Writer's Digest January 2019

1 To Tell the Truth WD Interviewee Michael Lewis (Page 44) explains his decision to pursue journalism instead of fiction, and why the two categories have more overlap than most people may think. 2 Code Breaker For this month’s “Potpourri for the Pen” (Page 72), WD Content Director Jess Zafarris hid a Nora Roberts’ quote in a cryptogram. Test your cipher skills on the web with two more of her cunning creations. 3 Idea Overload In “What’s the Big Idea?” (Page 38), our editors provide more than a dozen techniques to help prompt your next story. If you’re hungry for more, find additional idea-inducing tricks online. To find all of the above online companions to this issue in one handy spot, visit writersdigest.com/jan-19 . CORRECTION In our…

MEMORY FOAM Structure is as crucial in memoir as it is in romance, thriller or historical fiction. Author Cheryl Suchors provides five considerations to help plot out your personal narrative. bit.ly/memoirstructureWD THE WOODWARD WAY Given the buzz surrounding his book Fear: Trump in the White House, this Q&A with Bob Woodward from the August 1996 Writer’s Digest is both enlightening and keenly relevant. bit.ly/bobwoodwardWD…

Two months into my first year of college, a leg snapped off my desk chair while I was writing an essay. I’d blame it on the so-called freshman 15, but I’d been bulky long before then. My waistline had yo-yoed for most of my life—as a kid my jeans were labeled “husky”—and while I could establish short-lived healthy habits, it never lasted, and the weight would comeback twofold. Which is why, when holiday break rolled around and it was time to set goals for the year ahead, I took a different tack. My past attempts failed for one main reason: Exercise and healthy eating, at least in my experience, sucked. And it’s hard as hell to stay committed to a purpose when you hate the process. To hop that hurdle,…

PAUL GOAT ALLEN (“Cross-Pollination,” Page 31) has worked as a genre-fiction book critic for the last 20-plus years, and has written thousands of reviews for venues like BarnesandNoble.com, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews and The Chicago Tribune. He has interviewed such genre fiction luminaries as Michael Moorcock, Anne McCaffrey, Laurell K. Hamilton, Cherie Priest, China Miéville, Kim Harrison, Joe Hill, Patrick Rothfuss and Justin Cronin. He is also an adjunct instructor in Seton Hill University’s Writing Popular Fiction program in Greensburg, Pa. ESTELLE ERASMUS (“Defend Yourself From Coaching Scams,” Page 14) is a writing coach, award-winning journalist, former magazine editor-in-chief and instructor at NYU. She teaches personal essay writing, freelance writing and pitching for Writer’s Digest University, and curates and hosts the “ASJA Direct” podcast for the American Society of Journalists…

Walter Mosley is known for iconic characters. From Easy Rawlins to Leonid McGill and Fearless Jones, his heroes quickly come to life on the page in a way that draws interest and empathy from readers. Their personalities are so distinct that legions of fans line up to buy his books, eager to devour a new mystery through the evolving lens of their favorite sleuth. “They’re all getting older,” says Mosley, referring to his cast of series protagonists. “So [in each book] it’s a different time and it’s a different person having that experience.” That nuance may seem subtle, but it’s illustrative of how deeply Mosley inhabits the minds of his characters. In a conversation with WD, he reflects on the passion and craft that inform his bestselling novels. Your latest,…

I first started writing in the summer of 1998. Back then I was a teacher. After years of dreaming, I decided it was finally time to write a book. For 10 years I wrote, submitting four middle-grade novels and six picture books almost exclusively to editors. This was back in the snail-mail querying age. Remember the anticipation you experienced as a child waiting for birthday presents to arrive in the mail? That was me for the better part of a decade. In Spring 2009, at the last minute, I decided to submit a middle-grade historical novel-in-verse to a competition at a local writing conference. I knew in my heart that it was my best work, but I wasn’t sure how it would be received alongside pieces meant for the adult…