Ready, Set, Go! Starting Your Stories
Nailing the beginning of our stories is key to hooking readers and keeping them turning the pages. But there's sooooo much we want...
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smeltzmail
- Aug 15
- 3 min
Happy News: When Our Work Surprises Us
The past couple months, I've been cheating on my main work in progress (a novel) by competing in a couple micro and flash fiction...
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smeltzmail
- Aug 9
- 1 min
The blog is back...
After a long loooooong hiatus, I'm kicking off this blog again. While there are several reasons behind it, probably the most important is...
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smeltzmail
- Jun 16, 2016
- 1 min
Authenticity: Perfecting the Recipe
My fiction students and I have spent a healthy amount of time talking about how to achieve authenticity in our work. The trick is not...
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smeltzmail
- May 14, 2016
- 2 min
Rejection Club: Join Your Favorite Writers
I had a great week in terms of writing life—three rejections rolled in. Two I completely expected. I'd aimed high in sending a new story...
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smeltzmail
- Apr 13, 2016
- 2 min
In Search of Your Voice: Conquering One Grain of Sand at a Time
My advanced fiction workshop class and I have been talking about voice a lot. Voice—that somewhat enigmatic characteristic of a work that...
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smeltzmail
- Mar 24, 2016
- 2 min
Writer's Block's Kryptonite: Knowing Your Process
In a recent "Getting to Know Our Instructors" interview for WriterHouse, one of the questions was about writer's block, and if I had any...
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smeltzmail
- Feb 27, 2016
- 1 min
"The Fine Art of Goldfish" Takes Flight
I'm super-psyched to report my short story, "The Fine Art of Goldfish" is out in Apeiron Review's Issue 10. Check it out on page 5 in the...
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smeltzmail
- Feb 6, 2016
- 2 min
Why Movies from Books Often Suck
While teaching this past week, my class engaged in an interesting conversation about description. Specifically, we discussed how the...
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smeltzmail
- Jan 13, 2016
- 1 min
Book Review: The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer
I first fell in love with Julie Orringer's work while in graduate school when I read How to Breathe Underwater. Ever since I read that...
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smeltzmail
- Sep 8, 2015
- 2 min
When Trains Collide: Building a Compelling Plot
Upon reaching page 100 in my novel draft, I realize that I know one of my trains really well. By train, I mean my protagonist. The other...
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smeltzmail
- Sep 3, 2015
- 2 min
Keep Putting Words to Page
Writing a difficult scene last night, I almost made myself physically ill. It was like method acting (or like I imagine method acting I...
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smeltzmail
- Aug 24, 2015
- 2 min
Potatoes in Space: Publishing Evolution
The man made me really, really care about taters. Now I am already a lover of potatoes, but it's kind of a generalized love—to quote...
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smeltzmail
- Aug 11, 2015
- 2 min
Writerly Inspiration: Catching the Bubbles
Making the decision to return to my more writerly way of life has prompted the most wonderful discussions with my friends and family, as...
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smeltzmail
- Aug 6, 2015
- 3 min
Seeing All the Colorful Pieces
Today was my dear Aunt Ruth's funeral. After a very rough two weeks, feeling exhausted and emotionally raw, something kicked in...
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smeltzmail
- Jul 30, 2015
- 2 min
"Getting old is NOT for sissies"
I have the privilege of being with a dear aunt as she goes through the final days of her life. She is currently in Hospice care, resting...
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smeltzmail
- Jul 22, 2015
- 1 min
Read. Listen. Write. Repeat. Finding Inspiration in Others' Work
Whenever I'm in a really productive writing groove, I surround myself with inspirational creative outputs from others. I've been on a...
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smeltzmail
- Jul 16, 2015
- 3 min
When Bizarre Rings the Doorbell
My doorbell rang today. It never rings. While working at a little kitchen nook on my computer, my cat Maisy-Mae curled up behind my...
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smeltzmail
- Jul 11, 2015
- 2 min
Literary Pilgrimage: Lucy Maud Montgomery's inspiration for Anne's Green Gables
Today I visited the house that inspired L. M. Montgomery's Green Gables, home to the beloved character Anne Shirley. I'm in Canada for...
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smeltzmail
- Jul 10, 2015
- 1 min
Writers Before the Interwebs Were HARD CORE!
With as frequently as I find myself doing an internet search for information for my novel in progress, I realize writers years ago, as...
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