(10 Interviewing Tips for Journalists.)

It’s especially important to include quotations in historical and news articles to provide further insight into things discussed. Here, we’ll look at how you can add quotations to your articles.

Why You Should Add Quotes to Articles

Quotations can be a useful tool for numerous reasons. Firstly, because they add a more human touch to articles. For example, quoting what people who’ve experienced historical events have said about them is a good way to bring historical pieces to life. Directly quoting what people say can also reveal more about particular events or highlight opinions in news articles.

Adding quoted material is a good way to support arguments and points raised within articles. For example, you can quote important passages from documents and letters to highlight historical evidence that supports your narrative. Or add verbal (speech) quotations from significant figures of the past or present that support the narrative.

Another good reason to add quotes is to enhance descriptions and details within your articles. For example, quoting what a company CEO, director, developer, or other representative has said about a new product or service can expand upon your descriptions of it. These “straight from the horse’s mouth” quotations from company people can provide more details about new products and services.

Finally, adding more intriguing words of wisdom quotations can be a good way to draw attention to topics or themes covered in articles. The father of Disraeli, a former UK prime minister, is quoted as saying, “The wisdom of the wise, and the experience of ages, may be preserved by quotation.” Thus, some interesting quotes can be quite poetic.

How to Add Quotes

The basic rule for adding direct quotes is that they must always have quotation marks around them. Opening and closing quotation marks highlight the beginning and end of quoted passages. In American English, you should add double quotation marks (“66 and 99”) around quotes included within paragraphs.

However, this rule doesn’t apply to block quotations. A block quote is a longer quotation separated from the rest of an article’s text with its own exclusive paragraph. The Associated Press and APA style guides agree that a suitable minimum length for block quotes is 40 words. Quotation marks are not necessary for block quotes because they are indented on new lines, separated from surrounding paragraphs.

You should always add a comma directly before the start of a quotation when introducing short, one-sentence quotes. However, the Associated Press style advocates adding a colon before quotations two sentences or longer. Colons should always be used when introducing block quotes. A short quote integrated within a sentence that’s not directly introduced does not need to be preceded by a comma. Here are some examples:

• In his “Sinews of Peace” speech, Winston Churchill stated, “From Stettin in the Baltic, to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the continent.”
• To be victorious in battle, Sun Tzu’s Art of War book says: “Move swift as the wind and closely-formed as the wood. Attack like the fire and be still as the mountain.”

Quotation sources should be attributed in some way, as in the examples above. If the quote is from a well-known person or historical figure, make it clear who exactly said it. Or add general references for quotes from people who aren’t well known.

Full stops (periods) and commas at the end of quotes should always be included within quoted material for American English, as shown in the examples above. However, semicolons and colons at the ends of quotes should go outside quotation marks. Include question marks within quotes only when the quotations are questions. If not, add the question mark to the end of the sentence outside the closing quotation mark.

Adding quotations can be more confusing when they include their own quoted speech or text. In this case, we must add single quotation marks (‘ and ’) for the quoted material within the quote. For example, a player comment from this Reddit post source says, “Hey, I’ve been getting an error code that reads, ‘You were removed from the match due to internet lag, your IP or machine, VPN usage, or for cheating.’” That quote includes a quoted error message for which there are single quotation marks.

How to Copy and Paste Quoted Text

It’s quicker and easier to copy and paste text passages to quote into articles rather than manually typing them. All Windows and Mac computers have hotkeys (keyboard shortcuts) for copying and pasting text. You can utilize those hotkeys to copy selected passages from a web browser into your word processor.

Windows PC users can copy and paste text with the Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V keyboard shortcuts. Select any text passage you want to quote with your mouse cursor and select Ctrl + C to copy. Click inside a document within your word processor and press Ctrl + V to paste the copied text in. Command + C and Command + V are the equivalent copy-and-paste hotkeys for macOS users.

Alternatively, you can copy and paste text with context menu options. Select the text to quote in your web browser, right-click your mouse, and select the Copy option. Then, right-click inside your word processor to select a Paste option.

The text you copy on a Windows 11 or 10 PC is copied to a clipboard. You can view multiple copied text snippets on that clipboard by pressing the Windows logo + V keyboard shortcut. Click on a copied passage there to paste it into a word processor.

Copied passages will sometimes retain unwanted text formatting from their websites. One way you can remove such formatting is to paste copied text into the Windows Notepad first. Notepad is a plain-text editor that removes all fancy formatting it doesn’t support from pasted text. You can find and open that app by typing Notepad into the Windows search tool and selecting it from there.

Some word processors also include options you can select to paste passages into them without any website text formatting retained. For example, Microsoft Word has a Keep Text Only option you can select. Paste text into that word processor with the Ctrl + V hotkey and click Ctrl to select Paste Text Only.

Where to Find Famous Quotes

You can get your quotations from any source. However, numerous quote websites are good sources for finding interesting quotations from more famous people and historical figures. Those websites are like directories that contain thousands of intriguing quotations for you to copy and paste into your articles.

