writing resources « Natasha Alexander

If you can't write a story from this prompt, it's time to take up crocheting...

I’ve seen this picture everywhere online since last night – It was taken by Rich Lam of Getty Images and I copied it from The Source at boston.com. Here’s a line from a quick interview with the photographer today: “Lam didn’t realize what he had captured.”

What he captured was, well, EVERYTHING. This picture [Continue reading]

Go Inside the Writers' Studio to learn more about independent publishing

You want fries with that?

The Wall Street Journal must have read my last post, since the front page today featured this article: Authors Feel Pinch in Age of E-Books. I’ll highlight some of the salient points, but I highly recommend going directly to the source and reading the whole article.

It could be construed as – uh – [Continue reading]

Whodunit?

I decided to start writing a mystery during this year’s National Novel Writing Month. For one thing, it’s time to live up to the name of my blog.

But the real reason – I think – is this: I need to try using an outline or formula for writing a long narrative, and it [Continue reading]

Eat Brains Love

Oh, I am SO excited to have found this wonderful poster at Merit Badger’s wonderful site! (Click on it to enlarge it in all its gory – I mean glory.)

Especially right after Crystal’s book review.

Especially since Merit Badger is doing a series of merit badges for readers and writers. How great is that?

Check [Continue reading]

National Novel Writing Month: Whodunit?

I’m thinking about November and National Novel Writing Month. (Who reading this blog isn’t?)

Last year I started NaNoWriMo with a page or two of scribbled notes and little else. Now, almost a year later, I’ve still got an unfinished draft with some decent characters and snazzy scenes, as well as a bunch of dead ends [Continue reading]

This post is brought to you by the letters G, H, I, J, and K.

I spent a couple of mornings last week helping my friend Jane organize books in her school library. Jane is the librarian at an awesome new arts and design magnet school that opens in a couple of weeks. She’s spent much of the summer bar-coding, stamping, fingerprinting and whatever else they do to [Continue reading]

Rules? We don't need no stinkin' rules!

I’ve always loved Kim Carnes’ voice and this song — even though this isn’t the best version of it, it’s the only one I could find on YouTube. And, uh, Kim is 65 years old here and looks, IMHO, absolutely fabulous, so there’s something to be said for breaking the rules.

Which brings me to [Continue reading]

CW - Creativity Workshop Goals -- Diving In

Oh. My. I’m far behind and I’ve barely started. Can I do this?

::Holds nose and gets ready to dive.::

::Dives::

::Re-emerges, breathes, shakes water out of brain.::

Here goes:

Weeks 1 – 4: The role of ‘place’ in a story

As a relatively new Southerner, I’m constantly amazed at how much the change in latitude has changed [Continue reading]

I have issues

Yet verily these issues lie on the lap of the gods. — Homer

uh. Maybe it was the Other Homer who said that.

I am heading late out of the starting gate for what promises to be a fascinating Creativity Workshop. Whether I make it around even the first lap remains to be seen, since [Continue reading]