Welcome to Speeches, Pamphlets, Essays, and Letters

Not every writer is someone who writes fictitious stories. Some writers are known for writing persuasive pieces meant to convey information and draw attention. These pieces can take a few forms, but the ones I’d like to write about today are the essays, pamphlets, letters, and speeches.

The importance (and occasional cross pollination) of these literary works has shaped history. We first learn about these writings in American history with the knowledge of Thomas Paine’s little pamphlet called “Common Sense” - which you can occasionally see re-enacted as a spoken as a speech in Colonial Williamsburg. I learned to write persuasive essays starting in middle school. In high school I studied Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg speech (the famous speech starts with the line “Four score and seven years...”) and Martin Luther King Jr’s “I Have A Dream” speech.

These types of writing may not seem as glamorous as writing a novel or play, but they are important.

There are some people who are amazing speakers, but can’t put a thought to paper to save their political campaigns. Many politicians employ a speech writer to put their passionate thoughts together and create a clear and concise platform (whether or not that person sticks to the script varies greatly).

In some instances, speeches by the same speaker or author are compiled into a book. I personally own a book of speeches written and spoken by Greta Thunberg called No One Is Too Small To Make a Difference. It's really cool to see how her writing has changed since she started speaking on climate change.

Pamphlets are not as well known or utilized in our modern era of persuasive arguments. They are unbound books that can be easily carried and shared. Historically, pamphlets were also read allowed or performed similar to a speech - see Thomas Paine again for more details.

In modern days, pamphlets occasionally appear, though usually as some form of marketing campaign. However, they have mostly morphed into online forums and discussion board. While their shorter literary cousin, the essay, continues to be taught in America public schools.

Essays aren't necessarily meant to be read out loud to a crowd and they are often short enough to be combined with several other essays to be turned into a full book. Examples of essays can be found in  Kurt Vonnegut's standalone work: “How to Write with Style", while Roxane Gay's “Bad Feminist” is a collection of essays bound together in a book.

Finally, I want to address to you (pun fully intended) the lowly letter. I love receiving letters from my friends and family in the mail - breaks up the monotony of bills and junk - but there is a bit of an art to letter writing. Letters don't even have to be pen to paper in style, they can be sent via email, printed in a news paper, or left on a social media site as an open letter meant for anyone to read.

Oh, and one of the most famous letters ever written in US history is on display at the National Archives in Washington D.C. That letter is the Declaration of Independence.

Yeah, we wrote a letter telling England to buzz off.

In fact, writing letters to politicians and the government continues to occur even after that little declaration sent King George. I've written to politicians before (usually via email) to make certain that my voice is heard and part of the public record. You can also follow up your letter with a phone call (or vise versa). And they have to listen to you if you cal them on the phone - I had to when I was an Intern for a Representative (one guy liked to call the representative just to sing and we weren't allowed to interrupt him until he was finished). This may have changed (unlikely), but if you want your voice heard and recorded, send a letter.

Especially now that so much is going on between COVID-19 and protests occurring this past week. Because of the virus, some people may not be able to safely protest, but still want to participate and share their grievances with their elected officials. For example, sending your local, state, and federal elected officials a letter asking them to outlaw No Knock Warrants might draw attention to how they have been used to unjustly harm or kill innocent people (such as Breonna Taylor) or demanding that funds be used to investigate complaints against officers who use excessive violence when detaining a suspect.

Not everything a writer writes is fiction. Sometimes it's a persuasive argument drawing attention or campaigning for change. Speeches, pamphlets, essays, and letters all have their place in the literary world and to change the physical world.

Thank you for reading my blog post (or should I call it an essay?) this week. I hope you are all able to stay safe during these trying times.

Until next week.

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope you guys like hearing from me.

Welcome to the Novel, Novella, and the Novelette

Last week, I wrote about the different types of short stories. And, just like how short stories have been divided into additional categories to include flash and micro fiction, longer works of fiction also have additional categories. When writing fiction, it is a good idea to know where your work falls within these categories to better find a place in the market when you try to sell them (unless you don't plan on trying to sell your stories - which is okay too).

