Writers and Self-Censorship
Writers should not be censored. I think everyone can agree on that. The whole idea of censorship conjures an image of stern political enforcers, combing through every line of poetry and prose with an...
View ArticleHere’s Why: Short fiction by Anne Leigh Parrish
Here’s why. You slump, shrink, curl down in your seat, never stand up straight. As if an arrow might pick you off. Not an arrow, a bullet. Not a bullet, a blow. Not a blow, words. Not words, looks....
View ArticleLetting The Story Open The Door
I love short stories. Reading them, writing them, choosing them for Literary Orphans, the online literary magazine I have the privilege to spend time with. In many ways, although I’ve written two...
View ArticleHow Objects Inspire Fiction
Just about anything can serve as inspiration for a work of fiction. Often, it’s a person, someone we knew, cared for, or had trouble with when we were younger. It can be a place, somewhere we hold...
View ArticleBringing Back a Favorite Character
My second book, Our Love Could Light The World, is a collection of linked stories about the Dugan family in the fictional town of Dunston, New York. The Dugans are made up of the parents, Potter and...
View ArticleCharacters and Craft – Learning To Leave Yourself Behind
Literary fiction is a strange, yet compelling animal. So much emphasis on language, rhythm, imagery. And let’s not forget character. Some novels are all about the character and the mad world behind her...
View ArticleLooking from The Ground Up
Susan Cheever, daughter of the famous author, John Cheever, once said that fiction is not a competitive sport. Also a writer, living in the shadow of her father’s reputation and achievements can’t have...
View ArticleWriters – Do Your Job and Stop Worrying About Reviews
Standing before my fourth grade class, reading aloud a story I’d written, it never occurred to me they wouldn’t like it. The teacher, Mrs. Nungazer liked it. Mrs. Nungazer loved it. I can’t even...
View ArticleA Typical Writing Day: Anne Leigh Parrish
I come into my office each morning with one goal—to calm the chaos in my head. I don’t sleep well these days, probably my body telling me I need fewer hours in the sack—and what I’m working on tends to...
View ArticleCALL YOURSELF A WRITER
I recently took part in a virtual author event with two other women writers. Let me say how much I have come to appreciate the magic of Zoom video conferencing, aside from not having a paid account...
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