The Quotations Page is one such website. You can browse through that site’s quotes by clicking Author Index. That will open a page from which you can click links for people to view their quotes. Then, copy and paste the quotations from there to include in your articles.

Aside from the Quotations Page, AZ Quotes, QuoteFancy, Quotes.net, and QuoteGarden are similar sites with large directories of quotes. QuoteFancy is a slightly more novel website because it also provides free-to-use quote images for all quotations it includes. QuoteFancy allows you to use up to 500 of those creative files per blog or website with appropriate attribution.

Although I don’t recommend stuffing articles with quoted material, it’s certainly good practice to add quotations when appropriate, as covered above. Adding effective quotes can help to breathe more life into your articles. Quotations can inspire, fascinate, and inform your audience in many ways.

The post A Writer’s Guide to Adding Quotations to Articles appeared first on Writer's Digest.

“Be as patient as you possibly can—and then try to be one degree more patient than that. This path is a wonderful one in many ways, but it is long, and will feel long, for just about everyone at one point or another. Taking the time to get the work itself exactly right—to craft the absolute best possible version of this piece of writing that this version of yourself is capable of producing—is something you will never, ever regret.” –Clare Beams, author of The Garden (Doubleday)

“My advice is: Keep going. If you keep writing, you’ll outpace the rejection. Storytelling is as old as humanity—every known civilization has told stories of life as they lived it, passed down legends of how we got here, and created fables or parables to illustrate morals or deliver lessons. Stories are inextricable from existence which means your story has incalculable value. It is needed by someone, somewhere, and if you keep at it, at some point you will connect with that someone.” –Nanu Ekua Brew-Hammond, author of My Parents’ Marriage (Amistad Books)

“Read the best writing you can lay your hands on. Experiment with workshops, writing groups, and teachers. But most of all, let yourself fall headlong into the fictional dream of your characters. Sit in the backseat and notice where they take you. Don’t worry if they are terrible drivers, if they get lost, or total the car. Read David Wagoner’s poem, ‘Lost.’ Lost is where you want to be. Don’t help your characters find their way to safety. Instead, watch them do and say things you would never have dreamed. You’ll know you’ve breathed life into them when they start disobeying you. Buckle your seatbelt and be amazed by where they will take you.” –Tess Callahan, author of Dawnland (Little A)

“Don’t be a poser—it’s fundamentally detrimental to society when artists lie about who they are. Right, I don’t think I’ve ever met an Ivy League Author who didn’t present as though from utter trauma. Um … WTF? How does that even work?” –Brian Allen Carr, author of Bad Foundations (Clash Books)

“Never forget that actually sitting down to write is the fun bit!” –Bridget Collins, author of The Silence Factory (William Morrow)

“Set a schedule for your writing. There’s always something else to be done, so your writing time has to be carved out of an already full day. Create a word-count goal each day, whether it is 200 words or 2,000 words, and do your best to meet it. Single drops of water will eventually fill the well.” –Susan Muaddi Darraj, author of Behind You Is the Sea (HarperVia)

“This may sound silly but … write. That’s it. Just write.” –Hazel Hayes, author of Better by Far (Dutton)

“Every book and every project will be different. Stay open to new processes, new ways of working. Write a personal mission statement that articulates who you are and what you want to accomplish. It will go a long way in helping you say ‘yes’ to what aligns with you are and say ‘no’ to what doesn’t.” –Donna Hemans, author of The House of Plain Truth (Zibby Books)

“Write the book you want to rewrite—because most of writing is revising! Don’t agonize over every word in a first draft; that will only slow you down. Just write the story. Get it onto the page. Drafting is the stage where you capture the idea. Revising is where you figure out how to really tell the story well.” –Beth Kander, author of I Made It Out of Clay (Mira)

“Keep writing. Get to the end of the page, and then the next day start again. Find your community. They will buoy you.” –Crystal Hana Kim, author of The Stone Home (William Morrow)

“At the risk of sounding like the protagonist of my novel, Able God, I’d say: Talent is never enough. Hard work and tenacity are needed too.” –Samuel Kọ´láwọlé, author of The Road to the Salt Sea (Amistad)

“If you’re able to walk or swim or do another body moving activity, then make that a priority when you take breaks! My brain simply ceases to function if I’m sitting in front of a computer all day.” –Brydie Lee-Kennedy, author of Go Lightly (HarperCollins)

“Whatever you are writing, even if it is a story about your own back garden, go out there and do lots of research.” –Christy Lefteri, author of The Book of Fire (Berkley)

“I used to roll my eyes whenever I heard writers or instructors rhapsodize about writing ‘process.’ Write every day, write 500 words a day … to me the fixation on process seemed fetishistic and beside the point. If you’re writing something valuable and of genuine interest to you, I thought, you don’t need to concern yourself with habits and tricks. But after years of flailing and stalling out I finally admitted defeat and instituted a process, and only then did my writing really get off the ground. My process? I write every day, and I write 500 words a day. My former self is rolling his eyes again, but he was wrong!” –Daniel Lefferts, author of Ways and Means (The Overlook Press)

