Hi, I'm Julie Duffy, founder & director of StoryADay. Every year since 2010 I've challenged writers like you to prove to themselves that they can write more (and better) than they think, during the StoryADay May challenge. During the rest of the year, StoryADay supports you with the StoryAWeek newsletter (writing lessons & prompts), a popular podcast, blog posts, mini-challenges, courses, and a members' community. StoryADay May has become a fixture on the writing calendar, and the lively community is one of Writer's Digest's 101 Best Websites for Writers. Join me for info, workshops, challenges & courses, and of course, the StoryAWeek newsletter.
Make A Plan
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To ease eye strain, experts recommend that every 20 minutes we focus our eyes on something further away than our screens–ideally at least 20ft away– for at least 20 seconds. As a trained historian, I feel the same way about the news: current events are thisclose. It wouldn’t hurt us to make a concerted effort to look away, periodically. Fortunately fiction offers the perfect respite. Today, why not step away from this place and time and read some Tolstoy or JM Coetzee, Nnedi Okorafor or Haruki Murakami, Kiran Desai or Ian Rankin. Whether you’re voting in the US elections, or watching from abroad, or couldn’t care less about politics in a country you’re not in, this is a great time to remind yourself of the importance of writing. So make a plan to give yourself a break from current affairs. Here are my suggestions for you (none of these links earn me any money. I just like them all.): Short FictionBest American Short Stories 2024, Lauren Groff (ed) PoetryPoetry Unbound by Pádraig Ó Tuama EssaysBook of Delights by Ross Gay General Non-FictionSlow Productivity by Cal Newport Hidden Potential by Adam Grant Funny StuffThe Hidden Tools of Comedy by Steve Kaplan Comedy Book - How Comedy Conquered Culture--and The Magic That Makes It Work by Jesse David Fox The Diplomat on Netflix (serious, but characters are allowed to be funny in places) Steve Martin: A Documentary In 2 Pieces My Man Jeeves: A Jeeves & Wooster Collection by P. G. Wodehouse Jeeves & Wooster (Hugh Laurie and Steven Fry version) Books About WritingMillion Dollar Outlines by David Farland The Heroine’s Journey by Gail Carriger Intuitive Editing by Tiffany Yates Martin Author in Progress, Therese Walsh (Ed) WatchShrinking (Apple TV), from the people who brought you Ted Lasso, and with a similar sensibility (Content warning: a dead wife/mother killed by a drunk driver.) The Dish - a quiet movie from 2000, starring Sam Neil, about a vital Apollo-era satellite dish in an Australian sheep paddock! What would you recommend, for people looking to appreciate art and take a break from the here and now? Join The Discussion. Keep writing, Julie P. S. If you want to focus on your writing, stay tuned for a super-special offer coming this week, that will help you improve your writing and stick with it over the long term (what?! I know!!) |
Julie Duffy
Hi, I'm Julie Duffy, founder & director of StoryADay. Every year since 2010 I've challenged writers like you to prove to themselves that they can write more (and better) than they think, during the StoryADay May challenge. During the rest of the year, StoryADay supports you with the StoryAWeek newsletter (writing lessons & prompts), a popular podcast, blog posts, mini-challenges, courses, and a members' community. StoryADay May has become a fixture on the writing calendar, and the lively community is one of Writer's Digest's 101 Best Websites for Writers. Join me for info, workshops, challenges & courses, and of course, the StoryAWeek newsletter.
At some point, you signed up to hear from me: maybe for writing prompts (like these), maybe for inspiration and recommendations (like this), or maybe for something else entirely. As I hatch plans for the coming year, I'd love to know how I can help you, best? What do you need more of? What could you take less of? How can I help you pursue your dreams? I'd love it if you'd fill out this 2-question survey (People often find that answering the questions helps them clarify where they need to...
Phew. After Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Giving Tuesday, I hope you took a well-deserved break from your inbox, and maybe read something or wrote something nice. I just wanted to give you a heads up that the StoryADay Podcast is back in production after a small break, and tomorrow morning you can find an episode that talks about planning your year end review and goal-setting for 2025. Here's the podcast homepage Keep writing, Julie P. S. On Monday I'm hosting a planning workshop for the...
You know that moment in the story when the hero has lost everything, and the odds seem stacked against them, and all seems lost? Imagine if that was the end of the story….what a terrible way to live! But in the stories we love, the hero looks at herself in the mirror and says ‘what am I doing?’. Someone says one word, and suddenly she sees all the clues in a new light and finds the final piece of the puzzle. Or he realizes, for the first time, the strength has been inside him all along. Or...