All sixteen pages of this quarterly newsletter are packed full of useful techniques, informed perspectives, and inspired nudges. In Writers Ask Issue 54, you'll hear from dozens of accomplished writers and writing teachers on these topics: Beginnings, Research, Character, Voice, and Writing as Responsibility. You'll also get these two Focus pieces: On Coincidence and What Was Meant to Be, by Susann Cokal, and Researching the Rhythms of Voice, by Ted Morrissey.
I was rather close to the end of A Man of Feeling, and I still hadn't decided if someone was going to die or not, and, if so, who. Of course, once a book is finished, it seems impossible that the story would be different from the way it finally was.—Javier Marías, interviewed by Eli S. Evans
Ordinary people deal with lawyers only when something crucial and possibly extreme is happening in their lives, and so it's rich territory for stories.—Maile Meloy, interviewed by Joshua Bodwell
It's hard for me to talk about a character in terms of his or her purpose. If they're fully developed, I don't think they have anything quite so simple as a purpose. I mean, what's my purpose? What's yours? We could talk about the work we do, the people we love, and all kinds of things, but that's not quite the same as purpose.—Michael Cunningham, interviewed by Sarah Anne Johnson
Most of that history is not known, and that's where we get assumptions, prejudices, and misinformation, which causes a lot of suffering. Literature can address some of that. It is entertainment, but all great literature also enlightens.—Charles Johnson, interviewed by Jennifer Levasseur and Kevin Rabalais.
A few Focus examples from earlier issues:
Monica Wood: Creating Context
K.L. Cook: A Family Theme, a Family Secret
Lee Martin: Deepening Character