think would connect with their message. There is literally no better way to support your writer friend than to tell people you love what they do.

Second, there’s a lot of semicolon merch out there. If you have the kind of relationship where you can get your writer friend a notebook, or a sticker, or a coffee mug, or something else they’ll love, then there’s shopping options for you my friend. (Check out these search results for “project semicolon” on Etsy!)

Third, if you’re really hardcore about a writer or if you’re the type of writer who has been in the suicidal boat yourself, there are a range of tasteful and heartwarming semicolon tattoo designs to choose from. Getting a tattoo not only shows your long-term commitment and solidarity with your friend (or yourself) and their (your) struggles, but it’s also a silent form of support for all suicidal people and writers everywhere.

You can check out this Pinterest board for semicolon tattoo inspiration.

Whatever you do, take a few minutes this month to support writers and spread awareness about suicide prevention.

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Posted on December 4, 2023November 15, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — Leave a comment

Write like Great Classic Authors: Ernest Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway, beloved among American classic authors

“Write the truest sentence you know.” Then do it again. One sentence at a time, you write your story. Classic authors knew that there was nothing like capturing and keeping a reader’s attention, and titan in the literary world, Ernest Hemingway, knew and performed this trick better than most.

Known for his concise, powerful prose, Hemingway’s advice to write one true sentence at a time encapsulates the essence of his approach to storytelling—one that hinges on the authenticity of every sentence.

In the world of Hemingway, the narrative unfolds one sentence at a time. Sentences pull the reader along, like links in a chain, to the conclusion, toward the truth. Truth is elusive and can change from sentence to sentence, but if a writer focuses on making each sentence true, the reader will be pulled along. Every writer, (yes, even the classic authors), desires the command of readers’ attention.

By crafting each sentence with a commitment to truth, the writer threads truth throughout the entire tale.

Black and white photo of classic authors Ernest Hemingway sitting at desk with mountains in the background — For more about the life of Ernest Hemingway, visit the Hemingway House website

How Do I Write Like Hemingway?

To write like Hemingway, focus on simplicity and brevity. Use short, direct sentences and avoid unnecessary details. Embrace the “show, don’t tell” principle, allowing readers to infer meaning from the narrator’s descriptions, character’s expressions or movements, or vague dialogue.

Develop a keen observation of life and draw inspiration from your experiences. Consider keeping a creative scrapbook and collecting quotes, thoughts, notes, and ideas from authentic experiences you have in real life. Hemingway’s writing incorporates a deep understanding of human emotions, so use real emotions and behaviors you see in the world as inspiration for honest emotional resonance in your writing.

How Do I Edit like Hemingway?

You can also keep this commitment to truth in mind when editing. Hone your editing skills to eliminate redundant or flowery language. Remember that every sentence should be able to stand true on its own. Every sentence should contain something that moves the story forward and keeps the reader engaged. Otherwise, does the story need it? If there’s no truth or value in the sentence, can it be cut?

Classic authors invested less time in editing than they did in writing, because, when writing everything by hand, they were often more likely to decide on their word before committing it to paper. In today’s world of Backspace and Delete All functions, you may find yourself spending more time editing than Hemingway would have. Technology makes both writing and editing simpler than ever before.

Classic Authors Were People, Too

Of course, Hemingway’s life and work are not without controversy. In particular, his portrayal of women was *ahem* questionable (and certainly never passes the Bechdel Test). I am not the first to criticize him for being stereotypical, limited, and reflecting traditional gender roles. Like any author, his perspective is limited, and his version of the truth in the world is biased.

But take from him what you can and build a brighter future.

As you hone your craft as a writer, let this spark of wisdom from one of the great American classic authors serve as a guiding light. Hemingway’s words of wisdom can be a reminder that every sentence should bear the weight of truth. Remember that each sentence not only contributes to the story’s progression but also must captivate and enchant the reader.

If you want to write with a similar brilliance to Hemingway, don’t forget how important it is to develop your own style and voice. Be brief. Wield words with precision and impact. But know that Hemingway is asking you to do more than that: he asks you to deliver profound truths in the most economical manner. Let your sentences resonate, reverberating with the authenticity of human experience.

Ready to talk to an editor?

Posted on November 20, 2023November 14, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 1 Comment

How to Face Rejection as a Writer

Sign saying "You got this" next to black computer screen. To remind writers how to face rejection.

Like any creative, you will hear a multitude of advice on how to face rejection as a writer. No two pieces of advice are going to work the same for any one person; each person will have to find what helps soothe or motivate them after a rejection of a draft submission, no answer or ghosting from an agent, or the negative reviews that readers can leave online which may feel like a rejection of the writer’s ability. (Oof.)

No matter what type of writer you are, you face rejection. And here’s some tips to help you face it head-on when it occurs.

Tips on How to Face Rejection as a Writer

Remember that you are not your art. Your art is not you.

There are a thousand stories out there about rejection. Thousands. Millions. Of people who know exactly what it’s like to be told they’re not good enough in some capacity. Sure, it’s one thing to be told we’re being rejected for a job or a relationship, but when your art is rejected — something so pivotal that some people identify themselves wholeheartedly with it — that might be a whole other sub-variety of rejection unto itself.

Learn not to identify with your art.

All artists must learn to detach from their creative work. To learn how to face rejection as a writer, it’s crucial to understand that you are not your art, and your art is not you. Art is subjective, an expression of yourself but not all-encompassing and totally defining. Rejection by one group (or one agent!) is just one step in the process of allowing your art to express all aspects of yourself in an authentic, genuine, honest, and valuable way.

Understand the value of rejection & testing your mettle

If you are never rejected, how do you know your true worth? Like a child whose parents always say yes — Veruca Salt comes to mind — you will never know the depth of your own disappointment or have the chance to test your resilience if not rejected. If you are accepted everywhere, are you ever truly welcome? And have you done good by humanity and by your own potential, if no one has ever really turned you down?

Writing often requires persistence and tenacity. The ability to keep submitting work despite repeated rejections is a hallmark of successful writers. Many famous authors faced numerous rejections before achieving success. Learning how to face rejection, how to persevere through, is essential for any writer looking to make a lasting impact. Rejection provides an opportunity to test what you’re made of, find out more about yourself.

Release your creation

Roland Barthes and his essay “Death of the Author” is something that perhaps only lit majors spend a lot of time with, which is a shame for everyone else. At its core, the central idea is that you, as an artist, must cut loose your art from yourself; it must stand on its own in the world. You cannot follow it around and explain away its shortcomings. You cannot fight its battles against critics. Once you release it, you can’t constantly explain or defend it; it must fend for itself.

Rejection of your art, your perspective, your creative expression is an opportunity for growth, perspective, and self-evaluation.

Become responsive to rejection

Rejections can lead you to explore new avenues and take creative risks. If one type of writing consistently faces rejection, an adaptable, flexible, and creative writer may be encouraged to try different genres or styles, expanding their horizons and ultimately becoming more versatile and well-rounded in their craft. Respond to the situations you’re in; adapt and overcome as necessary. One (very successful) way how to face rejection as a writer is to write to your strengths; it just might take some trial-and-error to figure out what they are.

Accept misunderstanding

Understand and realize that being misunderstood is inherent in the creative process. Some people won’t “get it,” and their rejection can help you become a better artist. That’s normal and expected.

As a writer, if you want the reader to understand what you mean, it’s your job to be clear in how you express yourself. (Of course, this doesn’t mean you have to be straightforward, do things the same way as others, or cut short your poetic expression, but if you want someone to get it, it’s your job to give it to them.) However, not all art is for everyone, and as the great Bob Marley said, you can’t please all the people all the time.

But rejection offers you the opportunity to develop your character and emotional maturity, the opportunity to evaluate an aspect of your art that perhaps you did not evaluate before. It encourages humility, patience, and the ability to accept that not everyone will appreciate or connect with your work. These qualities can be valuable not only in writing but in life as well.

See if the rejection can help you shape into a better writer. Then, take what is useful and disregard what is not. Wish the rejector well and keep moving. Not all things are right for all people all the time. You can’t, and won’t, please everyone.

Seek social support

Learning how to face rejection as a writer can also involve seeking support and feedback from peers, writing groups, or mentors. Sharing experiences and receiving constructive criticism from fellow writers can be immensely beneficial.

A Growth Mindset Is the Top Method for How to Face Rejection

Overall, let’s underscore and re-emphasize the idea that rejection is a fundamental part of your growth and self-discovery. Learning how to face rejection is essential in a writer’s journey. Rejection fosters growth, resilience, and the ability to navigate the subjective world of literature, not to mention content creation and all creative expression. Learning to prepare for, anticipate, and not be deeply wounded by rejection will enable you to persevere and ultimately succeed in your craft.

Rejection is hard. Let an editor help you prepare.

Posted on July 3, 2023June 22, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — Leave a comment

1 Year with EFA: Editor Training on Sensitivity

Two hands holding wooden letters spelling out "webinar"

July 1 is the first anniversary of SRD Editing Services’ membership in the Editorial Freelancers Association. In the past year, editor Cortni Merritt has taken some awesome editor training and webinar sessions provided by the EFA, and we wanted to tell you a bit more about what’s going on behind-the-scenes and in-front-of-the-screens at SRD Editing Services.