“Always have tabs of great writing you admire open next to your draft on your computer. (Or real books next to your ink-and-paper.) When I feel my flow waning mid-writing, I read a few sentences of someone whose linguistic pyrotechnics set my brain on fire, creating an aesthetic charge that makes me antsy to get back to my own document for a discharge of words that bring a genuine energetic current to the page.” –Aube Rey Lescure, author of River East, River West (William Morrow)

“Write about the hard stuff. Tell the truth.” –Joyce Maynard, author of How the Light Gets In (William Morrow)

“For me, it’s a delicate balance between taking yourself seriously, being disciplined about having a writing routine, but also remembering to have fun and be playful. I do my best writing when it feels completely low stakes, when all I’m trying to do is create a pleasurable, stimulating, absorbing experience for myself. I try to remind myself before I sit down to write that it doesn’t really matter whether the writing fails or succeeds. I’m just here to have fun and see what happens. I find that this approach, combined with taking myself seriously enough to show up at my desk every day, works for me. The other big thing is to try to have a pretty restrained relationship with my phone! If I go on Instagram before writing, it can ruin the whole writing day because it makes my mind so frazzled. I turn my phone off and put it in another room when I write, block all websites for the duration that I’m writing, and generally don’t have social media apps on my phone at all except when I have to re-download them for promotional purposes. I get really addicted to my phone and need to be careful about it because it affects my attention span in a way which is terrible for my writing and well-being.” –Oisín McKenna, author of Evenings and Weekends (Mariner)

“Just switch off whatever it is you need to switch off and write.” –Eliza Moss, author of What It’s Like in Words (Henry Holt)

“I’d say, ‘Don’t listen to anyone, you hot god. Art is freedom. Make the book you want to read.’ But then I’d whisper, ‘Read everything. Read Virginia Tufte. And listen to all the advice, but take only what feels right to you.’ That’s what I’d say, but I’d never say it to anyone because general advice is for boors.” –Brad Neely, author of You, Me, and Ulysses S. Grant (Keylight Book)

“So much of the seemingly uncomplicated advice on writing handed down to us is ableist and exclusionary—write daily, join a group, read voraciously—it all belongs in the bin. The only advice should be find what works for you!” –Tom Newlands, author of Only Here, Only Now (HarperVia)

“Write your first draft without the weight of seeking perfection, but once you’ve written the end, embrace criticism. The ability to receive feedback with an open mind can be transformative. Approach criticism as an opportunity for growth and recognize its potential for enhancing the overall quality of your work.” –Elba Iris Pérez, author of The Things We Didn’t Know (Gallery Books)

“Read and study different authors. Really study them. What they show and what they don’t. How they exercise restraint, how they hold back, so that the reader must feel what is there to feel. How they create atmosphere. Study them, and then try different things, until you find your own voice.” –Deepa Rajagopalan, author of Peacocks of Instagram (House of Anansi Press)

“Download one of those no-nonsense internet blockers for your timed writing sessions. I use one appropriately called ‘Freedom.’ Because if you’re like me, there’s a saboteur that lives within you, and it wants you to check your email again.” –Joselyn Takacs, author of Pearce Oysters (Zibby Books)

“Don’t listen to advice from authors. Figure out what works for you and do it!” –Maggie Thrash, author of Rainbow Black (Harper Perennial)

“To keep going, no matter how daunting it feels!” –Fiona Williams, author of The House of Broken Bricks (Henry Holt)

“Read widely.” –Monica Wood, author of How to Read a Book (Mariner)

“Use your imagination. I find it dispiriting how many young, aspirational fiction writers—including undergraduates, MFA students, and anyone learning the craft—don’t actually want to write fiction. They want to publish their diaries and draw rapturous acclaim. It’s OK to be a poet. Why not call yourself that? It’s totally fine to write nonfiction. Why not own it? Fiction that’s too reliant on autobiography tastes like, to me, milk that’s been left in the fridge past its expiration date. Don’t let your imagination curdle!” –Snowden Wright, author of The Queen City Detective Agency (HarperCollins)

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While there’s no shortage of writing advice, it’s often scattered around—a piece of advice here, words of wisdom there. And in the moments when you most need writing advice, what you find might not resonate with you or speak to the issue you’re dealing with. In A Year of Writing Advice, the editors of Writer’s Digest have gathered thoughts, musings, and yes, advice from 365 authors in dozens of genres to help you on your writing journey.

Click to continue.

The post One Piece of Advice From 27 Literary Fiction Authors in 2024 appeared first on Writer's Digest.

