ARCHIVE FOR New Writing
Can an Editor "Fix" Really Bad Writing?

By Katrin Schumann
Editors often see projects at radially different stages of development. Truthfully, we sometimes see writing that is really, well, bad.
But does this mean it’s hopeless? When do you know if something is too "bad" to be worth fixing?
Of course, "bad" is a highly subjective term. Writing might seem "bad" to one reader, while another reader loves it
December 2, 2020 | Katrin Schumann
Get Inspired: Time to Strategize for Writing Success

Are you finding it hard to write? We live in deeply unsettling times, and it's easy to get distracted by all that's going on in the world. Here's a brief list of ideas to jumpstart your writing and help you get out of your own head for a moment:
1) Apply to a writing contest. Years and years ago, I won a local short story prize, and it gave me the confidence I needed to keep plugging away at my writing
September 2, 2020 | Katrin Schumann
Books & Reading Craft Advice New Writing The Workshop The Writing Life
Reading Novels While Writing Novels: Yes or No?

I'm amazed by writers who stop reading in their genre while writing their own books. The majority of them seem to be worried about becoming overly influenced by the voice, themes and even plot of the book they're reading.
Personally, I can't imagine not reading fiction for the many years it takes me to complete a novel. And in terms of being influenced: I'm actively looking for inspiration and ideas. I want to be influenced.
August 5, 2020 | Katrin Schumann
Books & Reading Craft Advice New Writing The Workshop The Writing Life
What You Need to Nail in the First Pages of Your Book

By Katrin Schumann
Last month, feeling unmoored and wanting to build community during self-isolation, I launched something I called #fivefreepages, in which I offered to critique five pages at the beginning of a nonfiction book or novel, free of charge
May 6, 2020 | Katrin Schumann
What Writers Do in Times of Crisis

By Katrin Schumann
I sat down to write this post and have now written four openings and ditched them all.
What do writers need to hear in times like this? How can I be helpful to others when that which binds us--our obsessive love of words, books, writing--is overshadowed so universally by our fear of the unknown?
Do I tell you how to make lemons out of lemondade?* Do I reveal that I'm writing page after page despite the uncertainty and boredom
April 1, 2020 | Katrin Schumann
Books & Reading Craft Advice New Writing The Workshop The Writing Life