EFA Member & Public Webinars & Editor Training

The Editorial Freelancers Association offers a number of live trainings and recorded webinars. Most are accessible both to editors who are members as well as to the general public, however, a number of them are exclusive only to EFA members. While some webinars and trainings are free, others have an enrollment fee associated with them, although typically the fee is reduced for EFA members.

In addition to a series of webinars to help freelancers and business-owning editors enhance their business skills, several EFA courses focus on improving practical skills such as copy editing and proofreading, while others are meant to enhance the editor’s techniques within certain genres—mystery, memoir, children’s literature, etc.

This year, editor Cortni Merritt completed and participated in a number of editor trainings that she felt could enhance practical technical skills across multiple genres, while also enriching the customer service experience she could provide to authors who choose SRD Editing Services for their editorial needs.

The Art of Feedback

Although the MA program and editor training at Florida State University provided extensive practice on giving writers feedback, this hour-long webinar hosted by EFA Chief Executive Officer Christina Frey was a helpful refresher.

Feedback, especially from an editor, should be both collaborative and effective. The author must find it helpful, and above all, everyone must feel respected for feedback to be applied.

When giving feedback, it is helpful for the editor to provide a neutral, “reader-first” perspective that is not based on opinion but instead on the authority of professional experience.

Authenticity Reading---What It Is & Why Editors Should Care

Authenticity reading, also known as sensitivity reading, is a type of pre-publication read-through for feedback in which the reader focuses on a specific area that readers might find unfairly portrays a group of people.

Most books have some content to which a particular sub-set of readers might be sensitive; different genres and books of different readership have different concerns, but when the writing might be considered “insensitive,” it should be evaluated for those concerns.

Trans Allyship for Writers & Editors

Writer and activist Davey Shlasko led this insightful editor training that examined how an editor can be aware and sensitive to trans identity and expression in the writing they edit. Above all, they say, “Be curious, be self-aware, and be willing to push past your comfort zone.”

In case of doubt about a person’s pronouns, ask! If you offer yours first (she/her), you may open the space for the other person to share theirs.

When assessing trans content, consider whether characters are being portrayed as real, whole people. Consider who the audience is and suggest further review from sensitivity readers as needed.

Lastly, Davey offered a variety of interesting resources for trans-ally copy editors, which I feel deserve (and will hopefully get!) their own blog: The Radical Copy Editor, The Conscious Style Guide, and The Trans Allyship Workbook.

Demystifying the Language of Disability

Writer and activist Emily Ladau has been educating audiences about life with disability since age 10. In this editor training, she encouraged editors to consider person-first, identity-first language as a part of recognizing and removing subtle ableist bias.

People often have preferences regarding the language used to identify them, and if you’re interested in knowing a person’s preference, ask! Some people find “disabled” preferable, while others prefer a euphemism, but a well-meaning editor can devalue thoughtful choices of self-identity by making assumptions.

Generally, Emily advises editing with one eye on the lookout for the tropes of disability and to focus on increasing affirming language and reducing use of disability-insensitive metaphors. While representation is important, a review from a person similar to one being represented is ideal–“Nothing about us, without us.”

More Editor Training Planned for 2023-2024

It’s only in 2023 that we’ve really ramped up our professional involvement and development, first by announcing the SRD Editing Services membership in the EFA in January 2023, and then announcing our membership in the International Association of Professional Writers & Editors in May 2023. But there’s more coming!

Subscribe to our blog or follow SRD Editing Services on social media to stay up-to-date with all the exciting announcements. More editor training for our team happening at the Workshop at Authors Publish magazine, as well as from the University of North Georgia.

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Posted on April 24, 2023April 24, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 1 Comment

Tool for Children’s Book Writers (& Parents!): Accelerated Reader Bookfinder

Children reading a children's book. Boy and girl sitting next to a window.

For more than 20 years, the Accelerated Reader (AR) program has been helping kids read children’s books they enjoy, at their own pace. Readers of all levels can choose an AR book, read their way through it, then take a computerized quiz to assess their understanding and sometimes earn class credit.

Educators across the US use it, and hundreds of thousands of kids across the country read millions of pages every year because of it. If you’re a parent of a child of any age, you’ve probably already heard of AR.

But if you’re a parent who is looking to contribute more to your child’s reading goals and even help them find new books to read, or if you’re a writer of children’s books looking to keep up with trends, find stories comparable with your own work, or identify the reading level of your work, the Accelerated Reader Bookfinder website can be a great resource.

This blog aims to provide both parents and kids lit authors an introduction and overview of how to use the AR Bookfinder site. Let’s take a look!

Using AR Bookfinder Website

Whether you’re a parent or you write children’s books of any level — from elementary to mid-grade, juvenile, or YA books — use the AR Bookfinder website for basic research.

Now, when I was a kid participating in Accelerated Reader, there was no website–there was no internet. If I wanted to know what reading level a book was or how many points it was worth, I had to actually go to the library and examine the sticker on the spine of the book or ask the librarian. How times have changed!

Accelerated Reader Bookfinder welcome page for children's books — On the Welcome page, select the “Parent” option to explore AR Bookfinder without creating an account.

When you first land on the AR Bookfinder welcome page, you need to identify yourself as a student, parent, teacher, or librarian. Whether you’re a parent or a writer of children’s books, you can use the “parent” option to browse the website without creating an account.

For Parents: Confirm AR Children's Books, Reading Levels, & Points

Once you have identified yourself as a parent, use the “Quick Search” option to enter a title that your kid is interested in, to confirm whether it is an AR book, what reading level it is, and how many points it’s worth. You can also search an author name to see which of their works are AR eligible.

I’m lucky, personally. My kid is an excellent reader(!), but I have to constantly remind him to collect his AR points and meet his goal to earn the grade for his language arts class. Luckily, most of the books he’s interested in are in the AR Bookfinder database.

We are sometimes at our favorite local thrift bookstore or the public library, or a friend will offer to let my son borrow a book, and with a quick search, we can find out whether a title he’s interested in is an AR book.

(In fact, one of our favorite books of 2022 — See You in the Cosmos — was one we borrowed from the public library then found out on AR Bookfinder that it was worth 10 points!)

For titles that may have multiple versions in print, it may be important to look more closely at the details of each book on your search results list. Some versions may be abridged, a graphic novel or illustrated version, or an annotated or enhanced version of the book–all of which might affect the reading level and point value.

AR Bookfinder children's book results list of different versions of Alice in Wonderland — A popular title like “Alice in Wonderland” may have several versions available for your child to enjoy and earn AR points.

Advanced Search Options

If you’re not sure of the title or author name, or if you want to check more details about a book series, use the “Advanced Search” tab for more search options.

By using the Advanced Search tab, you can peruse a specific children’s book series to see which titles earn AR points, or you can choose the “Interest Level” (i.e., reading level) to browse titles that might appeal to your child.

Select from Lower Grade (K-3), Middle Grade (4-8), Middle Grade (6+), and Upper Grades (9-12) to filter a list that meets your child’s unique reading needs.

Use the Additional Criteria options to select a topic that your child is interested in (not just genres, but think of this more similar to tags, like “adventure” or “history”), as well as filter to look at only fiction or nonfiction children’s book titles.

If you have no ideas or starting points for your search, and your kid needs suggestions of children’s books, keep reading! The section below details how to use the “Collections” tab on the AR Bookfinder website to search for new titles, authors, or series your little one may love.

AR Bookfinder Tips For Children's Book Writers

As a new or still-learning children’s book writer, it can be tricky to know exactly what reading level or grade level you’re writing for. These “levels” may differ based on subjective criteria such as word choice, sentence structure, and topic.

Maybe you have an idea for a kid’s book, and you’re not sure who your audience is or exactly what age they are.

Or maybe you’re prepping your query letter and submission info for agents and you need to gather titles of children’s books that are comparable to yours. Either way, using the “Collections” tab in AR Bookfinder can help.

Explore "Collections" for Comps & Reading Level

Writers (and parents!) can use the “Collections” tab to explore two things: recent award-winning children’s books and trending and popular kids books.

AR Bookfinder website showing childrens book writers how to explore the Collections tab. — Use the “Collections” tab to explore award-winning children’s books.

Now, it’s possible that these lists will overlap, but just because something is award winning doesn’t mean it’ll be popular! And just because a title is popular with kids in a certain age group doesn’t mean it was critically acclaimed.

Checking out both options in the Collections tab can give you a full picture of what’s going on in children’s book publishing and how to position your title.

When you select the Collections, tab you will see these two main options to peruse through the database.

By selecting the “plus sign” next to one of the options, you expand the menu for more specific information.

Under “Awards,” for example, you can find links to specific children’s book award lists, such as the Newberry Medal and the Coretta Scott King Award.

AR Bookfinder collections show award-winning children's books — Use “Collections” to browse award-winning children’s books.

On the other hand, selecting the plus sign next to “What Kids Are Reading” opens a sub-menu with the three most recent calendar years. Select a year to open the next sub-menu, which says “Top 20 Fiction/Nonfiction Books of [YEAR]”.

When you select this menu, the next sub-menu opens, separating out each grade with a link. You can then explore the top 20 books for kindergarteners, first graders, etc., all the way through high school seniors.

AR Bookfinder children's books top 20 of 2020 — Use “Collections” to explore top 20 titles for each grade level in most recent 3 calendar years.

For example, the Top 20 for 11th grade in 2020 includes classic titles such as The Catcher in the Rye and Huckleberry Finn, along with contemporary titles such as Divergent and The Hate U Give.