“One thing that’s always helped me, even when I’m feeling stuck, is to carry a notebook everywhere. The brain is always working on the story in the background, even if you’re not aware it’s relentlessly trying to fix that plot hole in the second act. The solution might pop into your head at a random time, and you have to be ready to catch it. And here’s a piece of advice I learned from creating the ‘Sophie’ series: If you’re not heading in the right direction, don’t be afraid to change course. Take a moment to plan your new path and start building your own track. It might be scary at first, but you’ll eventually have your own railroad steaming towards your goal.” –Brian Anderson, author of Sophie: Jurassic Bark and Sophie: Frankenstein’s Hound (Marble Press)

“The transition from writing for yourself to writing professionally can have a lot of moments where things feel out of your hands, and if you’re like me and can become stressed and anxious, then I recommend finding something that can take you out of that. Whether that’s a cozy videogame like Stardew Valley, a TV or YouTube show that makes you laugh, or even disappearing into your own world and writing little chapters meant just for you (as I often do), then run with it, and try not to feel guilty about time spent doing it.” –Steven Banbury, author of The Pumpkin Princess and the Forever Night (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

“Keep reading, writing, and trusting your instincts. If you believe in something, work hard and will it into existence. Because if you don’t write all those amazing ideas that are bouncing around your head, no one will, and then how will you get any sleep?” –Adam Borba, author of This Again? (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

“Do it because it’s fun. Life’s too short to do it for any other reason because writing is hard. But it’s also fun!” –Patrick Carman, author of The Terror in Jenny’s Armpit (Blackstone)

“Goodness! I would say that it’s really good to have a notebook where you write your thoughts. I don’t carry a notepad or anything. But I find that writing every day, just putting a timer on and pouring your thoughts into a page for a time, can give you a ton of excellent raw material. Sometimes you write a bunch of whining and complaining and boring stuff. But sometimes a sentence just JUMPS OUT OF THE PAGE! When there is a concept or a thought that makes your body buzz with emotion, I think it’s necessary to listen to it. To feel it and to explore it further. Once, I was struggling to write my second book and I asked fellow author Iain Reid for advice. He told me, “Chase that sense of excitement.” I wrote that on a tiny piece of paper and taped it to my wall so I wouldn’t forget. I think him and I refer to the same feeling. There is magic in some ideas. And if the writer can sense that magic inside, if you can listen to it, respect it and protect it from the elements, it is almost like a force of nature. And the reader will naturally feel it as well.” –Ani Castillo, author of People Are My Favorite Places (Little Brown)

“Outline, but don’t be afraid to ignore your notes when it feels right. The story has a life of its own.” –Bryan Chick, author of Wayfinders (Blackstone)

“Hold on to ALL your notes!” –Gary Clement, author of K Is in Trouble (Little, Brown Ink)

“Write about what you love and why you love it. Write the story that you’ve always wanted to read. And remember to have fun. If you don’t enjoy writing your story, it’s doubtful anyone will enjoy reading it.” –Ernest Cline, author of Bridge to Bat City (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

“Don’t be afraid to write and rewrite, give yourself a break—come back and take what you like from that previous version into the next. Recognize that you are creative and that creativity can get exhausted. Don’t be too hard on yourself during the process, and be open to trying something new. Add in something goofy, something silly, something only you would laugh at, and you’ll be surprised how people respond. For me it was the moment with the mouse tail I found kind of silly, but I’ve noticed a lot of folks laughing and that made me laugh. We have to be our first fans before others see the work, so have fun and enjoy the process.” –Arihhonni David, author of The Good Game (Holiday House)

“Even if you’re a committed plotter, you really don’t need to have it all worked out before you begin. Trust that ideas will come to you as you write. Enjoy the process of discovery.” –Barbara Dee, author of Unstuck (Aladdin)

“The secret is that there is no secret. I’m sorry, but it’s true. The secret is to work really hard for 10 or 20 years, making mistakes, doing stupid things, going off in all the wrong directions, getting rejected a thousand times, and never giving up. The secret is finally, after all that, discovering the thing that you were meant to do. Maybe it’s not to write children’s books at all. Maybe your calling is to make keys in a hardware store. That’s the thing that you’re good at, the thing that makes you feel confident and fulfilled. The thing that’s fun for you. The thing you can make a living doing. When you do what you love, you’ll love what you do.” –Dan Gutman, author of My Weird School 20th Anniversary (HarperCollins)

“Find a community that supports you. Writing, and subsequently publishing, is such a particular journey that it’s hard to communicate your experience to people outside of the writing community. Find a group of people to both commiserate and celebrate with. I will be forever grateful for my 2024 Debut Group for being this support system for me.” –Nashae Jones, author of Courtesy of Cupid (Aladdin)

“There are no shortcuts; your book only works if you do. Carving out time to write is so important. It doesn’t matter if it’s a half hour in the mornings before work or a three-hour block on the weekends—consistency is key!” –Jordan Kopy, author of Theodora Hendrix and the Monstrous League of Monsters (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)

“Really lean into the importance of self-care. Growing up, I heard lots of advice on ‘not giving up’ and not enough reminders to take it easy and/or take better care of yourself. As a result, I was often dejected, burned out, and/or really hard on myself as I set impossible goals like ‘be published by 20!’ or ‘become a NYT bestselling author!’ It’s a tough industry! You really need to take care of yourself so you can be in it for the long-haul.” –Lyla Lee, author of Gigi Shin is Not a Nerd (Aladdin)

“Don’t give up as lost that manuscript wasting away in your computer. Even a kernel of writing promise can be crafted into a real-live book, if you just keep rewriting.” –Dionna L. Mann, author of Mama’s Chicken and Dumplings (Margaret Ferguson Books)