Examples of the different forms of prose and poetry. Some are novels, novelettes, novellas, poetry collections, and even an old pamphlet (that'll be Common Sense).

The three main categories of longer prose are the novelette, the novella, and the traditional novel. Specific word count lengths for each of these categories can be debatable. Some publishers feel that a short story caps out at 7,500, some will allow stories to be as long as 10,000. Once your story enters the 10,000 word range, you've entered into the Novelette territory.

Novelettes have an approximate word count range of 7,500 to 18,000 words - sometimes going a little higher. They might have chapters or breaks in the text to indicate a pause in the narrative. These stories are more of an exception to the rule of publishing.

Novellas, however, are more prominent and a lot more well known to the general public. Novellas have a word count range of approximately 17,500 to 40,000 words. There are many famous novellas known in popular culture and even part of a school's curriculum (here's look at you 1984 and Of Mice and Men). 

Today, I started reading The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and am nearly half way through it already (amazing given how slow I read). I like the quick pacing and am glad that the author didn't drag out the story any longer than it needs to be. Some stories just aren't meant to be stretched to a longer length.

My personal favorite novella is A Christmas Carol. Every Christmas season, I sit down and reread the old ghost story - which I totally recommend doing. Despite the many adaptations of the story to screen and stage, there is something wonderful about reading Dickens's prose. He writes in the same way a story teller speaks. Additionally there are a number of things that most adaptations can't pull off (depicting the Ghost of Christmas Past for instance) or chose to ignore entirely (the Ghost of Christmas Present's rant about how classism).

Finally, there's the well known and loved novel. Many a writer's goal is to see their novel published - including myself. The novel starts around 40,000 words (though the preferred minimum for publishers is closer to 50,000) and doesn't really have a word cap, but good luck trying to sell someone on a novel over 500,000 words unless your last name George R. R. Martin.

An excellent novel for people who like fantasy and adventure books.

Chances are high that you've read multiple novels over your life (a lot for school). I have a stack of "comfort mysteries" - as my dad calls them (I believe the industry knows them as "cozies") - next to my bed at any given time. Novels can be stand alone stories or have long series that span over 50 stories.

Novels are definitely the most well known of the three longer forms of prose. It even has the entire month of November dedicated to their creation. If you've ever heard of NaNoWriMo, this is what is being referenced.

However, you shouldn't pick the form of your story based on what you think is publishable. You should write your story because that is how it begins, progresses, climates, and then ends. Sometimes short stories need to be novelette or novellas. Sometimes a story ends up as a novella instead of a novel. What's important is that it is your story and that it is written to the best of your ability. If you don't hit that novel length, it's okay. Your story might not work as a novel.

If you're curious about novellas or novelettes, I recommend reading a few. There are anthologies created specifically for hosting novellas and novelettes. The books that contain my copies of A Christmas Carol and The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde are in books that have complied stories of similar length by the same authors. It's given me an opportunity to read stories I might not have otherwise considered.

Until next week!

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope you guys like hearing from me.

Welcome to short stories, flash fiction, and microfiction

So, you may have decided to try your hand at writing during this time. Awesome! More stories and voices are always welcome - especially from fresh and innovative writers. Are you looking to record your memoirs, start a blog, draft a play, or work on fictional prose? What kind of story do you want to tell? Who are you telling this story to?

There are a lot of options to chose from when you decide to take up writing as a hobby. I’m particularly found of working on different styles of poetry (there’s a lot more than limericks, haikus, and sonnets...many don’t even rhyme). Knowing what story you want to tell can help you narrow down what form to choose.

But before you sit down to write that 500,000 word epic novel, might I make a case for a slightly more manageable type?

This being the short story.

The short story is one of my favorites to read and write. As a kid I had many anthologies spanning multiple genres from horror, fantasy, and even biblical. These short stories were easy to read and often had really cool fully illustrated pages.