Obviously, many eleventh graders are reading and taking AR quizzes on titles required for a class curriculum, but it’s also obvious that many eleventh graders are continuing to read children’s and YA books in which they’re interested and which are also AR books they can earn points on.

Track Titles & Reading Goals with Goodreads!

Although the AR Bookfinder website does have a “favorites” feature, which they call the AR Bookbag, that allows you to save a list of titles; however, when using a Parent account, the Bookbag empties/clears its history when you close your web browser. That can be inconvenient for long-term tracking and ideas!

Instead, our editor Cortni suggests creating a Goodreads account if you don’t already have one (and connect with Cortni on Goodreads!) Using Goodreads’ “shelf” feature, you can easily track all the books you’ve read, the ones you’re currently reading, and ones you want to read.

Since a Goodreads account will last far beyond your child’s school years, it can be an excellent long-term tool to keep your kid reading far into adulthood.

And for authors of children’s books, a Goodreads membership and active account can help you connect with your readers and keep them informed of your work and upcoming releases.

Ready to discuss your editing needs? Connect with a children's book editor!

Children's Books Edited by SRD Editing Services

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Posted on February 13, 2023February 8, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 2 Comments

From “Writer” to “Author of a Book”: 4 Tips for Imposter Syndrome

Black and white image of hands coming together in fist bump. Encouragement for writers who want to author a book

There’s a mental shift for writers when they start calling themselves an author of a book. Many writers seem to find some magic in the term, some kind of promise in the word.

If you are among the group of authors with only one published book, there’s good news. That’s all it takes to call yourself an author. Technically, if you have published only one book, I’d recommend you call yourself an emerging author.

Difference Between a “Writer” and an “Author”

Some people (who risk sounding pretentious) might elaborate on subtle differences between the terms writer and author, but really it just comes down to: have you published a book yet? Fiction or nonfiction, any age genre (adult, YA, children); authors with only one published book are still the author of a book.

Now, there are many types of writers.

Screen writers are highly involved in your favorite TV shows and movies. Copywriters craft the ads, commercials, and most of the social media posts (and blogs!) that you see.

Poets are writers who specialize in poetry. A fiction writer might not necessarily be an author of a book. Many fiction writers are accomplished at short form and focus on flash fiction or short stories.

Nonfiction writers compose essays, magazine and website content, and online tutorials and articles.

Technical writers compose textbooks, guidebooks, and manuals.

You can make an excellent living, engage many interests, and master many forms and platforms as a writer, without ever becoming the author of a book.

But if you do finish that first draft of your manuscript, you’re one step closer to calling yourself an author. Now, all you have to do is publish.

Imposter Syndrome

Not to gloss over the sometimes-difficult, multistep process of publishing, but…

One of the challenges that can keep many people from making the transition from writer of a manuscript to author of a book is imposter syndrome.

Imposter syndrome is a situation in which a person feels or states that they are not worthy of their achievements or of acclaim, despite evidence to the contrary. People who struggle with imposter syndrome report feeling like a “fraud” or like they’ve fooled others into thinking highly of them.

I think you can see why this is a mindset that might (sometimes) affect writers (even very talented ones.) I have worked with people who had run multiple successful companies, had raised incredible children, had lived through extreme and extraordinary circumstances who all told me that they weren’t sure they could be an author of a book because they weren’t sure that anyone would be interested in their stories or ideas.

Every book you’ve ever read, every author you ever admired, began as a writer who decided that, even if they weren’t sure anyone would be interested, they were going to publish their book anyway.

Funny cartoon from Science of People showing two pie charts. One blue and one yellow. — From The Science of People, “The 5 Types of Imposter Syndrome (and How to Overcome It!)”

Becoming a Successful Author of a Book

Now, that’s not to say that publishing a single book will let you live the life of your dreams. Authors with only one published book have a long road ahead of them. Being an author is not the same as being a successful author. Generally, emerging authors tend to publish about seven or eight books; those authors who earn $100K per year or more have an average of thirty-three books to their names.

It can be helpful to consider your definition of success. An annual income of $100K as a book author is one measure of success. You might consider what else are elements of your personal success story—a successful launch party; a successful book signing or public speaking engagement; a successful media tour; a successful establishment of a Facebook group or other social media space to connect with your readership.

There are many standards by which you can measure success once you’re the author of a book, and you can build on those successes.

Writing through Imposter Syndrome

But first, in order to complete that all-important initial step from writer to author, you have to get past the dreadful imposter syndrome. There are many different approaches, but here are a few of my favorites that I’ve seen work over the years for different authors working on their first book.

Talk Back to Negative Voices

You can do this out loud (if you’re in a comfortable environment), or you might type it up as a dialogue screen in a blank document. When a negative thought tells you that you should stop writing, shouldn’t tell your story, or that you’ll never be the author of a book, you respond back to the thought with either a question like, “Is that really true?” or a statement that conveys the idea that “Your opinion isn’t welcome here.”

I find it can be particularly helpful to get this all out at the beginning of a scheduled or impromptu writing session. If you have half an hour to write, spend the first two to three minutes telling your self-doubt to take a hike…at least for the next twenty-eight minutes.

Let Negative Thoughts Sputter Out

Along the same lines, if you don’t find that talking back to negative self-criticism or doubt is the right approach for you, instead, try to imagine those thoughts being said to you by an angry toddler—fragmented language and all. Then, spend two to three minutes writing up what the negative toddler–thoughts are saying. You might find that—very quickly and like a toddler—the negative self-talk will run out of steam. Or you might find yourself laughing if you’re very good at writing a toddler’s voice, and in that case, consider becoming the author of a book for children.

Lock Away Negative Voices

You can also manage negative self-talk from imposter syndrome using visualization techniques, including “shrinking” the source of this critical inner voice. Visualize the person (or people) whose voices embody the negative thoughts, then visualize that person shrinking, becoming small, small enough that you can drop them into a glass jar on which you tightly screw the lid, muting the voice. If you hear multiple voices or inner critics, repeat the process with each person/thought until they are all secured in these mental glass jars. Then, place all the jars in a mental cabinet, close the door, and physically lock it. Now, sit down to write.

Try the Mirror Technique with a Writerly Twist

You have probably heard of the motivational process/Law of Attraction of repeating positive mantras (or affirmations) to yourself in the mirror, daily, in order to boost confidence, increase self-compassion, and focus your mental energy—aka, the mirror technique. This is a great idea, of course, and there is some research showing that mirror affirmations may help support student achievement (in certain circumstances); so why not writers?

The basic mirror technique is simple: You spend at least 1 minute in front of the mirror repeating to yourself positive, self-affirming statements. (Some say you can simply think the statements, but I suggest speaking them aloud.) General recommendations include phrases like, “I can do anything I put my mind to” or “I am worthy.”

For writers, and specifically a writer who wants to become the author of a book, I recommend trying author-motivational phrases such as:

“I am an author.”
“All it takes is one published book.”
“All of my favorite books started as ideas.”
“I am creative.”
“I can write my way out of any plothole.”
“You can edit a bad draft, but you can’t edit a blank page.”

If you have another writer-related motivational phrase, give it priority in your daily affirmation routine.

If you don’t have a daily affirmation routine, you can always try this as a practice to pump yourself up before writing time. Give yourself a one-minute pep talk, then sit at your keyboard and let the imposter syndrome watch you work.

Whatever you need to do to become the author of a book that you want to be, keep writing.

We help dreams become books

Posted on March 28, 2022October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 1 Comment

On Being a Lifelong Book Collector

A person (book collector) sitting on a stack of books, showing bare feet and jeans.

I went book shopping yesterday. I don’t know why I picked up anything. I already had 130 books on my TBR list, three of which were recent arrivals via my boyfriend that I wanted to check out. And I already had six or seven that I have been sitting around various places in the house, set aside from the last trip to the used book store. Two of them, I’ve started but haven’t finished, and the others are patiently collecting dust like the long-suffering forgotten treasures that I’ve (unfortunately) let them become.

So why did I pick up five more? Why did I jump at the opportunity to re-own a book I gave away once and never got back? Why did I snag one from an author I’ve never heard of, largely based on cover art and the back cover summary? (And its placement in the store.)

I do try to do that though. As a lifelong reader (and book collector), I’ve found that grabbing random books from unheard-of authors is how to discover new authors, new worlds, new adventures. I love to return to ones I know and cherish (who doesn’t?), but what joy there is in wandering the aisles and finding a gem.

The Japanese language has a word for book ownership like this: tsundoku

Literally translated as “to pile up reading,” the general meaning is the practice of buying books with the intention of reading them, but letting them pile up instead. Maybe you just never get around to it. Maybe you get distracted by something else. Maybe you just run out of time.

One popular meme discusses how the Old English word for a library was “bōchord”, which literally means “book hoard,” and this implies that librarians are dragons. Now, I’m no librarian, but I’ve had people exclaim, “Your house is like a library!” when they walk in. So, that sounds like a reasonable comparison to me. And I wouldn’t mind being a dragon.

I think part of the reason we (as people) do this is that we like to aspire. We like to see ourselves as someone different. New. Growing. Doing things in the future that we’re not doing now. It’s hopeful, isn’t it? It’s optimistic that we’ll be more someday than we are now.

Is it a stack of books, a list of recipes to try, a bucket list of places to travel that reminds us of who we want to become?