“Trust your story. It’s so easy to think you have to follow a certain set of rules—whether they’re the rules of the genre you’re writing or the rules you set for your own series. But if your story is telling you it’s time to break free and do your own thing, trust it. The best scenes and moments always happen when you let go and allow the story to truly come to life.” –Shannon Messenger, author of Unraveled (Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing)

“I think it’s fun to create a space to work that fits the style of books you write. My writing cottage in Gloucestershire is in the middle of a woodland, and looks like a witch’s cottage from a fairy tale. When I was writing this story, a rose briar grew in through the window, and twirled its way around my desk, just like the ones that surrounded Sleeping Beauty’s castle.” –Ben Miller, author of The Day I Fell Into a Fairytale (Simon & Schuster)

“I guess my advice would be for them to find a process that works for them and trust that process. I always start a book a bit uncertain of where this story will take me, but I’ve learned that surprises along the way are part of my process, and one that thrills me every time one appears.” –Claudia Mills, author of The Last Apple Tree (Margaret Ferguson Books)

“It’s old news and it’s true—these things take time! So much work happens in book making before there’s any outside validation. Especially if you’re a working parent, things can go at an excruciatingly slow pace. My advice is to stay with it, in whatever capacity you can. If you stay on the path, eventually there’s a body of work behind you.” –Aya Morton, author of The Days are Long, the Years are Short (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

“Don’t worry about pleasing an unknown child with your story. Write for the child that you once were—or better yet, for the child that you are.” –Yevgenia Nayberg, author of A Party for Florine: Florine Stettheimer and Me (Neal Porter Book/Holiday House)

“Don’t be overly fixated on one way of telling one story.” –Debbie Ridpath Ohi, author of I Want to Read ALL the Books (Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers)

“Watch old movies! Reading is a given. So, you should do that. As much as possible. But I’ve also found that watching older movies puts my creative brain in a different kind of space. Not only am I exposing myself to classic art (yay culture!), but I’m also diversifying the content I’m consuming and opening myself up to different kinds of characters and plots and pacing than have been popular more recently. If that sounds interesting, you could start by looking through the AFI Top 100 list or check out what’s on TCM one night and see if it does the same thing for you.” –Adam Rosenbaum, author of The Ghost Rules (Holiday House)

“Developing your writing craft is not always going to feel like a linear process. If writing Just Shy of Ordinary taught me anything, it’s that each story is different and may present challenges I didn’t encounter writing other stories. As an example, the writing process for my third novel, Camp QUILTBAG was a night-and-day experience compared to writing Just Shy of Ordinary (which is my fourth novel). Camp QUILTBAG was a joy to write. The outline was relatively easy to convert into prose. In comparison to the 17-page letter I got for Shy, Camp’s edit letter was only 2 pages long. At first, this made me feel like I was moving backwards. Shouldn’t each book be easier since I understand the drafting process better and have presumably improved my craft as I go? As I made my way through the editorial process for Shy, I realized I was trying different things with it from my other projects. For the first time ever, I included poetry as part of the story, for one. I was also focusing on my character’s struggles with their mental health, which was emotionally taxing on me and made drafting it more of a challenge. Each project is different and may have different needs. As a result, some projects may feel more difficult than others, even if you’re a seasoned writer. That’s OK. It’s all just part of your writing journey.” –A.J. Sass, author of Just Shy of Ordinary (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

“I have two pieces of advice. Read widely. Even though you may write in one genre, reading across multiple genres and age groups are critical and vastly enjoyable. It fuels creativity. Writing is often about self-discovery. To travel deeper into the ideas and thoughts that shape us is enlightening and often scary. Since it is a journey, my advice is don’t be afraid to take a new path, you may come across unexpected vistas.” –Kashmira Sheth, author of I’m from Here Too (Peachtree)

“It’s been said many times, but I think the most important thing after a little planning, plotting, and thinking is to get down a bad first draft—just something that crudely resembles the shape of what you are trying to do. That’ll be much easier to edit and learn from than trying to write something perfectly in one go.” –Gideon Sterer, author of Treehouse Town (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

“Your creativity doesn’t have to follow anyone’s exact step-by-step process! Some people write detailed outlines before writing, others write straight ahead. I found out after a lot of trial and error that I have to draw my first draft of a graphic novel in really rough sketches rather than writing it in words as a script because that’s just how my brain works—I am apparently very visual. If it works and you get a story out of it – it works!” –Alina Tysoe, author of The Great Puptective (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)

“There are stories that you are meant to tell. Sometimes, we talk ourselves out of them because of fear. As a good friend told me, you can’t be brave without fear. Write the story. It may take years. Someone may have the same exact idea. So, what? Only you can tell the story the way you are to tell it. We all come with different backgrounds, traditions, experiences, regrets, and lessons, which will influence the telling. So, if the universe grants you the gift of an idea, then honor it. You’ll grow, and you’ll learn more of yourself. And the bigger picture is, someone is waiting to grow and learn through your story too.” –Alicia D. Williams, author of Mid-Air (Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books)

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While there’s no shortage of writing advice, it’s often scattered around—a piece of advice here, words of wisdom there. And in the moments when you most need writing advice, what you find might not resonate with you or speak to the issue you’re dealing with. In A Year of Writing Advice, the editors of Writer’s Digest have gathered thoughts, musings, and yes, advice from 365 authors in dozens of genres to help you on your writing journey.

