essayist ← Nicole McInnes ← Page 2

Ep. 13: 7 Things that Make Writers Lucky

Mar

22

2021

I’m not a superstitious person in general, but there’s something about the number 13 that always makes me think about luck. Also, St. Patrick’s Day was just last week. I attempted to create a literary four-leaf clover, which was fun, and it also got me thinking about luck. Now that The Groovy Writer Podcast officially ...

Ep. 12: The Care and Feeding of the Writer in Your Life

Mar

14

2021

Are you the family, friend, fan, or spouse of a writer? Listen in to Episode 12 as we’ll discuss why writers sometimes struggle with letting their needs be known and how you can support them in a variety of ways. Spoiler alert: I don’t actually talk about food in this episode. Maybe that’s a subject ...

Ep. 11: How to Write a Novel–Revision and Editing

Mar

8

2021

Finishing the draft of a novel-length writing project is a huge accomplishment. Before sending that manuscript to your agent, or to editors, though, or even if you plan on self-publishing, it’s important to revise and edit it to within an inch of its life. Join me in this episode as I’ll discuss some of the ...

Ep. 10: Skipping Through Some Common Writing Grooves

Mar

1

2021

As many writers of a certain age know, if you persist and stick with writing for long enough, it’s very likely that your writing habits, routines, and general writing groove will change at some point, maybe even at many points, due to life circumstances. Knowing how to roll with the punches and deal with the ...

Ep. 9: How to write a novel–Powering Through the First Draft (or Have Grit, Don’t Quit!)

Feb

21

2021

Writing the first draft of a novel can feel like sailing on the open sea with no land in sight—not the land you left, and certainly not the land you’re heading toward. Add to that the fact that you’re all alone with a sometimes-unwieldy beast of a story you’ve created (and are thus 100% responsible ...

Ep. 8: Writing Through Change

Feb

14

2021

The ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus said, “The only constant in life is change.” As we know, some periods of change are more intense than others, but for writers, all periods of major transition (whether we consider them to be good or bad) tend to have a few things in common: They challenge our commitment to our ...

Ep. 7: How to Write a Novel–Into the Drafting Wilderness

Feb

8

2021

How do we start to put a structure to the “first sparks” of inspiration we’ve gathered (and possibly outlined) during the prewriting stage? Join me in Episode 7 as I discuss some different techniques for transitioning into the exciting part of the novel-writing process during which a first draft starts to take shape. This episode ...

Ep. 6: How to Write a Novel: Prewriting, the First Sparks

Feb

1

2021

For many novelists, the prewriting phase is a land of seemingly endless, dreamy opportunity where we get to meet potential characters, to think about who they are and how they would react to a variety of situations. Meanwhile, the plot of the story we want to tell is often starting to take shape, as are ...

Ep. 5: Writers, Resilience & Growing a Thicker Skin

Jan

25

2021

As a writer, where do you reside on the “skin thickness spectrum?” Do you dread having your work critiqued? Or do you use feedback as an opportunity to learn and thrive–even when that feedback ends in a rejection from an agent, editor, etc? In this episode, we’ll explore some of the ways writers of all ...

Ep. 4: Getting Back on the Horse

Jan

23

2021

When rejection rears its ugly head and writers fall off the horse (metaphorically speaking, of course) it can interfere with—or even obliterate—our ability to find a productive and enjoyable writing groove. Listen in to Episode 4 where you’ll hear Nicole’s story about an actual horse-related spill along with some questions we writers can ask ourselves ...