Is it the comfort of being surrounded by a collection of familiar objects? They don’t change. They simply are, simply existing, simply remaining, ready to be laughed at or change your life, at any moment. They’re so comfortable, those books in your collection, sitting in stacks and on shelves, just waiting for an excited mind of the book collector that cracks their spine and discovers what’s inside. Even without being opened, they provide some sort of vital energy to a room, whispering secrets that you must be quiet enough and open-minded enough to hear.

A room without books is truly silent.

I guess if I ever want to become a better writer, I better become more than a mere book collector and actually get started reading.

Posted on July 27, 2020October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 1 Comment

Improve Your Writing Process

The Outcome Can Terrorize You

If there’s a thousand ways to do something, there’s a thousand ways to do it right. And a thousand ways to muck it up. And the truth is — you’ll never find the writing process that works for you, without stumbling through a few of those.

In On Writing Well, by William Zinsser, he writes about “the tyranny of the final product.” This “tyranny” is the pressure that reigns over you as you try to create. It’s the expectation that you will produce something, that in the end, after all this effort, you will have a product.

Something marketable. Something worth selling.

Well, that can kind of take some of the fun out of writing, can’t it? And it can certainly raise the stakes. What are you doing all this for, if not to have some product at the end? If not to have produced something of value and use to the world?

But the steps that a writer must go through to produce that product. Ah, therein lies the journey.

It’s said that “Ordinary people focus on the outcome; extraordinary people focus on the process.”

Producing the book is one thing — you can get it done, come hell or high water, no matter how much blood, sweat, and tears you have to pour into it. But, why should it take blood, sweat, and tears? Might there not be an easier way?

The outcome of the book can be achieved, and you can pat yourself on the back once you achieve it, but might you not achieve it more easily? Isn’t there a better process, an easier way?

Well, of course, there probably is. You might have to spend some time finding it.

Improve Your Writing Process

When you want to do something better, you might ask experts and long-time successful people for their advice. Of course, every writer and every process is different, but here are some tips and tricks you might try.

Writing Process Tip #1: Write to a Soundtrack

While working on a single book, novel, or narrative theme, some writers find it very helpful to have a specific album, playlist, or musical artist to keep them in the same “mood.” This might be specific — such as having different playlists for each character who has a point of view in your novel — or it might be more general, such as “anytime I work on this novel, I’m going to listen to jazz.” You can also try nature sounds to background your writing time.

Whatever it is you’re using to fill the silence around you, just don’t let it distract you from putting words on the page.

(For a visual method, try using a mood board!)

Writing Process Tip #2: Try "Scribe" Writing

Most people talk faster than they type. While an accomplished typist might put down 80 to 100 words per minute on their screen, your average speaker can throw out 130 words per minute (in English). Easily, when speaking, you might tell a story twice as fast, with more detail, than sitting to write it. … So why are you trying to write with your hands? Do it with your mouth!

Thanks to transcription apps like otter.ai and Express Scribe, you can easily use the microphone on your phone or computer to record yourself talking through your book, and then the app will type it all up for you into an easy-to-edit text-based document. No more cramping wrists and tired fingers.

(NOTE: You can still use the “soundtrack” idea here as well! One renowned author, whose productivity level is as high as 10K words per day, attributes her success to audio transcriptions of her books. She says instead of music in the background, she will put a movie on mute when she is working on a specific book, and play only that movie when she works on that book until the book is finished. Magnificent!)

Writing Process Tip #3: The Carrot vs. the Stick

Anyone who has ever tried to negotiate with a child understands how useful bribes and incentives can be — both positive and negative ones. So, you have to find what motivates your own inner child.

What reward will you work especially hard for? What punishment will you work specifically hard to avoid?

Set yourself up for success! Promise yourself that after you finish the writing goal you set for yourself for the day, you will reward yourself with that walk in the park, or that brownie, or that self-care time. Treat yourself when you reach those goals!

And, on the other hand, promise someone else that if you don’t finish your writing goal for the day, you’ll be accountable for something unpleasant. You’ll do the dishes, or put a $1 in the “writing not done” jar, or forego your dessert, or whatever the un-fun thing that you’d rather avoid. A little bribery goes a long way.

Writing Process Tip #4: Be Flexible

It can be frustrating when you’re still settling into a process and finding what works for you.

You might be tempted to shrug off silly-sounding advice from others. You may be tempted to fall back into comfortable habits because they are easy and you already know how to do them. But, if your comfortable habits produced the level of productivity you wanted, you wouldn’t be looking to improve your process, right?

Try a few different approaches on for size. And not just for a single day. Some things, you might give three days and then re-evaluate how you feel about them. Some things, you might try for a whole week to see how they work for you. It takes between 14 and 21 days to form or break a habit, so when you find something you like and something that works, stick to it for a whole month.

After you’ve made it a part of your routine for a month, you’ll be in a better position to determine if it’s something you should keep around.

Just Keep Writing!

No matter what you do to improve your writing process, the trick is to keep writing. You can’t say you’re improving if you’ve got only blank pages to show for it — that is one thing about being what you say you are.

If you are a writer, then you must write.

You must produce written words, and once you find the right process to help you, nothing should stand in your way.

Need an Experienced Editor to Help?

Contact SRD Editing Services for help with developmental editing or line editing.

Posted on July 1, 2020October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — Leave a comment

The Importance of Charity

I am learning to love giving. I am learning to love charity.

It’s a difficult thing, a solid thing, a hard thing: to let go. To release. So much emotion tied up in the material. So many attachments to things in and around daily life.

Some people live in one town all their lives; some people even live in a single house. I have no hometown, no house that I “grew up in.” Semi-nomadic for as long as I can remember, my stuff has long been my home. Items that surround me hold in them the memories of where I’ve been and who was there and what we dreamed about.

The most recent times I’ve arranged my life into boxes and taken them to another building to rearrange my life inside new walls, I’ve realized: there is too much stuff. Too much for a single grown person (and a half-person) to justify.

Why hold on to notebooks from college? As if their weight demonstrates, somehow solidifies, all the knowledge contained in them that was once crammed into my skull. Now, the answer to any question is always right at the end of my fingertips. (But! some inner Junk Lady protests, these pages are in your own handwriting. Isn’t that better than Google, dearie?)

No matter where I’ve lived, the truth remains that we are all connected. When I make the decision to consume, someone, somewhere has produced it, and I can and am having an impact on the producer’s life. When I consume what I don’t need, or don’t consume what I do need because I don’t let go of what no longer fits my life, I also affect the producers. My consumption is active, fluid; decisions change the world.

Mindful Consumption + Charity

Mindfulness and self-reflection result in clarity. As I examine my life, my choices and their consequences, it becomes clearer which attachments bring me joy and which don’t contribute any value. Once it’s clear what doesn’t contribute, the possibility of letting go, of breaking those attachments, becomes reality.

Once I realize that I can let go of a particular thing, my perspective changes. When I can say, “I don’t need this thing,” I wonder why I keep what I don’t need, and what I need that I don’t have. I wonder what it will take for me to begin to embrace charity more in my day-to-day life.

Donate, donate, donate ...

“They who give have all things; they who withhold have nothing.”

This last year, I’ve gathered a few lessons on how to make giving an effortless, fully-integrated aspect of my life.

I’ve learned:

You can (and should!) donate to Goodwill or Salvation Army or your local homeless shelter clothes and shoes that you and your children have outgrown or no longer wear.
Donate to your local animal shelter all the toys, bedding, and accessories that your pets rejected or outgrew.
Donate books to libraries or shelters; donate toys your kids have outgrown to a daycare center or church.

Personal Charity Favorite:

Got an old gaming system that you can’t resell? Donate it to kids who are stuck in the hospital with cancer and other chronic illnesses. Visit Charity Nerds and make a kid’s day. (Good-bye Leap Frog Leap Pad that my son stopped playing with years ago).

Consume Responsibly ...

Thrift stores, consignment stores, used-furniture outlets, used-book stores*, pre-owned anything. There’s an entire world of apps, brick-and-mortar locations, and retail sites where you basically never have to pay full price and buy anything new, ever. This is especially useful when it comes to items like kids’ clothing.

Warning – I have found that buying shoes from thrift stores/pre-owned clothing stores (and websites) is a tricky process, often with disappointing results.

If and when you purchase new, purchase items from companies that represent your ethics (B-corps, certified fair trade, mission-focused businesses) and/or small business when possible. I love Etsy. With a passion. It’s a fantastic marketplace for unique, handmade items you can give as gifts for any occasion.

Personal Favorites:

I love Me to We, an amazing company that is making serious impacts on every continent. I do not remove the two rafikis I wear on my left wrist, as a reminder and reflection of the solidarity I feel with women around the world.

I also love 4Ocean, working to clean up ocean and shoreline pollution around the world. Each bracelet = cleanup of 1 lb. of trash. I wear one (the sea turtle design) on my right ankle.

I am addicted to Diet Coke. (No but like, it’s seriously a problem.) Coke offers the My Coke Rewards program (redeem the codes under the lids/on packaging for points you can trade for cheap merch), but I found that the “rewards” were about as exciting and long-lasting as the junk from the prize counter at Chuck E. Cheese. Well, I wasn’t going to stop drinking Diet Coke, and my points kept expiring. Sad. Then, I found that you can “cash in” your rewards points as a donation to a school of your choice. Easy solution.

