Featured Writing

A rose with drops of dew on its petals

Caught Up in Metaphors

by Nancy Machlis Rechtman He told me that my eyesWere stars twinkling in the nightAnd when he kissed me he murmuredThat my lips were the sweet petals of roses. My heart became the flutterOf birds’ wings soaring through the treesAnd his wordsWere the silky balm on my wounded soul. “Your…

read more...

An open book stacked onto other books.

Five Books Every Writer Should Own

Writing has always been part of my life. As a child, my journey began with writing short stories about family summer vacations. As a teenager, I kept a journal for many years, writing about friendships. Today, I am grateful it is a daily part of my life teaching English and…

read more...

An antique clock sitting on newspaper.

Time To Write

By Jonathan Cooper  You can’t plow a field by turning it over in your mind” –Irish Proverb  I awoke just before 4 am and stayed awake for an hour listening to the sound of the rain. Finally, I accepted my sleeplessness – I splashed cold water on my face, put…

read more...

Setup on a wooden table featuring a laptop with a blog open

From Nothing to Something: Building Your Blog’s Audience

Students in Southern New Hampshire University’s online liberal arts programs were invited to participate in the W.R.I.T.E. Challenge, an 8-week experiential learning program, working in groups to research and write a resource article related to writing. Beyond the challenge itself, the groups competed to be published in The Penmen Review. This is…

read more...

Writing in a notebook

6 Do’s and Don’ts for Starting a New Writing Career

Students in Southern New Hampshire University’s online liberal arts programs were invited to participate in the W.R.I.T.E. Challenge, an 8-week experiential learning program, working in groups to research and write a resource article related to writing. Beyond the challenge itself, the groups competed to be published in The Penmen Review. This is…

read more...

Advice for Writers: 4 Steps to Rejection

By Amber E. Box There is nothing more frustrating to a writer than the infamous rejection (except maybe writer’s block…or running out of coffee). Here are some of the most common reasons that editors reject manuscripts and query letters, and how you can avoid them. 1. Not following submission guidelines:…

read more...

Top Writing and Publishing Tips from Acclaimed Novelist Warren Adler

By Warren Adler I’ve spent the best part of my life writing, thinking about writing and publishing, and, lately, more and more about the dramatic, revolutionary changes that are taking place in the way we communicate with each other and how it impacts on our future as writers. The fact…

read more...

3 Mistakes Environmental Writers Make

by Cassie Premo Steele, Ph.D. My earliest writing was done near a window. During my childhood in Minnesota, it was often too snowy to go outside, but my second-floor bedroom window was near a tree, and I sat by that tree like some devotees sit near their guru. As a…

read more...

Get Feedback: Create an Online Writing Group

If you’re a writer that thrives on feedback, a writing group might be just what you’re looking for. However, that’s often easier said than done if you don’t feel connected to other writers locally. Here’s a good video on how to create an online writing group that will allow you…

read more...

Advice to Writers: Stephen King on the Craft of Short Story Writing

Bestselling author Stephen King discusses the art of writing short stories and short fiction in this video interview, and speaks about how many new writers forgo writing short stories to focus on writing a novel, sometimes before they are ready to navigate “the quagmire of the novel.”  

read more...

Advice to Writers: Anne Rice

In this video, bestselling writer Anne Rice offers advice to writers. The author of 32 books, Rice’s latest work, “Prince Lestat,” will be released in late October 2014.

read more...