As time passed, I moved from the short stories, thinking them only for kids, until I was much older and picking up my first copy of Edgar Allen Poe stories. One book of short stories lead into two, then ten, and now I’m kicking myself for only valuing the novel for so much of my life.

I find short stories to be a lot easier to write then novels. Novels require a lot of time to plotting, character development, editing, and revisions. Short stories require all of these things too, but at a much smaller scale - which I find more manageable.

My first publication was a very short story that’s in an anthology. The story I wrote wouldn’t have fit in a longer style. I also wrote the story on a dare.

The short story has the bare bone structure of a novel, but on a compact scale. To practice, I started writing and practicing the form using fanfiction. This is here I learned more about pacing, writing comedy, and found a lot for scaring people. It also allowed me to receive feedback from commenters.

Yeah, fanfiction might have a bad rep, but this practice was invaluable when I was a new writer. However, fanfiction is copy right infringement (unless that work is in the public domain) that most authors don’t mind as long as you aren’t making money. It wasn’t long before I wanted to write my own original stories with my own characters, get published, and make money. In this case I started to go to writer’s groups to workshop these stories and get feedback from different people, some who had already published.

This is where I learned about the three main types of short story.

• The traditional short story - traditional short stories are anywhere from 1,000 or 1,500 to 7,500 words. Occasionally you’ll find a publisher who will take a short story around 10,000 words,  it htthese stories are usually considered novellas.
• Flash Fiction - most flash fiction is between 500 to 1,000 words. Some publishers consider anything under 1,500 words to be flash. They have a beginning, middle, and end - just like short stories. I love flash fiction, but it is a challenge to write.
• Microfiction - known by other categories or names such as drabble or dribble in fanfiction communities and two sentence stories on places like Reddit. Microfiction can hover around 100 words to as few as 50 or as high as 500 words. These stories still need all the trappings of a short story (beginning, middle, end, character development, and plot).

Guess what, you can get all three types of short stories published and get paid for writing them. However, if you’ve never written a flash or microfiction, you might want to get some peer or professional feedback first before submitting to publishers. 

Flash fiction and microfiction are incredibly difficult to write despite their short length. Each word matters and must be used strategically. It can be tough cutting out two or three sentences that you thought would rock the literary world all in the name of meeting a word count.

However, short stories are not for everyone. Some people have a need to write longer prose. That’s okay too. Hopefully, you’ll give consideration to short stories, flash fiction, and microfiction on your journey to write during these crazy times.

Until next week.

Welcome to Writing During the Time of Covid-19

There’s been a lot of talk on social media about people wanting to take up a creative endeavor (such as writing), and having trouble doing it. Though I can’t speak for all writers, I can speak for my own experience writing. And I know that when my life feels completely out of my control, I struggle with writing anything...even in my personal journal.

However, that struggle shouldn’t stop writers (new and old) from trying. All I ask is that writers don’t put a ton of pressure on themselves right now to write the next great novel or classic short story.

I blog to stay sane...

I was recently gifted a year’s subscription to MasterClass. There are a lot of different classes to take and learn from some incredible and accomplished people. The first class I finished was a gardening class (because naturally I would pick a class on plants) by the gangsta gardener Ron Finley. It was fun and entertaining and I was excited to check more classes.

To my delight, there were a ton of classes by famous authors on writing.

Now I’ve been writing for a while, though I’ve only recently had my first publication, and have learned a lot by attending writer’s groups and workshops. Some of the best ways to learn to write is to connect with other writers to better understand the craft (and writing really is a craft).

One of the first classes on writing I decided to try was on writing short stories by Joyce Carol Oates. So far, it’s been a good class and I’m also trying to work through the workbook that goes with the class.

In a past blog post, I wrote about keeping a journal has been helping me during these crazy times. That practice was brought up during Joyce Carol Oates’s class. If you’ve been needing an outlet or are interested in starting a writing project, find a blank notebook (or a half used notebook) and start putting pen to paper. If you can’t find a notebook, I’ve been known to use my notes sections on my phone and tablet to write (for me it’s usually poetry).

