From Chekhov to James Joyce, the short story defined modern fiction. Subsequently, it became a form defined by America. Here, one of the great US writers explains why he came to prefer the story to the novel.

From the British painter and sculptor Maggi Hambling

It's about coming home to your art.

Building up courage to own your identity as a writer starts when you realize you need to ask someone for an objective opinion on your work.

Prepare yourself to receive feedback so your writing benefits from people’s input while ensuring you’re taking care of yourself.

Screenwriter Mike White ("School of Rock," "Nacho Libre") takes viewers inside his creative process in an exploration of where ideas come from.Subscribe and ...

On first drafts, unusable pages and the difference between typing and writing

I’ve been teaching one of my favourite courses these past weeks – Self-Adaptation, Making the Personal Publishable – which is basically a small reading group (max 10 on Zoom), concerned with set texts of personal essays, which turns into a writing group where participants offer each other feedback on their work in progress. The idea […]

Your writing might soar to new heights when you make weather—and the words describing it—an important element in your characters’ lives.

A few checks you can do to try and work out once and for all if your writing is – you know – any good.

When it comes to idea generation and development, what are ways to both provide structure and room to explore?

The following first appeared in Lit Hub’s The Craft of Writing newsletter—sign up here. At a literary festival a few years ago, during question time after a panel discussion, an audience member tol…

Seriously, it’s really weird. But it’s helped me for 25 years!

Are you a writer? Do you like learning about the creative process, either for your own projects, or just cause you think it’s interesting? This post is about to make your day. As I’m su…

I would go so far as to say talent is an overrated component. If I was a gambler, I’d put my money on an average writer who knows how to work hard over someone who is supposedly talented but doesn’t know how to apply the AOC rule (Ass On Chair).

A character cheat sheet can help in the early stages of character development and ensure you write well-rounded characters every time.

I wrote stories for over a decade before I began to think that I might have enough material for a collection, and when I sat down with those stories with the vague idea that the ones I chose for a book should share a theme, I was startled to find that although I’d been reading story collections for many years, I didn’t know what made for a successful one.

From Charles Dickens’ nineteenth century work Bleak House to modern classics like the Divergent series, the English language is full of great novels written in the present tense. If you are working on your first book or first novel, writing in the present tense can be a great way to hook readers and create suspense. Choosing between different verb tenses is one of the most important decisions you can make when writing the first draft of a fiction novel or short story; the present tense can give your writing an unmatched sense of immediacy.

These tips from our founder and director Anna Davis will help you craft a compelling first page and instantly capture the imagination of your reader.

Henry David Thoreau did not consider his time on Walden Pond a writing retreat, per-se. He was retreating from all of life, and he wrote about how brilliant that was. Despite his assured and unrema…

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. Or at least be happier whilst trying! This is Nathan's guide to novel writing in 7 easy (ish!) steps. Nathan won the Costa Book Prize in 2013 with his debut novel, The Shock Of The Fall. It has been translated into 27 languages. Nathan worked part time as a mental health nurse in Bristol and his book’s narrator is a 19 year old boy with schizophrenia. He graduated from Bath Spa University in 2010 with an MA in Creative Writing and is now a lecturer in Creative Writing at the University. About TEDx, x = independently organized event In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)

The author of Dead Wind discusses her writing process and how she switched from a stand-alone book to a series

A free 100 day fiction writing course by podcast. Learn to write more, better and happier. From award-winning author Tim Clare.

In Into the Woods and on his online courses John Yorke recommends asking 10 questions to check you've got your story straight – read them here.

As a writer and teacher of memoir, I get asked one question above many: how do you navigate the tricky terrain of writing about family? I have many answers to this question, as I gave it a lot of careful thought when writing Sins of My Father. I cleared the book with those close family […]

This "rule" is neither a CIA psyop nor does it mean what some critics think

I realized my book could focus on what I cared about most

Get an accountant, abstain from sex and similes, cut, rewrite, then cut and rewrite again – if all else fails, pray. Inspired by Elmore Leonard's 10 Rules of Writing, we asked authors for their personal dos and don'ts.

When I was in graduate school for my MFA, I had lunch with my friend John, who was studying industrial psychology across campus. He was telling me how he liked writing, but he had a real block beca…

Seven things to help you move forward even when you need to know how to write a book when you have no idea what you're doing.