Click to continue.

The post One Piece of Advice From 27 Middle Grade and Picture Book Authors in 2024 appeared first on Writer's Digest.

Grant Faulkner and the team at NaNoWriMo have been kind enough to share the following quotes from their NaNoWriMo Pep Talks. From your fellow writers here at Writer’s Digest and at NaNoWriMo, we hope these words help you reach your goals!

Featuring a combination of NaNoWriMo-specific writing advice and motivation, Grant Faulkner, the staff of NaNoWriMo, and the editors of Writer’s Digest have also curated this exclusive set of articles and 30 writing prompts to help first-timers and seasoned Wrimos alike as you embark on your novel-in-a-month journey and beyond.

Click here for your free download!

The post NaNoWriMo: Almost to the Finish Line appeared first on Writer's Digest.

(Literary agent shares 16 things all historical fiction writers need to know.)

Whether writing a Regency romance (Bridgerton: The Duke & I) or a literary reexamination of the early 20th century (Ragtime), historical fiction offers readers a time and place that really existed that’s also safely secluded in the past. Sometimes these stories try to tell the truth of that time and place; other times, they’re just a fun escape into the dark recesses of “what could have happened.”

In this post, be sure to enjoy the following tips and quotes from authors on writing historical fiction and click on the links to read the full post that covers each topic in more depth.

20 Authors Share Tips on Writing Historical Fiction Novels That Readers Love

“It goes without saying that writers of historical fiction need to become at least amateur historians in the areas that consume them. On the shores of history, writers of historical fiction have to sift through the washed-up clothing, the splintered furniture, and the yellowed journals to try to make sense of who the passengers were. The freedom to tell the story can only come once the writer has a strong grasp of the facts, has read every book and letter, visited every archive, and—when possible—walked in the footsteps of her characters.”

—From the Practical to the Mystic: 7 Tips for Writing Historical Fiction, by Erika Robuck

“Unable to settle on one particular time period, I came up with the brilliant idea to write about a time traveler who experiences life in several different historical eras. (When I say brilliant, I mean really, really challenging.)”

—How to Write Time Travel Historical Fiction, by Jodi McIsaac

“As a horror writer, when I learn about interesting places—and eras—I tend to start thinking about the harrowing stories I can set within them.”

—Scott Kenemore: Finding Horror in Historical Fiction, by Robert Lee Brewer

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Writing and Selling the Historical Novel is a crash course jam-packed with advice from the start of your novel to the finish, from picking a concept with immediate appeal to pitching your finished product to the agents and editors who will take it to publication.

Click to continue.

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“A novel is full of inventions—lies, you could say—and lies in books can be as delicate as in real life. To pull off the deception, in both cases, it helps to stay as close to the truth as possible.”

—5 Considerations for Writing About Historical Figures in Fiction, by John Thorndike

“Evocative historical writing is made up of more than facts and figures. By examining old pictures—either paintings or photographs—you can glean impressions that inspire your imagination and details that populate your descriptions.”

—8 Rules of Writing Historical Fiction Research, by Kim van Alkemade

“And that’s another thing I have learned, often the hard way: Sometimes what you think will be an interesting life doesn’t turn out to be able to fuel an entire novel, more like a short story.”

—Blurred Lines: Writing Historical Fiction From Fact, by Melanie Benjamin

“Rather than just dumping a bunch of facts on the poor reader, let your characters interact with these details with all these senses. Let them smell the offal dumped onto the cobblestone streets. Let them squint in the fading light of the tallow candles. Let them feel the tingling sensation as the physician places a leech on their bare skin.”

—How to Write Historical Fiction: 7 Tips on Accuracy and Authenticity, by Susanna Calkins

“I feel a meaningful connection with my great grandmother not because the texts tell me she came of age in the period characterized as Reconstruction, but because I know she was the valedictorian of her high school class, had an enigmatic Mona Lisa smile, and later in life lost a four-year-old son to diphtheria.”

—Historical Fiction: Discover New Truths in the Past, by Eliot Pattison

“Check a good slang dictionary (Jonathon Green’s is my favorite) before allowing your colonial character to indulge in phrases like ‘don’t flip your wig,’ a quip dating from the 1950s.”

—11 Ways to Write More Authentic Historical Fiction, by a Historian, by Mary Miley

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Whether history is a backdrop to your story or the focus of the story itself, this workshop will provide you with the tools to find the facts you need, organize the data in a functional manner, and merge that data seamlessly into your novel.

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*****

“When it comes to attitude, read the newspapers of the time. We have a lot in common with our ancestors, but views change. Our sensitivities are not their sensitivities. That doesn’t mean you wallow in the prejudices of another time. But I like to portray my characters’ feelings with as much respect for their time as possible.”

