Brevity / Dinty W. Moore

"Writing is a way of saying that you and the world have a chance." ~ Richard Hugo

"A photograph is a secret about a secret. The more it tells you the less you know.” ~ Diane Arbus

"It's a moment that I'm after, a fleeting moment, but not a frozen moment." ~ Andrew Wyeth

"A story is a way to say something that can’t be said any other way, and it takes every word in the story to say what the meaning is." ~ Flannery O’Connor

Brevity 81: On “Somewhere on a city street” and Naming the Hurt By Thomasin LaMay The latest issue of Brevity Magazine, edited by Dinty W. Moore and Zoë Bossiere, is live, and some of our authors are writing for The Brevity Blog about their craft. It is a hurti…

"Imagine if you could paint your feelings, what would those words look like? Or what if you made your words into a meal? What would you want me to taste?" ~ Thomasin LaMay
brevity.wordpress.com/2026/01/27/b...

"In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act." ~ George Orwell

Capturing, Collecting, Collating, and Making Them Work: Prompts on How To Organize Your Free-Floating Ideas By Diana Ruzova Ideas can feel nebulous. Free floating blobs of memory, quotes, colors, past experiences, and overheard conversations. Ideas can spark through the senses. The grating wail of a dyin…

What do we do with our ideas? @dianaruzova.bsky.social on collecting, classifying, clarifying, chasing at @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/01/26/f... #writinglife #writingcommunity #creativity #authorlife

"The profession of book-writing makes horse racing seem like a solid, stable business." ~ John Steinbeck

"Remember that changing one thing can change everything. Let more light into your life by letting more light into this day. Then repeat, and repeat, and repeat. Keep moving." ~ Maggie Smith / @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social

Tender piece by Josh Martin in Brevity @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevitymag.com/current-issu...

Brevity 81: On “With the Braves On, My Father Washes Me” and Finding the Right Form By Josh Martin The latest issue of Brevity Magazine, edited by Dinty W. Moore and Zoë Bossiere, is live, and some of our authors are writing for The Brevity Blog about their craft. For nearly a dec…

Sometimes, you need a new writing form. @JoshuaMartin at @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/01/22/b... #writinglife #authorlife #creativewriting

"A good memoir is about how one understands life, not the life." ~ Ira Sukrungruang

“I do not so much write a book as sit up with it, as a dying friend. I hold its hand and hope it will get better.” ~ Annie Dillard

"Without freedom of speech, there is no modern world. Just a barbaric one." ~ Ai Weiwei

My Mother’s Red Pen and What I Did About It By Heidi Croot My mother was my first editor. Having wangled me into writing a weekly column about my high school doings for our village newspaper, she would sit at the kitchen table with her jubil…

Revision isn't negative; isn't fault-finding. It's finding your way. Beautifully said by @heidicroot.bsky.social @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/01/19/r... #writinglife #authorlife #creativewriting #lifewriting

“Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.” ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

The Year the Pause Became a River: On Writing Beyond the Memoir By Maria B. Olujic Earlier this year, I had an essay published in The Brevity Blog about the role of pause in my writing—how stepping back from my memoir allowed something deeper to emerge. When th…

On finding your writing voice... from the voice within - @MariaBOlujic at @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/01/14/t... #writingcommunity #creativewriting #writinglife

"Silence is of the gods; only monkeys chatter." ~ Buster Keaton

Two Rules for a Better Author Newsletter By Stephen Knezovich I sent my first email newsletter nearly 20 years ago, in 2007. And it was awful—not just the content (which wasn’t great), but everything about the process of writing it,…

If writing your author newsletter is a chore, your recipients will know. Here's what to do about that (apart from giving up) @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/01/15/n... #writingcommunity #authorlife #writinglife

@saltpeterdraws.bsky.social's wonderful artwork is featured in the new issue of Brevity launched this morning. Essays on Love, Loss, and the Sweet Sting of What Could Never Be. brevitymag.com

Brevity's new issue launched this morning. Flash essays from Nicole Walker, Alex Sokol, Sean Thomas Dougherty, Shuly Cawood, Thomasin LaMay, Charles Montgomery, Derek Maiolo, José Orduña, Josh Martin, Liz Sauchelli, Margaret Grayson, and Rocky Halpern. Artwork by Michael Todd Cohen.
brevitymag.com

"If you have the words, there's always a chance that you'll find the way." ~ Seamus Heaney

rebirthyourwriting.com

Just a few spots left in this weekend's Virtual Intensive, Finish Your Book in 2026!! Interactive lessons on Dramatic Structure, Trusting the Reader, Effective Revision, and your future publishing path. Come join me and
@allisonkwilliams.bsky.social - we'd love to see you. Link in comments.

If you are unable to find the truth right where you are, where else do you expect to find it? ~ Dogen Zenji

Opportunities Literary Mama is an all-volunteer organization that brings mamas and mama supporters together through literature. Over the years, our staff has included mamas of all sorts, reaching across identities ...

We're looking for a podcast co-host!

"Be open to creative pivots. They don’t have to be permanent or forever, but a way to listen and honor your creative voice, especially if you’re feeling stuck or not sure what to do next. " ~ Darien Hsu Gee

Found In Translation: Intimacy, Devotion and the Creature of Language By Shantanu M In Marathi, my mother tongue, the word for translation is “bhashantar”—a compound made from two words, bhasha (language) and antar (distance). The suggestion is of a coming together—t…

How literary translation is an act of searching, striving, listening, creation. Shantanu M @dintywmoore.bsky.social brevity.wordpress.com/2026/01/08/f... #writingcommunity #authorcommunity #creativewriting

The Brevity Blog Needs All Hands on Deck Readers of Brevity Magazine and The Brevity Blog – we wouldn’t be here without you! And we want to make sure we’re a valuable part of your literary life. As you navigate the water…

Brevity readers, we wouldn’t be here without you! And we want to make sure we’re a valuable part of your literary life. As you navigate the waters of your writing, reading and literary discovery, will you help with a quick survey?
brevity.wordpress.com/2026/01/09/s...

"It is the writer's duty to hate injustice, to defy the powerful, and to speak for the voiceless." ~ Edward Abbey