Tag Archives: editing

Professional Wednesday: Punctuating Our Stories (Not the Way You Think I Mean It)

Posted on March 23, 2022 by dbjackson

“Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.” We all know the line. Even people who haven’t seen Casablanca know the line. (And please, don’t get me started about not seeing Casablanca. I mean, sure, it’s dated, … Continue reading →

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Professional Wednesday: Most Important Lessons — Trust Yourself, Trust Your Reader

Posted on March 9, 2022 by dbjackson

Today, I’m introducing a new feature for my Professional Wednesday posts: “Most Important Lessons.” We are coming up on the 28th anniversary of the start of my career (which I trace to the offer I received from Tor Books on … Continue reading →

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Professional Wednesday: My Editing Journey

Posted on February 23, 2022 by dbjackson

Earlier this week, in the closing entry to my “How I Started Writing” series, I had a kind of throwaway line about how I would likely spend more of 2022 editing the work of other people than writing my own … Continue reading →

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Monday Musings: How I Started Writing — A Case Study of Dubious Worth, Epilogue

Posted on February 21, 2022 by dbjackson

This week I conclude my series of posts on how I came to be a professional writer. You can read the previous posts before moving on with this one. We’ll wait. [Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV] There! … Continue reading →

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Professional Wednesday: Writing To Heal

Posted on December 29, 2021 by dbjackson

Writing saved me this year. I have been through a lot over the past 12 months, from dealing with the devastating reality of one of my kids having cancer, to coming to terms with my personal mental health issues, to … Continue reading →

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Monday Musings: Showing 2021 The Door

Posted on December 27, 2021 by dbjackson

A year ago, as 2020 was winding down and the nation was exhausted from months of lockdowns and economic devastation, from a disturbingly divisive Presidential campaign, and from the anti-democratic rantings and tantrums of our then Sore-Loser-In-Chief, I wrote a … Continue reading →

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Professional Wednesday: Submitting To Our Newest Anthologies

Posted on November 24, 2021 by dbjackson

Thanksgiving is upon us, and the year is winding down. But for those of you who write and who are looking for publication opportunities, I want to point out that the open call for short story submissions for this year’s … Continue reading →

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Professional Wednesday: Work as Balm

Posted on November 17, 2021 by dbjackson

Continuing this week’s theme of maintaining mental health through difficult times . . . Back in March, when our daughter’s cancer was diagnosed, my first impulse was to put everything on pause. I contacted my editor and agent to let … Continue reading →

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Monday Musings: Easing Back In

Posted on April 26, 2021 by dbjackson

Dear Friends, About five weeks ago, I announced on various platforms that I would be withdrawing from social media for a while, and would also be delaying the releases of some upcoming projects. My announcement prompted expressions of sympathy and … Continue reading →

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Professional Wednesday: Placing Your Inciting Moment In the Right Spot

Posted on February 10, 2021 by dbjackson

Generally speaking, writers — from beginners to professionals — know what it means to have an inciting moment for our stories. The inciting moment is the occurrence that sets in motion all the events that constitute our narrative — Luke … Continue reading →

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