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We're hurtling toward the end of the year with holidays dead ahead and the inevitable reckoning of the past year and resolutions for the new one right around the corner. I'm thinking about writing goals--how we make them and how we keep them. I'm thinking about the writers and projects I supported this year.

Whether or not you're one for all this introspection and goal-setting, this is a great time for recalibration. I encourage you to aim high in 2025. I mean, why not? Whatever happened in 2024, you can start new in 2025. You can finish that draft. You can revise the "hopeless" novel. You can submit that short story that's burning a hole in your heart to your favorite literary magazines.

And if you need support in any of these endeavors, from goal-setting to editing to regular writing deadlines and feedback, I would be honored to run alongside you!

Listen.

There's an ongoing debate about whether or not an MFA program is worth the time and money. Before I got my MFA, I listened to all the arguments for and against--and then went right ahead and pursued an MFA anyway. Now, all these years later, I can safely say that getting my MFA likely wasn't the best use of my hard-earned money, however, it sure was a lot of fun!

Do you need an MFA in order to publish? Emphatically no. Is it fun? If you like school and working with other writers, yes!

There are so many ways to learn the craft of writing, and DIY MFA is just one of them. I enjoyed listening to this conversation with the founder, Gabriela Perreira. [Apple | Spotify]. One of the cornerstones of her method is writing with focus, and her comments on using prompts to hone storytelling skills made me think about them in a whole new way. Writing prompts aren't just for priming the creative pump or practicing putting words on the page. I hope you listen and let me know what you think!

Warning: The ads in this podcast are particularly annoying but your podcast app should allow you to skip ahead in 30-second increments.

Read.

This piece on writing novellas has piqued my interest in writing one. Why? They're short, "perched between prose and poetry," and may just be the thing to get me out of my writing rut. Plus, one of my favorite books I read this year was the novella, Fup, by Jim Dodge. If I could write something so funny and tender and poignant in just a few pages, I would consider it a real achievement.
How a Scrappy New Publisher Landed 25 Books on the Bestseller List in a Year. Even if you aren't writing romance or fantasy, this is an intriguing look at the publishing landscape.
Heather Havrilesky responds to a writer who published her book and published it well--but no one is reading it.

Writing is a very public quest for love. It’s embarrassing to ask for love out in the open. It’s embarrassing to believe that someone will understand you eventually. It’s embarrassing to know that you’ll keep working hard to be loved, to share yourself, to show yourself, whether anyone is paying attention or not. - Heather Havrilesky

Write.

Use the Writer Igniter on DIY MFA to create a scene or even a full-blown story. Dig in and practice the art of one of the storytelling elements you find most troublesome. Maybe that's scene-building or characterization or action or body language or something else altogether. I'd love to see what you come up with, if you are inclined to share!

Happy holidays ✨