Kurt DinanAug 20, 20154 minPiecemeal Manifesto #8 – Where I Get My Ideas (or Brainstorming 101)They say it’s the question you’re not supposed to ask writers–Where do you get your ideas? I don’t necessarily mind the question because...
Kurt DinanJul 20, 20152 minPiecemeal Manifesto – Entry #6 – Need Characterization Help? Watch The Breakfast ClubEverything I learned about characterization and introducing characters I learned from this three and a half clip, the opening of The Brea...
Kurt DinanJul 5, 20155 minPiecemeal Manifesto – Entry #5 – Finding Time to WriteWhen people hear I sold a novel, their first response (at least the one after, “You?!?!”) is–“How do you have the time to write?” Someti...
Kurt DinanJun 16, 20152 minPiecemeal Manifesto #4 Addendum: A Sixth Rule for Revising–Weed WordsI’m officially coining a phrase here–“Weed words.” These are the words you find yourself using over and over again as you write. Becaus...
Kurt DinanJun 1, 20153 minPiecemeal Manifesto #4 – My 5 Rules for RevisingAllegedly there are writers out there who can draft a story or novel, do a polish, then send it off to their agent who then has no troubl...
Kurt DinanMar 18, 20154 minPiecemeal Manifesto – Entry 3 – My Writing Process: PrewritingWhen I decided to start writing seriously, I emailed a lot of writers asking them about their process to find out what worked and didn’t...
Kurt DinanMar 9, 20153 minMy Visit to My PublisherRecently, I had the pleasure of visiting Sourcebooks, who will be publishing THE WATER TOWER 5. I arranged the trip because, let’s face ...
Kurt DinanFeb 19, 20153 min5 Books on Writing That Helped MeWhen I started writing, I discovered pretty quickly that I had a lot to learn. I still remember Sam W. Anderson holding up the short sto...
Kurt DinanFeb 17, 20153 minPiecemeal Manifesto – Entry 2 – I Embrace the Shitty First DraftI try to read a lot of books by author’s about writing. It’s comforting in some weird way to hear a writer talk about the struggles he o...
Kurt DinanFeb 11, 20154 minPiecemeal Manifesto : Entry 1 : Be Who You AreA Long Story Explaining a Basic Concept: When I started writing back in 2006, I wrote horror short stories. I suppose that was mostly be...
Kurt DinanFeb 3, 20152 minPiecemeal Manifesto: The IntroductionSelling THE WATER TOWER 5 led to a weird sort of crisis of conscience for me. I was excited to get started on the next novel, ready to w...
Kurt DinanDec 9, 20143 minThe Water Tower 5 Sold!Yes, it finally happened. Yesterday I got word from Super Agent Kerry Sparks that she had finalized a deal with Sourcebooks to publish m...
Kurt DinanAug 26, 20144 minI Signed with an Agent Today! (Or a Slush Pile Success Story.)So, after failing to get a literary agent for my first novel, Lucky Town, today I signed with Kerry Sparks of LGR (Levine, Greenburg, Ros...
Kurt DinanSep 20, 20125 minHow Searching for a Literary Agent Has Made Me a Headcase – Part IISo after all of the rejections, here’s what happened: I felt like a failure. How could I not? I spent four years on the novel, fully bel...
Kurt DinanSep 19, 20124 minHow Searching for a Literary Agent has Made Me a Headcase – Part II have a lot on my mind (for once) and need vomit it all out. I’m waaaay out of sorts writing-wise for various reasons, and have decided...
Kurt DinanMay 7, 20122 minWhere I AmWriting Update: So, about a month and a half ago I finished the sixth (and hopefully final) draft of Lucky Town, my 74K YA novel about a ...
Kurt DinanMay 19, 20113 min4 – A Story Sale and Some Book ReviewsFirst, a quick thing about me – I wrote “Plink” two (maybe three) years ago. It’s always been my favorite of my short stories. I sent i...