—How to Write Historical Fiction, by Mariah Fredericks

“Many stress the importance of accuracy in historical fiction. Others think too many historical details sink the story. Still more believe it isn’t possible to achieve total historical accuracy in storytelling. Almost all agree that the author’s choices should be explained in an author’s note.”

—Stretching the Facts in Historical Fiction, by Marci Jefferson

“For historical fiction, the world that our characters populate must believably be one that actually existed in the past, and yet one into which the modern reader enthusiastically enters.”

—10 Steps to the Past: How to Do World-Building Right in Historical Fiction, by Rebecca D’Harlingue

“While a luxury and certainly not always possible, I cannot overstate the value of traveling to the place you are writing about.”

—6 Tips for Confidently Writing Historical Fiction, by Jaclyn Goldis

“The past is a complicated place. Falling into fantasy regarding history can be easy for some, and more difficult for others, as it can evoke gentility, manners, pretty clothes, and breathtaking settings. Yet the backbone of much of this privilege came at a cost to many, with a darker, grimmer side that can’t and shouldn’t be ignored.”

—The Pleasures and Perils of Writing Historical Fiction, by Eva Leigh

“It’s tempting to load up your manuscript with all of the wonderful research tidbits that you’ve gathered—but less is more.”

—6 Keys to Writing a Compelling Historical Novel, by Sofia Grant

“All the other important things in a novel—sympathetic characters, edge-of-your-seat suspense, and unexpected twists and turns—spring from portraying one’s beloved heroes and villains in all their glory and infamy just like the real-world, flawed historical figures they were in life.”

—Getting the History Right in Historical Fiction Using Declassified Records, by Samuel Marquis

“Sometimes what really happened just doesn’t sound plausible, or it’s way too complicated to explain in a novel. When that happens you have a choice. You can guide the reader carefully through the truth, or you can simplify the facts.”

—7 Ways to Make Your Historical Novel Come Alive, by Alison Love

“Stephen King tells us that the source of most bad writing is fear, and he’s right. Historical fiction writers who research and write from a fear of getting something wrong often drown the story with facts and details.”

—Writing With Wonder: Weaving Time and Place With Story in Historical Fiction, by Dana Chamblee Carpenter

“Since I was not writing a memoir, I was free to change names, make up characters, and alter events. In other words, don’t let the truth stand in the way of a good story.”

—Writing Historical Fiction Based on a Family Story, by Shannon Hitchcock

“We need quiet moments to take in stories. We need spaces in which we can react to stories. We need to see ourselves on the shelves around us. And we desperately need to feel whole enough to tell these stories.”

—Nadia Hashimi: On Seeing Ourselves in Historical Fiction, by Robert Lee Brewer

The post 20 Authors Share Tips on Writing Historical Fiction Novels That Readers Love appeared first on Writer's Digest.

(More quotes for writers from many more writers.)

We’ve collected six quotes from a previous Writer’s Digest interview with Updike. In these quotes, Updike covers storytelling, poetry, success, and more.

6 John Updike Quotes for Writers and About Writing

“It never gets easier. But, I’ve written enough now that I wonder if I’m not in danger of having said my say and of repeating myself.”

“It’s a rare life so dull that no crisis ever intrudes.”

“Many are called, few are chosen, but it might be you.”

*****

Enter Writer’s Digest’s Annual Writing Competition featuring nine categories, including rhyming poetry, non-rhyming poetry, personal essay, and more; each with first place prizes of $1,000, second place prizes of $500, third place prizes of $250, and more. Plus, an overall Grand Prize of $5,000, an interview in Writer’s Digest magazine, and more.

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“Poetry makes you a little more sensitive to the word-by-word interest of prose.”

“We’re past the age of heroes and hero kings. If we can’t make up stories about ordinary people, who can we make them up about?”

(Exploring Star Wars and the Hero’s Journey.)

“When I reread myself, it’s the poetry I tend to look at. It’s the most exciting to write, and it’s over the quickest.”

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(Sylvia Plath quotes for writers and about writing.)

Former WD Senior Managing Editor Zachary Petit interviewed Ferlinghetti for the 90th anniversary of Writer’s Digest. That’s the source of the following eight Ferlinghetti quotes, which touch on time, craft, passion, and more.

8 Lawrence Ferlinghetti Quotes for Writers and About Writing

“A poem is usually a visual turn-on to begin with, and the idea is to make it into something more than a visual perception.”

“I was writing letters in French; part of my family was French and I was in France for most of my first five years, and when I got separated from my French aunt I used to write her long letters in French. And she considered herself a poet, so I considered myself a poet when I wrote her, and I felt I had to equal her poetry. So that was really the first writing I did.”

“If you’re going to be a writer you should sit down and write in the morning, and keep it up all day, every day.”

*****

Enter Writer’s Digest’s Annual Writing Competition featuring nine categories, including rhyming poetry, non-rhyming poetry, personal essay, and more; each with first place prizes of $1,000, second place prizes of $500, third place prizes of $250, and more. Plus, an overall Grand Prize of $5,000, an interview in Writer’s Digest magazine, and more.