* They still exist, I promise. My personal favorite, in the Orlando area, is Best Used Books.

Automate Your Charity Giving

Use technology to do more, more easily. There are apps that make it easy for you to connect with those in need of charity in your area, or around the world. Donate time, donate resources, donate personally or from your business.

Personal Favorites:

Spend too much time on your phone? Ever use the Pomodoro technique to keep yourself focused? Forest is the app that lets you donate time off your phone toward planting a real tree somewhere on Earth. Because we will always need trees.

Run, walk, bike, hike, or swim with Charity Miles to have your mileage sponsored on your behalf. For every mile you clock, a corporate sponsor donates to the charity of your choice on your behalf. (I donate my miles to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, in honor of my brother’s fiance – a two-battle survivor of Leukemia.)

If you are in the food business – maybe you run a restaurant or catering service, maybe you manage a grocery or convenience store – you have dealt with spoilage, surplus, and other inventory issues. Donate extra food. (France made it a law that unspoiled food can’t be thrown out of grocery stores, it required to donate surplus food).

The solution that Philadelphia, Penn., has found is to connect food donors with local businesses, like homeless and domestic violence shelters, that need food. Use the Food Connect app to donate or receive – and leave the Food Connect team a message telling them you want Food Connect in YOUR city!

Charity Begins at Home

No matter how you choose to contribute to your larger community, remember to first and foremost contribute to those in your life who need it. Offer support, love, and compassion to the people you care about. This is an entire topic for conversation (for another blog), but, I firmly believe that if you take care of those you care for, there will literally be more love in the world.

Need an Editor?

Posted on January 13, 2020October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 1 Comment

On Intransitive Emotions: Emotional Writing Practice

Pink blooming flowers on the branch of the bush. To express emotional writing and intransitive verbs.

Where Do Emotions Go?

Do feelings have direct objects? Many do. Most of the time.

We do not feel an emotion like love if it is not directed toward some thing or someone. We don’t usually feel anger without a source, a thing that is the reason for our anger. Whether or not anger and love are ultimately directed toward the correct thing is a separate issue. But overall, they are not objectless. Not without an objective.

But what about gratitude? Or loneliness? Or freedom? Or even anxiety?

Some human emotions, like some verbs in the English language, may not need to act upon a direct object. Some things we, as humans, simply feel without it being directed toward a specific thing. Regardless of who caused the emotion or where it came from. Or what we plan to do with it.

I have heard it said that grief is love with nowhere to go. How beautifully tragic. You have so much love, but no object to direct it toward. You’ve lost someone or something you love, and what’s left is this love with no object to love. So it is transformed into grief. And then what do you do with it?

If you can learn to harness and develop your most emotional writing, you may be able to direct these emotions and express their universality to others.

Emotional Writing Is about Range

Consider: It is easy to write about emotions that come from an obvious person or can be directed easily outward or inward toward some manifestation. It is easy to show through emotional writing that a character is angry based on his or her reaction to the circumstances.

But your writing can grow from learning to express the intransitive actions and feelings of life. The things we all simply feel. The things we can’t necessarily explain or simply express.

Consider the sentence: He ran.

The verb does not need to act on anything. It stands alone. No object. This is what makes it an intransitive verb.

What emotions might your character have that run by themselves? What emotional state does your character default to? What might be some of the intransitive emotions that your character feels but which don’t have an object?

How can you express something like a character’s gratitude for the wind on her face with emotional writing? Is the character grateful to someone or something for the wind, or does she simply feel the gratitude without having anywhere to put it?

Does your character’s emotion need an object? It can have one, sure, but it may not be necessary. Just like he can run quickly. Or he can run on the pavement, your character can be grateful to someone or something. Even if it’s ineffable.

And if you, dear writer, can make your characters’ actions and intransitive emotions tangible, you will lead readers into a much richer world through the emotional writing that draws readers in and makes characters come to life.

This may be something to incorporate into your own self-editing and revision, as well as an item to address with your creative editor to ensure you’re working together to make your emotional writing as creative and expressive as possible.

Ready to talk with an editor about your emotional writing?

Posted on January 6, 2020October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A.

Eye Care for Writers

Working indoors, sitting and staring at a computer for many hours per day, is not what humans evolved for throughout history. But our big brains have led us here, and we’ve developed a society where some people have to look at screens for many hours per day, which requires eye care.

Studies have shown, and it is well documented in the research, that a sedentary lifestyle, including working at a computer, can have serious physical effects and can be harmful to a person’s body and their physical health.

In particular, if you are like me—a writer or other professional who stares at a computer screen for hours on end—you need to know how this can affect your eyes.

Screens Kill Your Eyes

The results are in: The blue light from your computer, television, and mobile device screens is killing the cells in your eyes.

Blue light contributes to macular degeneration, which means the breakdown of cells. Researchers also believe that an indoor lifestyle can contribute to a lack of vitamin D, another contributing factor to cellular degeneration.

On top of this, people who naturally are a risk of lower levels of vitamin D, such as people with darker skin tones, who absorb less natural light, may be at a greater risk.

So if you have more melanin in your skin, work indoors, and stare at screens all day, you are at a higher risk of having your eyesight fail at a younger age.

Blue-Light Filtering EyeGlasses—Do they help?

The results are still out: I don’t know. But, it seems, most of the results out there are anecdotal. Research isn’t required for eye wear, and the effect may very well be placebo.

But, I was experiencing eye strain. Bluriness and bleariness. Difficulties reading and focusing after many hours on the screens.

For months, I have kept the blue light filter mode set “On” at all times on my phone as basic, minimal eye care. This is part of the usual “night mode” settings that are often built in—reducing the blue light after a certain time to help offset the upset that screentime can have on a person’s Circadian rhythm. But for me, I’ve just had the blue filter “On” on my phone for months anyhow.

I think it helps. I have thought it helped for months. Often, once my eyes get tired on my computer—which has a TV screen that doubles as my second monitor—I’ll switch to my phone because it’s easier on my eyes.

My First Pair of Blue-Light Filter Glasses

So for Christmas 2019, I was excited to receive a pair of ICU Blue Light eye glasses. They’re cute, and easy enough to wear. I’ve never worn glasses for reading or general eye problem—only the sunglasses I need to protect my vampirism—so it’s a new experience for me to wear glasses indoors, as part of a normal eye care focused look.

Of course, the day after Christmas, it was back to work to push toward my end-of-the-year deadlines on projects, and I was doubly excited to give my new glasses a try.

The results after only one day? The jury is still out.

It was a long day—10+ hours looking at the TV, computer, and phone screens—but I do feel like the eye strain was less. There is a noticeable difference, looking at the screens with the glasses on vs. looking at them with the glasses off. When the glasses are off, I can see how much more blue the screens look. It’s a similar effect that I’m used to when I turn the blue light filter on and off on my phone. So, it’s nice to see that I can at least see a difference immediately when putting on the glasses. Expect an update and full review after a few weeks of trying them out.

Writers—Eye Care & Eye Strain Tips

Give your eyes a break. Schedule yourself to look away from your screen at regular intervals. Consider using the Pomodoro technique to organize your day, and during your 5 minute eye care breaks, spend your time looking at something without a screen.
Hang a landscape picture. Looking at a “distant object” gives your eyes a break. If you are near a window, great! Every 20 minutes or so, look out the window for 30 seconds at something far in the distance. If you don’t have a window, hang a picture or image of a landscape, with a house, waterfall, or other object in the distance. By gazing at the picture for 30 seconds or so every 20 minutes, you can give your eyes the same relaxation from staring at something up-close for so long.
Genetic eye enhancements. Consider getting upgrades for your eyes from GeneCo., the leading dystopian sci-fi corporation that can provide you with tireless, mechanical eyes that never need eye care. Embrace the future, chase the morning.

Ready to discuss your manuscript?

Posted on November 18, 2019October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 2 Comments

Using Personality “Tests” in Fiction

Depicting different colored wooden chess pieces to demonstrate how personality tests can be used in fiction writing to develop characters.

Understand Personality to Connect with Audience & Write Strong Fiction Characters

Who are your readers of fiction? Who are your characters in fiction?

How do you connect them?

In essence, this is the challenge of the fiction writer — replacing real people with believable ones, and then somehow making them real for the real ones.

The connections? Personality.

(Not even “humanity” because even non-human characters need to have a personality.)

Personality Is Not Persona

Let me distinguish here between personality and persona. The personality is the inside — the character’s core and true self. The persona is the outside — the reflection and projection of who the personality is in the exterior world.

The personality may drive the fictional character to have an entirely different persona, and as the writer you must have a clear understanding of both. What’s even better is when you can give the reader the same clear connection. The same dual perspective. This is especially cool when executed well with a villain.

Personality Inventories

Real life personality inventories are often inaccurately called “tests.” Let’s distinguish here: tests are things you can pass and fail; they’re a scale of knowledge. There’s no such thing as a personality test, because no one can fail to have a personality, even characters in fiction.

Psychologists who study personality use inventories, which simply categorize and group types of people according to certain traits. Much like how, if you were the grocery store manager, you would organize your inventory according to food types — produce, meat and seafood, dairy, etc.

There are many theories of personality, its development, and how to understand people according to their basic types. Each of these has its flaws, and each can be useful for fiction writers in their own ways

Pace Pallette Personality Inventory

For more than 20 years, the Pace Palette Personality Inventory method of categorizing people by their communication styles has been used by sales and marketing companies, along with professionals in other industries, to better connect with their clientele.

