Author: wildsoundwritingfestival

Megan Pillow Davis bares her teeth in the newest issue of Brevity, out just yesterday: There are men all around me. There are all men and me. So I stare straight ahead. I drink my coffee. I let him touch me, because it could be worse, it could be worse, it could always be worse […]… Continue reading Whenever Men Think I’m Smiling — BREVITY’s Nonfiction Blog

By Phyllis Brotherton My adult son and I, at this chapter in our lives, have a “texting only” relationship. A few months ago, I completed the Afterword to my book using a series of our recent texts, both quoted and cryptic, with plenty of white space and ellipses. The underlying message of the Afterword: Things […]… Continue reading Textual Healing, Notes from the Mom Whose Pages Keep Changing — BREVITY’s Nonfiction Blog

by Kathy Stevenson I come from a family of dreamers, wishers, horoscope readers, and gamblers. Which turns out to be the optimal background for a writer. When Dad went to the track on Saturdays (if he had the day off from one of his three jobs) my five younger sisters and I never knew if […]… Continue reading On Playing Cards and Literary Rejection: Betting on the Come — BREVITY’s Nonfiction Blog

Social media is a distraction from our writing. Social media can be a support system for our writing—creating community, building readership, and allowing us to practice our craft. Writer Twitter is definitely a Thing, with terrific advice in #askagent, and editors tweeting calls for submissions and pitches. Writer Facebook includes genre- and demographic-based groups that […]… Continue reading Instagram for Writers — BREVITY’s Nonfiction Blog

By Anita Gill Recently Brevity’s Blog published “How Can Writers Confront Privilege? Read (and Write and Teach) About It” by LaRue Cook. In this article, Cook decided to tackle a question many white writers struggle with in this current literary landscape: “Should I be writing at all, or just reading and listening? How do white… Continue reading Writers Confronting Privilege: Another Examination — BREVITY’s Nonfiction Blog

By Brianna Bell Last week Jeffrey Goldberg, mansplainer-in-chief at The Atlantic, wrote an article appearing to suggest that women can’t write 10,000 words. Women across the world nodded their heads in unison, “Yes, Mr. Goldberg,” they said. “Finally a white man who understands us.” I can’t write 10,000 words, because I’m a woman, of course. […]… Continue reading Ten Reasons Why Women Writers Can’t Write 10,000 Words, Written by a Woman Writer — BREVITY’s Nonfiction Blog

The biggest misconception about social media for writers is that it’s free. Sure, we don’t pay to subscribe to Twitter, there’s no cost-per-click to view our friends’ news on Facebook. But there’s still a price, and what we’re paying is time and privacy. What do we get in return? Genuine connection. Relationships with people we’ve […]… Continue reading Getting Personal — BREVITY’s Nonfiction Blog

By James Irwin During my most recent trip to India I was invited to speak as part of a series called The Other Side, in which business leaders share stories about how they rebounded after failures and setbacks. At my advanced age I have plenty of those, but I decided to tell them The Big […]… Continue reading I’m Not Sure a Pseudonym is Really Me, and Other Debates — BREVITY’s Nonfiction Blog

By Bridgit Kuenning-Pollpeter My fingers manipulate keys, navigating Facebook. Arrowing down, the cursor lands on a picture, and I hear, “Two people and a Baby.” Great, I think, no context. I continue to arrow down, finding another picture. This time, the electronic buzz of my computer’s voice says, “Man in sunglasses.” Again, zero context for […]… Continue reading Two People and a Baby: On Accessibility and Literary Publishing — BREVITY’s Nonfiction Blog

By Beth Finke Like so many of the other young people flocking to journalism school at the end of the 1970s, I was sure I’d become the next Woodward or Bernstein. But then the spots showed up. “Retinopathy,” the eye specialist said. During my months in the hospital for eye surgeries, a social worker suggested […]… Continue reading Elements of Style: A Blind Writer’s Bible — BREVITY’s Nonfiction Blog