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“I’m really not interested in ‘craft’—I think it’s a miserable word to be applied to poetry.”

“My poetry is definitely figurative.”

“The word great is really overused these days because the English language seems to have a paucity of adjectives.”

“They say that great art is made by hunger and passion.”

“Time wears down the pencil.”

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(12 thought-provoking quotes from 1984, by George Orwell.)

The great French thinker was born in Paris on November 21, 1694, and was supposed to become a lawyer (his father’s wishes anyway). But writing spoke to him more than law. On May 30, 1778, he passed away and his remains now rest in the Panthéon in Paris. 

In this post, I’ve collected 10 thoughtful Voltaire quotes for writers and deep thinkers on topics covering money, stupidity, common sense, and more.

10 Thoughtful Voltaire Quotes for Writers and Deep Thinkers

“Cherish those who seek the truth but beware of those who find it.”

“Common sense is not so common.”

“Don’t think money does everything or you are going to end up doing everything for money.”

*****

If you love to write and have a story you want to tell, the only thing that can stand between you and the success you’re seeking isn’t craft, or a good agent, or enough Facebook friends and Twitter followers, but fear. Fear that you aren’t good enough, or fear the market is too crowded, or fear no one wants to hear from you. Fortunately, you can’t write while being in the flow and be afraid simultaneously. The question is whether you will write fearlessly.

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“Doubt is an uncomfortable condition, but certainty is a ridiculous one.”

“Every man is guilty of all the good he did not do.”

“Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.”

“Optimism is the madness of insisting that all is well when we are miserable.”

“The more often a stupidity is repeated, the more it gets the appearance of wisdom.”

(9 Lines of Writing Advice With Cats.)

“Think for yourself and let others enjoy the privilege of doing so too.”

“Truly, whoever can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.”

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(Fable vs. Parable vs. Allegory.)

Without giving away too many spoilers, Animal Farm follows a group of animals at Manor Farm that decide Men have benefited off the labor of animals for too long. So they overthrow Mr. Jones and rename the farm Animal Farm. And what feels like a utopia in the early days slowly devolves over the course of the rest of the story.

Here are 10 quotes from George Orwell’s Animal Farm that cover men, pigs, donkeys, equality, and more.

10 equal quotes from Animal Farm, by George Orwell

“ALL ANIMALS ARE EQUAL BUT SOME ANIMALS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS”

“Can you not understand that liberty is worth more than ribbons?”

“Donkeys live a long time. None of you have ever seen a dead donkey.”

*****

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“It is for your sake that we drink that milk and eat those apples.”

“Man serves the interests of no creature except himself.”

(Best dystopian novels for writers.)

“Remove Man from the scene, and the root cause of hunger and overwork is abolished for ever.”

“The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man again; but already it was impossible to say which was which.”

(12 thought-provoking quotes from 1984, by George Orwell.)

“The pigs did not actually work, but directed and supervised the others. With their superior knowledge it was natural that they should assume the leadership.”

“Windmill or no windmill, he said, life would go on as it had always gone on—that is, badly.”

“Now, comrades, what is the nature of this life of ours? Let us face it: our lives are miserable, laborious, and short.”

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(Best Dystopian Novels for Writers.)

They live in a world that is nearly devoid of life (no birds, fish, or other living animals) and has broken down all social norms for the few people still living. However, the father and son protagonists in this novel fight to stay good and alive at the same time as they make their way to the coast.

Here are 15 quotes from Cormac McCarthy’s The Road that cover survival, dreams, promises, and more.

15 lasting quotes from The Road, by Cormac McCarthy

“He tried to think of something to say but he could not. He’d had this feeling before, beyond the numbness and dull despair.”

“I dont want anybody talking about me. To say where I was or what I said when I was there.”

“If you break little promises you’ll break big ones.”

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“Maybe he understood for the first time that to the boy he was himself an alien. A being from a planet that no longer existed.”

(15 quotes from Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley.)

“Maybe you should always be on the lookout. If trouble comes when you least expect it then maybe the thing to do is to always expect it.”

“My job is to take care of you.”

“People were always getting ready for tomorrow. I didnt believe in that. Tomorrow wasnt getting ready for them. It didnt even know they were there.”

“Some part of him always wished it to be over.”

“The man could hear him playing. A formless music for the age to come. Or perhaps the last music on earth called up from out of the ashes of its ruin.”

“The right dreams for a man in peril were dreams of peril and all else was the call of languor and of death.”

“There was a good chance they would die in the mountains and that would be that.”

(3 tips for writing cosmic horror that goes beyond.)

“This is what the good guys do. They keep trying.”

“We’re not survivors. We’re the walking dead in a horror film.”

“When we’re all gone at last there’ll be nobody here but death and his days will be numbered too. He’ll be out in the road there with nothing to do and nobody to do it to.”

(12 thought-provoking quotes from 1984, by George Orwell.)

“Where you’ve nothing else construct ceremonies out of the air and breathe upon them.”

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