For full details, order the kit, but the questionnaire reveals personality traits that group people into one of four color types/palettes: red, yellow, blue, and green.

Red people are high-energy, type-A, bottom-line-first, and action-oriented.

Yellow people value rules, structure, and routine. They are often community-oriented and generous, while also being highly regulated and strict with themselves.

Blue people are intuitive, free-spirited, and can be incredibly creative.

Green people are curious, analytical, and puzzle lovers.

While everyone has traits of one “type” or another, one color tends to dominate the palette and “color” the person’s understanding of the world. Use this as a general guideline for how your fiction world might be colored by different people.

Sally Hogshead "How to Fascinate" Personality Test

Writer and motivator Sally Hogshead has developed a questionnaire called “How to Fascinate” that helps reveal to the taker what his or her personality “archetype” is, out of nearly 30 options. In particular, this system is touted as “understand how the world sees you” so that you can capitalize on your strengths through your interactions with other people.

As a self-promoting writer, you can use this to get your readers “fascinated” with you — help them understand your unique strengths, appeal across different personality types, and explore how to connect with others who are like and unlike you.

As a creative writer, you can use this to enhance your characters and their interactions. What makes your protagonist uniquely special? Why do you want your readers to be sucked into this or that character?

Understanding the unique fascinating aspects of different personality types can bring readers back to their favorite characters again and again — storylines and scenes they can’t get out of their heads. That’s what you want, isn’t it?

The Myers-Briggs Personality Inventory

The classic, yet somewhat controversial, Myers-Briggs Personality Inventory has gone through multiple iterations over the past 50 years. Based on a series of questions and scenarios, a person is rated across 4 personality categories, and the unique combination can reveal insight into how someone processes information and makes decisions, which is invaluable when building your fiction characters.

Meyers-Briggs Categories

Extroversion vs. Introversion

This scale describes someone’s “attitudes” and how much time they prefer to spend “inward facing” or “outward facing.” How much importance does someone place on their relationships with others vs. their relationship with themselves? Extroverted people draw energy from action, and introverted people draw energy from reflection and the internal world of ideas.

Sensing vs. Intuition

This scale describes how someone gathers information, how new information is understood and interpreted. Does the person seek out information about the world and other people in a logical, empirical sense, or by an intuitive gut instinct? How much emphasis does the person place on the importance of the source of information?

Thinking vs. Feeling

This scale describes how a person makes decisions. Does a person prefer to make decisions from a logical standpoint, or do they come to a decision by empathizing with the situation, looking at it “from the inside,” and considering the harmony of all involved?

Judgments vs. Perception

This scale describes how the person combines and applies their other personality traits to the outside world and toward everyday life. People who have a “judging type” tend to show the world their preferences for judging, thinking, or feeling. They can come across as experts who “have matters settled.” It is important to them that others see them as knowledgeable and informed.

People with a “perception type” show the world their sensing or intuition and prefer to “keep decisions open” or leave opinions as “TBD,” dependent on more information. It is important to them that others see that they are open to learning about the world.

Fun fact: I’m an INTJ! It’s one of the rarest personality types, making up only about 2% of the population!

Connecting with Fiction Readers

If you’re an established fiction writer who has a fan base already, you want to know who they are. Not just the age and location demographics — although that helps — but understanding their motivations and emotional reactions allows you to write in a way to connect with them on deep levels.

If you actively engage with your audience on social media, run a social psych experiment with them.

Look at the various inventories and think of creative ways to find out more about which categories your readers fall into.

For example, on the Pace inventory, blue types are commonly animal lovers. Run a poll to ask your readers if they own a pet. Green personality types are highly curious, so ask your readers on a scale of 1-10 how bad it bothers them if they can’t find the answer to a question. Or, think of a character in literature who represents each personality type and poll your audience to find out which they love most. (Hint: Sherlock Holmes is green.)

Not only can you use these personality inventories to create characters in your own fiction, you can use the information within them to connect better with your readers, reaching them in deeply personal ways with characters and plot lines custom-tailored to their enjoyment.

Ready to talk with an editor about your fiction characters? Contact our editors!

Posted on November 11, 2019October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — Leave a comment

Write like the Greats: Charles Bukowski

“Understand me.
I’m not like an ordinary world.
I have my madness,
I live in another dimension
and I do not have time for things
that have no soul.”

Writing like Bukowski

I don’t know much about Charles Bukowski. I know his reputation of being a … less-than-pleasant person. As Modest Mouse said, “God, who’d want to be such an asshole?“

But I know poetry (like ee cummings). I know good writing. Every now and then, I stumble across some writing from Bukowski, and it slaps me across the face.

Bukowski’s writing is raw.

His style is known for being no-frills. Bare-bones. And somehow, as in this example, there is strength in his vulnerability. There is grit ground into his wounds that seem to have scarred over, but he has never forgotten.

There is anger in these words. But is there not determination? And hope? And a promise for tomorrow?

The Beginnings

Look at how he begins each line of this poem — as a bold statement about himself. A declaration of truth.

First, he demands of the reader what they will do. An unapologetic demand that the reader do better, try something different — understanding. Then, he explains what he is (and is not) in a single line, and continues to tell the reader what he has and how he lives.

All these truths command the reader to follow his initial demand. You will understand the straightforwardness of his words, if nothing else. If you understand nothing of what he says, you know by the end what he thinks of you.

The Last Word

Then, look at the last word of each line. Each thought ends on a noun. A thing. Something real that you can sink your teeth into. Each of these — me, world, madness, dimension, things — evokes an image. Evokes a texture, sound, or feeling. You can picture them in your mind, you could describe them to someone else if you needed to.

And here is where Bukowski’s vulnerability comes to its head: he needs you to understand him. He needs you to hear what he has to say. Dismiss it when you’ve reached the end, if you want, but for a few sentences, he has made you do something different. He has made you think not only about him and what he is, but perhaps he has made you think about what and who you are as well.

As tough as he may have appeared, Bukowski needed this connection. With you. He needed you to understand for a moment. And he does not ask this of you — he demands it.

Bukowski Poetry Tip of the Day:

The heart of your poem (or even, your fiction) is what you’re demanding from your reader. Do not ask them for their attention — command it. Do not ask them to let you show your vulnerability, slice your heart open on the page and make it so they can’t look away.

Because that is the soul of this poem, isn’t it? We all need to be understood. We all am things, have things, and live … but Bukowski reminds us that we do not have time.

Want to talk about your poetry?

Posted on November 4, 2019October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — Leave a comment

On Drinking, Smoking, & Drugs in Fiction

Writers: Make sure if your fictional character is doing these things (drinking, smoking, and drugs) the reader has some sense of how it affects them. What’s their experience level with the substance? How do we know? Writing drinking and drugs in fiction can be a challenge, but with a little planning, you can get it right.

A reader considers themselves to be “a good judge of character.” He or she also (generally) considers him/herself to be intelligent, not easily fooled, and a good judge of truth.

You can be the judge of your readers’ ability to judge. I’m not here to judge that.

That being said, readers will notice when a writer mentions that a character is drinking, smoking, or doing drugs, but the character is not acting as if he or she is actually doing those things. If a character is supposed to be experienced at trying certain substances, but doesn’t use the terms that users use, or can’t explain how to ingest the drug and what effects to expect to a new user, the reader will call bullshit before the end of the page.

Writing Tip of the Day: Be Prepared to Go Gonzo, a la Hunter S. Thompson

If your characters are going to drink, prepare to make them drunk dial. If your characters are going to get stoned, prepare to make them lose track of large chunks of time and consume mass quantities of chips. … Jokes aside: your readers need to be able to see themselves in your characters. There needs to be the realism that alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs in fiction all have a relatable effect on the characters.

If your character has knocked back multiple double whiskeys and isn’t slurring his words or stumbling over his feet, the reader will need a reason to understand how your character has such a high tolerance.

If your character is sparking up a cigarette in every scene, then immediately snuffing it out in the next paragraph, your readers who smoke will roll their eyes. “At least, if you’re going to have the character light the damn thing, incorporate it for a reason.”

If your character is trying different types of drugs that give different highs, someone who has chased one type of high or another in real life will know. (Drugs in fiction can be especially questionable or unrealistic.)

It’s part of what made Thompson so powerful: he lived the experiences. He could write about the life he was living.

Not that I’m advocating any single one of you pick up any of the lifestyle choices (drinking, smoking, drugs, etc.) mentioned here: simply that, if they are not a part of your lifestyle, you will need to talk to people who have lived it, you will need to research what it is like to actually live the lifestyle in order to accurately relate it.

You have to be prepared to take it to a Thompson-esque level for your character when incorporating drinking and drugs in fiction. You have to be ready to make the character’s experience believable for the reader. Or else, by the time your character “sobers up,” your reader will already be home and in bed with another book.

Photo credit: Antoine Douglas at Concrete Rose Films.

Need an editor to take a magic carpet ride through the alcohol and drugs in your fiction manuscript?

Posted on July 1, 2019October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 2 Comments

On the Bechdel Test: Writing Tip for Gender

Bechdel test -- women and gender in fiction

As the origin story for the Bechdel Test goes, a political cartoon from the 1970s depicted two women discussing a movie they had seen. One says to the other that there are three things she looks for in a movie in order to qualify it as a “good” movie:

1. There have to be at least two women in it.
2. They have to talk to each other.
3. About something other than a man.

This continues to stand true. It is now a common litmus test for the issue of gender equality representation in film, commonly known as the Bechdel Test.

