writing tipsTag

Low-Stress Yearly Reading Challenge Ideas

If you’re a reader with internet access, you’ve likely encountered yearly reading challenges and goals. The most common type of reading challenge is the “Read X Number of Books This Year” type, ...

Preparing a Poetry Manuscript for Submission

In my last column, I wrote about preparing a cover letter for your poetry manuscript submission. Well, what about preparing the actual manuscript?As I mentioned in the last column, most poetry presses ...

Writing Lessons from Joni Mitchell

I often look to books for inspiration, but I just got back from seeing Joni Mitchell play in L.A., and as I was sitting at the Hollywood Bowl, with the moon rising over the hills, I realized how much ...

Writing a Cover Letter for Your Poetry Manuscript

In the world of Canadian publishing, poets rarely have agents. Poetry collections are often published through small presses, and these presses have open submission periods where anyone can submit a manuscript. In ...

Grant Writing 101: How to Write a Final Report

You got a grant, YAY! But now it’s time to write your final report. I’ve heard from so many artists panicking about writing them, but I promise, there’s no need to panic!Final reports are a way ...

Breaking Down the Ontario Arts Council’s Literary Creation Projects Grant

For writers in Ontario, this is your reminder that the deadline for Literary Creation Projects (Works for Publication) is just around the corner. This grant gives $12,000 to work on your novel, poetry ...

Getting into Writing Book Reviews

Book reviews are a key part of the book ecosystem. Long after a book’s publication date, book reviews help keep titles in relevancy. They can be useful marketing tools for a writer’s arsenal. They’re ...

Grant writing 101: Writing a budget

Writing a grant budget can be daunting, but I promise it doesn’t have to be! Many writing grants don’t even require budgets (TAC and OAC!), but some grants, including the Canada Council for the Arts ...

In Praise of the Sensitivity Reader

Have considered working with a sensitivity reader? If you’re on the fence—or if you have no idea what a sensitivity reader is—read on! What is a sensitivity reader? A sensitivity reader is a professional ...

Affirmations for Writers

Pursuing a career as a writer can be hard on your self-esteem. It requires incredible stamina, faith, and unbelievable amounts of patience. Here are some things I like to remind myself of when the urge ...