BRIDGET WHELAN writer

for writers and readers….

Am I a Good Enough Reader to Comment on Someone Else’s Story? George Saunders answers QUOTES FOR WRITERS

Ever wondered if you’re qualified to give an opinion on a story or novel?
George Saunders explains why you can.

December 11, 2022 · 2 Comments

Let Your Talent Come Out and Play – George Saunders QUOTES FOR WRITERS

Here’s an idea I’ve found helpful: our talent is real and it’s sitting there inside of us.  It’s smart and eager – eager to get going, and try some things, … Continue reading

August 14, 2022 · 2 Comments

Crisis is where we get the true measure of a character…George Saunders QUOTES FOR WRITERS

To get any forward momentum, I have to make stories that have drama, which for me often means putting some overt threat in there. And I’m not subtle. To make … Continue reading

February 28, 2021 · Leave a comment

Literature declines to eradicate one truth in favor of another…says George Saunders QUOTES FOR WRITERS

Fiction is a kind of compassion-generating machine that saves us from sloth. Is life kind or cruel? Yes, Literature answers. Are people good or bad? You bet, says Literature. But … Continue reading

June 14, 2020 · 3 Comments

My New Year present… a link to a short story that might just change the way you write or what you want to write about.

Ok, the statements in the heading of this post are so sweeping they could clean your whole house. And you’ve probably instinctively flinched because who likes to be told how … Continue reading

January 1, 2020 · 9 Comments

“…you can almost always make something better by making it shorter…” Keith Gessen QUOTES FOR WRITERS

I once heard George Saunders tell a story about being edited at the New Yorker, where his editor kept asking him to cut a highly precise number of lines—18 lines, … Continue reading

September 9, 2018 · 2 Comments

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