In general, ladies, we are taught to converse about many things, especially things which relate to men and having relationships with them. As a woman, I’ve noticed this more and more. I’ve kept track of how women relate to one another and the topics they choose to discuss around the lunch table, the water cooler, and the backyard, as it were.

To See A Difference, Do Differently

When I write, I think specifically about the world that I am building for my characters. Who do they interact with? Who do they relate to? What supporting characters populate and color their world? And, more importantly, who do they speak to and what do they speak about?

When writing, you must give yourself constant mini-Bechdel test checkups, to ensure you’re considering the realistic relationship between characters. Recently, while working on writing a developing relationship between two co-lead female characters, I sat and made a list of what defines their friendship.

How long have they known each other? What bonding experiences did they have that drove them together? How do they each see the other? And, perhaps most importantly, what do they talk about?

I wrote out a list of conversation topics — things they had in common or disagree about and keep circling back around to — things that didn’t include men or relationships with them.

For example, one of the characters owns a successful family business, while the other is trying to learn how to launch her own business, so they are able to often talk about business strategies and nuances of their industry.

They are both interested in natural healing and non-chemical cures for ailments, so they discuss plants, herbs, flowers, and they mix ingredients together to create their own formulas, like amateur apothecaries.

They are both interested in the history of the area where they live, and so they are able to talk about and visit together, places of historical interest. Of course, they gossip about the latest news from the British Royals, and they gush over clothing and lipstick colors on each other as they hang out and try them on, but it’s important to me to make sure that their relationship is real, dimensional, and about more than just tragedies in their lives, men, and tragedies that involve men.

What might your characters bond over? Keep your ideas in a scrap heap until you’re building specific people in a specific world.

Focus on Female Characters' Interests

Every (significant) character should have hobbies and interests that make them a believable, well-rounded person. And this might be doubly-true for female characters; traditionally, they are not expected to be much more than props in literature, and although a century of work against that means that the greatest novels include rich, lively female characters, there is still work to be done to ensure that future generations of female readers see women they admire talking about things they’ve never considered before.

Ideas. Perspectives. Personality. If a young female reader is first introduced to the concept of astronauts through female characters, imagine how that might teach her that women are more than pretty — they are the next generation of leaders.

Consider: How do clothes affect your characters? What is important about what they wear?

Reverse Bechdel Test

Less commonly discussed is something I like to call the “reverse Bechdel” test. Just like you want to have a fleshed-out cast of female characters who bring their own knowledge and non-male-oriented agendas to the table, you also want to have well-rounded male characters who are more than women-hating or women-obsessed.

I encourage you to apply a Reverse Bechdel test to a scene where you have two or more men talking — if they’re talking about women, is it in gender stereotypical way? Push yourself to examine your male-to-male conversations and how they talk about the opposite gender.

Writing Tip of the Day: Write Single-Gender Conversations for Bechdel Test Mastery

As a writing exercise, write a scene where a group of male characters are sitting around a male-comfortable space (like a barber shop, bar, street corner, etc.), talking over a subject. In particular, don’t have any of them bring up women, at all. Nobody comments on a woman’s appearance, no one complains about their relationship, nobody talks about anything sexual.

It might be easy, it might be hard — depending on the story you’re telling. But make sure that at some point, if you want to show strong male characters who are not simple tools of their hormones, show an intelligent conversation between men about a topic that is non-women related.

Additionally, write a scene in which a group of men is discussing women, and make it as honest as you can. To prevent the men from becoming blurred together and indistinguishable, develop their personalities by the ways they talk about women. What women are they talking about? Why? And how?

If you can show the men’s true characters in four or fewer statements about women, the reader will truly feel like they know and understand those characters in any other scenes in which they appear.

Then, challenge yourself to write similar scenes but using only female characters. This exercise may not be a traditional use or understanding of the Bechdel test, but practicing gendered perspectives will develop your overall skills as a writer, undoubtedly.

Need advice on developing your work in progress?

Posted on June 17, 2019October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — Leave a comment

Thoughts On Vampires: Death in Writing

Two things are inevitable: Death and taxes. We know that Death does not discriminate. It does not favor. It does not forgive. And it is an eventuality that we each must face. Death in writing (fiction or nonfiction) is as certain as death in actuality.

“Every one of us will have to die alone.”

As I write this, I think, “Maybe I should save this for my Halloween post. It seems awfully macabre on a random Monday.”

But I can’t wait until some designated dia de los muertos to think about Death. It’s everywhere. It’s the other side of Life, of every moment.

Does this make it something to fear? Many people think so. Many people instinctively fear Death and avoid thinking about it. However, others actively embrace Death, actively embrace the macabre. Despite your attempts to avoid it, there is no escape.

What Do You Think of Life?

Death shows what we think of Life. Attitude toward the one reveals the attitude toward the other. The questions that a person asks, the questions that a person avoids, the beliefs that a person considers, rejects, or holds dear — all revealed in the questions:

| What happens after we die? and What happens before life? | When is the exact moment of death? and When is the moment life begins? |

While a person conjectures, they also act in accordance with the beliefs they develop. As the world around them affects them, they develop their true inner character and viewpoints on Life and Death.

How to Write About Death

When writing a character, consider how they approach Death as a way to reveal their true personality. Their attitudes toward Death and their interactions with Death in their world display their deepest beliefs and the personality traits they consider core to their identity.

Considering how your character approaches Death should help you answer that ever-pressing characterization question: “What should this character do?”

There’s no one way, no wrong way, to write about Death.

Writing About Death Strategy 1: Protection Against Vampires

“The dead don’t bury themselves.“

When anthropologists analyze a tomb, burial site, or evidence of human burial rituals, they are able to uncover a great deal about those people’s beliefs and attitudes toward life. We can find out how they lived: what they ate, what they considered valuable, what they thought about vampires.

In every society throughout history, people have wondered what happened after death. And in more than one society (several, in fact, including peoples of ancient India, Colombia, and Greece — so sayeth the great Wikipedia) developed burial rituals to ward against the dead rising from their graves (including this fifth-century Roman grave where a child was buried with a rock in her mouth.)

Your character’s attitudes about Death will come largely from social influences. Who has your character buried, and who will bury your character? Those people are likely to be important, as they will influence your character’s core personality.

But more importantly, consider: How would your character prevent or protect against vampires?

Write a scene, or simply a detailed answer to the question. Consider, seriously, if your character believes that vampires are real, how would they handle that, and what would they do to prevent — or even, to support — vampirism.

Writing About Death Strategy 2: Childhood Memories

Children fear what they’ve been taught to fear, and its nearly impossible to release the fears of childhood once we reach adult status.

The child’s fears of death become the fears that adults struggle with, live through, carry inside each day.

To examine your characters’ attitudes about Death, consider what scares them. To their core. What keeps them awake at night? What do they run from?

Write a scene from your character’s childhood that shows and explains the source of their biggest fear. Whether it’s barking dogs or heights or butterflies. Whatever makes them cower, show yourself why. Then consider, how can this fear help my character feel alive? Is there another character who can embrace this terror and push it from fear of death to love of life?

Examining the deep-seated fears and flipping them into life-affirming opportunities both cracks open your character to reveal the child within, and shows you where the character can grow and heal on their journey.

Writing About Death Strategy 3: Go Goth

“I myself am strange and unusual.”

Is your character unafraid of Death? Unwilling to look away when others shield their eyes. Uninterested in polishing over the unpleasantries.

When I think of characters who won’t look away from Death, I think of Lydia in Beetlejuice. The original 80s goth chick (I love you Winona Ryder!), Lydia is not interested in shielding herself from the “strange and unusual.”

When others don’t notice Death. When others choose to ignore, shake their heads, trivialize, or smile in the face of it, she is investigatory. Her curiosity, which replaces the fear we see or expect in others, is childlike. Refreshing. And it’s honest.

Writing a “goth” character is not about making someone as “dark” as possible. It’s not about making someone be “obsessed” with Death and destruction (although yes, I have seen these people in real life. These characters can work in fiction as well) — it’s about the wholesome, open embrace of the rotten, the frightening, and the abnormal, with a healthy level of fear, respect, adoration, and appreciation.

For a less funny exploration of this same idea, may I recommend Baudelaire’s The Flowers of Evil? Nearly 200 years later, “A Carcass” is still cringe worthy.

If you think otherwise about Lydia: Go ahead. Fight me. 😉

Writing About Death Strategy 4: Death as a Character

So that’s great — an idea of how some people might approach Death, even when they encounter it. “But,” you might think, “what if my character is fairly normal? How do I write their attitude toward Death and life?”

A practical writing tip for writing about death:

Treat Death as you would another character. Give Death a physical manifestation, a voice, a hair color. You don’t have to do a full character sketch, but a basic outline would be good.

Then, put your character in a diner and have Death sit down and strike up a conversation. About the food at the diner, or the weather, or something trivial. As this is the only scene like this, don’t think about keeping Death’s identity secret. Let Death reveal him/herself in the first couple lines of dialogue, if the character doesn’t immediately recognize Death when it sits at their table.

A single conversation here. Death is not here to take your character, just a casual get-to-know-you conversation. No sense of threat.

