Writer's Digest January/February 2022

“I define success as finally being able to do what I’ve dreamt of doing since I was 10: writing for a living.… From 2020 to 2021, I’ve completed nine feature-length screenplays, a television series, and a horror novel at 116,000 words.… In one year, I’ve placed in over 300 film festivals across 30 countries on six continents in six different genres!… Success hasn’t changed my routine because writing is what I have to do. My greatest moment will come when I can sit in a theater, watch what I’ve seen inside my mind play out on the screen for all to enjoy, then I will feel at peace.” —Kevin J. Howard “When I first fell in love with telling stories, I thought success was being a household name. Selling millions…

“Persist.” —Viet Thanh Nguyen “Write what you love.” —Chris Bohjalian “It does get easier.” —Lisa Jewell “Be gentle with yourself.” —Min Jin Lee These are words of advice taken from WD interviews with award-winning and bestselling authors. Notice, though, not a single mention of their status, prizes, or advances—in other words, their success. And while status, literary awards, and money can be indicators of a successful writer, one must actually sit down and write for any of those things to happen. That’s what all of these pieces of advice have in common: they all boil down to putting words on the page. For you to find success in 2022, you must first decide what you want to achieve: today, this week, this month, this year. Because success is all relative.…

RAYMOND ANTROBUS was born in London to an English mother and Jamaican father. He’s a Cave Canem Fellow and the author of To Sweeten Bitter, The Perseverance, and All The Names Given, as well as children’s picture book Can Bears Ski? He is the 2019 recipient of the Ted Hughes Award as well as the Sunday Times/University of Warwick Young Writer of the Year Award and became the first poet to be awarded the Rathbone Folio Prize. His first full-length collection, The Perseverance, was shortlisted for the Griffin Poetry Prize, The Forward Prize, and was a 2020 notable poetry collection in The New York Times. JANIE CHANG writes historical fiction with personal connections, drawing from a family history with 36 generations of recorded genealogy. She grew up listening about life…

Most writers know the importance of self-editing their work before submitting it to an editor or publisher. However, even established writers sometimes struggle to understand exactly what the editing process should entail, and how to know when they’re successful at it. It helps to think of self-editing not as abstract or arbitrary, but as a series of actionable steps, each with a defined purpose. This will allow you to approach your draft with confidence and precision—much as a surgeon approaches a patient undergoing an operation. MAKE A PREOPERATIVE APPOINTMENT Just as a surgeon evaluates a patient prior to surgery, a writer must first evaluate the whole of the story with an initial top-to-bottom read and then create a plan to address apparent problems. The goal is to cut with intention…

With audio as the fastest growing part of the publishing industry and audiobook sales experiencing double-digit growth for the past nine years, there are few publishers or authors today ignoring the benefits of audio. The growth in listening lifts many formats like the proverbial rising tide. Podcast listenership is also growing by double digits. And though the format has been around for nearly two decades, according to many, it’s just hitting its stride. In 2018, marketing guru Seth Godin pronounced that “podcasting is the new blogging.” As an author looking for new ways to reach your audience or a new creative outlet, podcasting just might be something you want to try. THE CONCEPT I caught the podcast bug in March 2019 after being an avid listener for many years. At…

POETIC FORM: IMAYO The imayo is a Japanese form that was originally written to be sung, though there are no rhyming or subject constraints. The form has only the following guidelines: • Four lines• 12 syllables per line• A caesura (or pause) between the first seven syllables and final five in each line Here are a few examples by Poetic Asides readers: “Vehicle” by Bruce Niedt The warranty’s expired—harder to get parts. Everything falls apart now, piece by piece by piece. Not even duct tape will help—repairs are futile. “Well,” my doctor reassures, “you’re just getting old.” In this example, the poet uses a mix of dashes and commas to create the caesura in each line. “As Summer Slips Past” by Linda L Stead leaves blaze in golden glory—summer shifts…