Lately, I’ve been reading series that include novellas alongside full-length novels, which has brought up questions about the roles that novellas play in the overall story of a series and whether or not I think it’s a valuable practice. Specifically, back in July, I read the three Skyward Flight novellas connected to the Skyward series …
The Subcreators: One Year Later
It’s been just over one year since we founded The Subcreators. If that name sounds familiar to you, that means one of two things. One, you know me personally and are a part of the group. Two, you’ve read J. R. R. Tolkien’s essay “On Fairy-Stories,” which defines what “subcreator” means. The idea behind the …
Where Did Whitman Court Come From?
Great question. It’s a bit of a murky journey. Here’s a fun fact about me as a writer: most of my story ideas that I’m actively working on came to me in high school or earlier. Unfortunately, though, it’s difficult to determine when an idea first occurred to me or when I started working on …
What I Write
Every year around my birthday (August 11th), I try to write a self-reflective, personal post for the blog. This year, I decided to take a step of courage and talk more in-depth about my current writing projects–something that is, surprisingly, difficult for me. I was on the fence about doing this because I didn’t want …
Writing with a Day Job: Drive
Drive. Motivation. Perseverance. That’s the topic of today’s fourth and final post in my Writing with a Day Job series. If you’ve been reading along all summer, thanks for sticking around. I hope that my fellow busy writers have gained some wisdom, encouragement, or motivation from this series. Let’s end it well. First things first: …
Writing with a Day Job: Wise Rest
Greetings yet again! This is part three of four in my series on busy writers. Trying to write a novel but only have an hour (or less) a day to write? Working a job you can’t stand but really want to be a novelist? Or shuffling between parenting your kids, managing a house, and working …
Writing with a Day Job: Find Your People
Welcome back to part two of four on “writing with a day job,” or writing for busy people. Whether you’ve got a non-creative or creative fulltime gig, you’re a freelancer seeking to make a living while working on your novels, or a parent with a novelists’ dream, you’ve come to the right place. Two weeks …
Writing with a Day Job: Productivity
I long for a time where I can be a full-time writer. Anyone else? Instead, I’m what some might label a “Midnight Novelist.” (Well, really more of a “Lunch Break Novelist”—I don’t have the stamina to stay up late after a long day of work.) Or, as I like to call it, a Writer with …
Patience, Persistence, and Practicality: Initial Thoughts from Pitching The Queen of Whitman Court
I entered into 2022 with high hopes: it’s time to pitch my novel, The Queen of Whitman Court! I planned to dive right into it, sending out letters left and right and every which way to any editor or agent who might possibly give me a chance— But if you’ve been following along with my …
Lessons from Lemony Snicket: Narrative Voice
As I mentioned in my writing update a few weeks ago, I recently reread Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events as a part of trying to crack the secret of writing a strong, distinct narrative voice for Whitman Court. My aim with Whitman Court was to write the stories with a clever, omniscient Narrator …
Continue reading Lessons from Lemony Snicket: Narrative Voice
By Madelynn Orion 