How does your character act? With reverence? Joy? Awe? Respect? Relief? Sorrow? Fear?

Let them talk for two, maybe three pages. Then, Death has to go. After you see how your character acts toward this ancient, immortal, potentially terrifying presence, you might discover how they react toward the rest of their life.

For some ideas on how different characters interact with different manifestations of Death, may I recommend Neil Gaiman’s American Gods to you? Novel or TV show. Choose your poison.

I fear no manuscript, living or undead. Need editing?

Posted on June 10, 2019October 26, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 7 Comments

Editing for Creative Writing

Questions I Ask Writers

What makes a creative writer, creative? What can we really call “creative” these days? When editing for creative writing, what should I be most focused on for you, as the creative writer?

Are you avant garde? Would you want to be? Should you experiment with form, substance, and format? Should you talk to your editor about pushing boundaries? Why?

What makes a fiction editor different from a nonfiction editor? What makes someone more or less helpful with “creative” writing? Why should you look for an editor who suits your style, your voice, and your unique stories?

How do you self-edit for creativity?

Editing for Creative Writing & Creativity

True, I haven’t known every creative writer in the world, but I’ve known a few. In my experience, they tend to be passionate, driven people, who can become emotionally involved with their work. No writer who prides themselves on creativity wants to hear negative feedback from an editor, but if presented the right way, any feedback can truly help the writer thrive.

Reader Experience

One of the duties of an editor is to make sure the writer doesn’t look foolish, cliche, or trite. Especially if the writer is seeking to push into experimental formatting, narrative structure, or media delivery. An editor should be supportive of a writer’s vision and message, while also helping the writer make sure the connection to the readers is solid.

A creative writer may assume that their ideal reader will “get” what they’re doing, immediately and without explanation. An editor should help make the writer’s work easy for the reader to “get.” So during the editing phase, the editor needs to be particularly aware of how to enhance the readers’ experience and understanding of the text.

Perhaps the writer can add references or clarify terms in the opening statements. Maybe the text needs stronger or more nuanced language to clarify a context or theme. Whatever it is, an editor should be able to help the writer spot the need and supply potential approaches to including the new information or wording.

Word Choice

Editors for creative fiction may need to be particularly sensitive to word choice, including things like appropriate descriptive language of scenes and characters, consistency of descriptions and characteristics, and strength of verbs used to impart action or a sense of urgency, when needed for a pacing pick-up.

A basic editor will grammatically correct a sentence. A creative editor will unlock something in the restructuring.

Creative Paint

Its like refurbishing an historic home. The layers underneath are gorgeous, if not looking their best. The editor designs the new look of the text, fixes and patches any broken areas, and thinks of ways to bring new life to the existing building, while completing the look and livability for the readers who will sit down and live inside those pages.

Editing for creative writing may help you put on the final decorative touches, once you’re ready to put your book on the market.

Editing for creative writing must be creative.

Posted on June 3, 2019November 10, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 2 Comments

The Importance of Footwear in Fiction

footwear shoes fiction -- writing editing

If your fiction has human characters, they likely have feet. And so, footwear, that daily triviality, becomes a massive connecting universal that nearly every reader understands. Footwear in fiction matters.

At the heart of all good writing is the ability to capture details and universal experiences and translate them into the story on an intimately personal level. As creator and controller of your fiction characters’ minds and lives (easy there, Dr. Frankenstein), you are responsible for translating their life details (like clothing!) so that the reader vicariously experiences them.

Shoes are a great way to do this.

Shoes connect people. Throughout time, in most societies, across classes. Footwear in fiction not only signals to other characters (and the reader) a number of details about the wearer’s life, shoes also remind the wearer of their own circumstances.

Shoes affect your day. Comfortable vs. too-tight, inappropriate vs. worn or damaged. Like you, like your reader, your fictional characters’ footwear impacts their health, dexterity, speed, comfort, safety, and overall mobility. Untied sneakers with the soles flapping and popping at every step are not the same as designer flip flops with rhinestone studs, which are a different experience than wearing weathered cowboy boots.

Fiction Writing Tip of the Day: Walk in Your Character's Shoes

Got an idea who a character is? Put on a pair of shoes that reflects that character when you write about him or her.

As a writing exercise, I recommend visiting a department or large shoe store and trying on styles that you think fit different characters. Then, write your experiences of wearing the shoes.

Write the sounds they made, the feel of the fabric, the tender spots they create on your feet. Write them in your character’s voice, if you can. If you don’t have a specific character in mind, then write a detailed, objective account so you can fit the details of your experience into the right voice when it comes along.

Think about the feet’s connection to the rest of the body. Your character might practice reflexology or have a detailed pedicure routine. Or your character might have nail fungus and callouses. Regardless of what they are like, there is a why they are that way.

The why largely has to do with footwear, and in fiction, it can be the key to your characters’ lives that allows your readers into their minds.

For More Tips on Using Footwear in Fiction, Talk to an SRD Editor

Posted on May 6, 2019September 26, 2020 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — 2 Comments

Decision Making & Writing Your Novel

plan and outline your fiction novel by thinking through every decision

Planning your novel

You have an idea for a novel — that’s great. Now, putting together a plan for it can help you actually see it through and make it everything you hope it can be.

Planning a novel requires conscious decision making. You’re creating a world. You’re creating lives. You’re creating realities. It’s serious business. (Better put on your kill-em-dead lipstick now.)

One way to make decisions while outlining, designing characters, and choosing the aspects of your novel’s reality: consider the question that Jeff Bezos asks himself:

Is this a reversible or irreversible decision?

With this straightforward question, you should be able to help prioritize the decision-making and better structure your plot, themes, and symbolism.

If it’s a reversible decision . . .

Simple decisions can be made quickly and changed later if necessary. Can the decision be reversed? or altered, even? Then make it quickly and get on with whatever you’re writing.

For example: You want to write a scene where two lovers are having a spat a restaurant. You ask yourself, “Well, is it an Italian or Mexican restaurant?”

Does it matter to the plot of the story? Is it something you can tweak later? Then don’t trip. Pick one and write the scene with the appropriate details – delicious menu items, atmosphere, pertinent dialogue.

Now, be wary. Don’t begin writing off all questions with, “Well, I can always change this later.” You will begin to overcomplicate your plot, and multiple revisions can and will lead to inconsistencies.

If it’s an irreversible decision . . .

Decisions with lasting effects should be given some consideration and development. Will this decision affect the story in more ways than one? Will it somehow trigger a domino effect in a web of tangled plot threads that you don’t want to see unravel?

For example: You want a character to stand out for her looks because of a scar or birthmark on her face. Then, in one scene, you attempt to put her in disguise without mentioning how that distinguishing characteristic is covered. If no one recognizes her and she isn’t caught, the reader will see the plot hole.

Choosing a physical feature or personality trait for a character (or setting) is irreversible unless you show why that character has changed.

If you portray and describe a father-figure character as nurturing and receptive, that is an irreversible and defining characteristic that the reader will expect to stay consistent, unless given reason to believe in the change.

Choosing a profession, hobby, or area of expertise for a character carries its own burdens of verisimilitude. The reader will lose belief in your characters (and you) if they don’t seem to know much about their own job descriptions, the fashion of their profession, the details of their so-called interests, or the social discussions of topics they mention.

Don’t say a character is a veterinarian merely so your character can have “a job.” If you’re going to make your character a medical doctor of veterinary medicine – someone who has dedicated years of their life to the study and care of a range of animals – you need to show personality characteristics and lifestyle choices that align with that job.

There’s nothing like reading a character who is supposed to be a social worker, or cop, or a teacher, and being able to tell that the writer has no clue what someone in that profession does.

🌹 🌹 🌹

Editors make everything better. Contact me. Get help with your writing decisions.

Posted on February 25, 2019November 11, 2023 by Cortni Merritt, M.A. — Leave a comment

On Writing Children as Children

The importance of writing children as children.

It’s strange how, as adults, we forget that childhood is completely different. Oh sure, we romanticize and are nostalgic. We remember the taste of fresh lemonade on the summer afternoon, just as fireflies started to glow. But, do you really remember what you worried about? What you misunderstood and how it affected your world and your interactions? When writing children, you have to consider how your adult perspective may be limited.

Children base their assumptions about things they have no experience with on things that they do have experience with. Some children take words and phrasing super-literally, and some children grapple with abstract concepts longer than others. Like adults, children vary in speed, intelligence, sense of humor; unlike adults, children do not logically process consequences, conclusions, outcomes, results, or long-term effects. Children do not have words to express their emotions or the way they understand something. Children do not have the experience to contextualize.

Simply, children aren’t little adults.

So don’t write children as if they were little adults.

Writing Tip of the Day:

Spend Time with Children if You're Writing Children.

There’s nothing like spending time with children. Engage them in some games, crafts, or other activities. It can completely reset your mind and refresh your vision. Or it can give you creative new ways to phrase the feelings that accompany frustration, rage, outrage, surprise, and humor. It can give you the truest depictions of joy, an insight into the focus of pure absorptive learning, or a deeper understanding of the constant energy demands that children place on adults.

Whatever you learn, it will improve your authenticity when writing children and parents; it will improve how you tell their stories, speak their lives through their dialogue, and enact them on the page. The best research is hands-on. Observe, listen, and soak up people of all ages if you will be writing about people of all ages; it’s the best way to make them whole.