I have a lot of journals

However, some of you guys might be interested in starting a writing career while stuck at home with little todo. I think that’s a great idea. Whether it’s a novel, series of poems, or some short stories, writing stories is awesome and we need more writers.

Now, you might be wondering, what about publishing the stuff I write?

To which I would tell you: woah - hold your horses.

Getting published is an awesome goal, but don’t be under some misguided notion that that’s what is going to happen right away when you start writing. It took me years of hard work and learning about the craft of writing to even get my foot in the door. And my experience isn’t that unusual. Rejection will become your greatest frenemy.

If you want to write during the time of Covid-19, do it.

Write anything and everything and don’t worry about publishing. Write a journal, poetry, short stories, novels, or even that weird fan fiction idea that’s been buzzing in the back of your mind (it might not be as weird as you think). I don’t keep it a secret that I got my start writing in fan fiction.

And like I said, don’t put pressure on yourself to write something great. There’s a lot that goes into writing that goes beyond the craft (like emotions).

If you’re interested in learning more about the craft of writing, see about taking an online class, check out one of the many books on writing, or join a writing group (one that’s meeting online) whom are good at critiquing (it’s harder than it sounds). Don’t forget to read as much as you can.

Some of the books in my “to read” pile.

But just know that publishers are going to be flooded with isolation and quarantine stories until someone finds a vaccine for the virus, so maybe stay away from writing those stories.

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope you guys like hearing from me.

Until next week.

Welcome to Walking it Out

I am someone who can’t sit still for extended periods of time. Ask my parents and they’ll be happy to tell everyone how I used to run through the house on loop - it drove them nuts. Prior to the lockdown and quarantine, I would often go hiking or to the gym to walk for about an hour or so. It helped to get out all my pent up energy.

Even while I’m working in an office, I can find ways to move around without causing too much disruption. Taking a quick walk around the office parking lot helped me cool down and collect my thoughts...especially if it was a really stressful day.

Now that I’m stuck working from home all the time, I try to take a walk at least once or twice a day (no matter the weather). It gets me out of the apartment and, though I keep my distance, gives me an opportunity to say high to the people in my area. Once the quarantine is over, I plan on petting all the dogs I pass on my walk as well.

To get ready for a walk, I quickly check the weather, grab a face mask, and select a fun music playlist to listen too. Thankfully, there are a lot of paths for me to chose from and my walk doesn’t have to be the same each time.

A view of DC on one of my walks.

One of my friends recently mentioned how they miss their commute from work as it was a nice opportunity for them to decompress from the stressful day. I suggested taking a walk in place of driving - at least around the block - after finishing work to make it appear that they were commuting home. I’ve incorporated this routine into my evenings and it’s helped a lot.

Walks not only help me relax, they also help keep me healthy. When I got for a walk, I might be gone for as little as 15 minutes to over an hour. The terrain is hilly and allows for different levels of difficulty. They get my heart rate up and keeps me active.

On days when it’s too rainy for me to go outside twice a day, I do yoga in my living room. There are some great programs to stream, but I prefer listening to my body and doing my own workout. I do miss going outside when the weather is bad, but as is said in the movie The Crow: “it cant rain all the time”.

But when the sun is out and the birds are singing, it’s wonderful taking a walk. The sun provides vitamin D and being around plants makes me happy in general (probably why I’ve started a balcony garden now that I have a balcony). Everything is so green right now and the flowers have been blooming nonstop since mid-March.

A flower I’ve found on a walk.

Often on my walks I’ll come across chalk drawings and messages - little reminders that we’re all in this together. I don’t know if the messages are one person or a group of people, but every few days there are new ones to replace the faded old ones. Hearts and hopscotch games are also common to see.

Some people have placed messages in their windows or hung from their balconies in support of doctors, nurses, and critical workers. They’re nice to see and I often find myself smiling when I spot a new one.

If you are able to, see about taking a walk. Remember to wear a face mask and sun protection. Keep your distance from other people.

And enjoy the time you have.

Stay safe everyone.

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share, and/or leave a comment, I love hearing from my readers and I hope y’all like hearing from me.

Until next week.