Nailing the beginning of our stories is key to hooking readers and keeping them turning the pages. But there's sooooo much we want...

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...

After a long loooooong hiatus, I'm kicking off this blog again. While there are several reasons behind it, probably the most important is...

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...

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...

My advanced fiction workshop class and I have been talking about voice a lot. Voice—that somewhat enigmatic characteristic of a work that...

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...

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...

While teaching this past week, my class engaged in an interesting conversation about description. Specifically, we discussed how the...

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...

Writing a difficult scene last night, I almost made myself physically ill. It was like method acting (or like I imagine method acting I...

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...

Making the decision to return to my more writerly way of life has prompted the most wonderful discussions with my friends and family, as...

Today was my dear Aunt Ruth's funeral. After a very rough two weeks, feeling exhausted and emotionally raw, something kicked in...

Whenever I'm in a really productive writing groove, I surround myself with inspirational creative outputs from others. I've been on a...

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...

With as frequently as I find myself doing an internet search for information for my novel in progress, I realize writers years ago, as...

Be advised: adult language to ensue. Have you ever been stumped for just the apt word or phrase to describe a particularly bad situation?...

So this is my new blog, from Kristie Smeltzer, aspiring writer. Here I'll chronicle writing adventures, misadventures, and stuff I find...