Word by Word

Practical insights for writers from Jessica P Morrell

July

Written By: Jessica Morrell - Jul• 11•25

Photo Credit: Dmitry Burdakov

The Dream Keeper

Written By: Jessica Morrell - Jul• 11•25

 

Bring me all your dreams,

You dreamers.

Bring me all of your

Heart melodies

That I may wrap them in a blue cloud-cloth

Away from the too-rough fingers

Of the world.

~ Langston Hughes

…I want him to have a bit of magic in his prose style, a bit of unobtrusive poetry.

Written By: Jessica Morrell - Jun• 28•25

…I want him to have a bit of magic in his prose style, a bit of unobtrusive poetry. I want to have words and phrases really sing. And I like an attitude of wryness, realism, the sense of inevitability. I think that writing—good writing—should be like listening to music, where you pick out the themes, and properly analyzed, and his methods identified, and he will put in a little quirk, a little twist, that will be so unexpected that you read it with a sense of glee, a sense of joy, because of its aptness, even though it may be a very dire and bloody part of the book. ~ John McDonald

Let’s Study Art

Written By: Jessica Morrell - Jun• 13•25

molina 2

Earlier I was posting on Facebook about how we live in terrifying times and when reality feels unbearable I launch into my coping methods, and I don’t know about you, but  these days my coping tools are multiplying out of necessity. Which leads me to the art the internet offers up with such generosity. Because one is not always able to visit an art museum though I am overdue for a wander.

I landed on Pedro Roldán Molino and what a relief it was to be transported to the sunny and lovely climes of Spain via his exquisite modern impressionists paintings. And lucky for us, the man in prolific!

Besides the joy, solace, and joy that comes from viewing art, writers can also notice what artists notice. You simply gaze at the number of colors appear on a single cavnvas. Or how artists infuse light. How many colors they use. By the way, how many do you use? What do you notice and what if you set yourself a small goal to notice 5 new things (you can choose a larger or smaller number)?

I opened the curtains in a rear bedroom yesterday and stood and watched a bird frolic in my pretty pale blue birdbath–I need to take a photo of it, come to think of it. And he was diving and drinking and splashing and having a wee, grand time. It spurred me to go out and change the water and as I did so, the same bird hopped on a branch only feet away and started singing. I haven’t identified the species yet, but I know I’d never heard that song before.

Join me in collecting small joys and studying paintings. And let’s talk among ourselves about studying other art forms and how it feeds and inspires us. What it means  to us.

Keep writing, keep noticing, have heart

 

Could I put those starry deeps…

Written By: Jessica Morrell - Jun• 11•25

Could I put those starry deeps and lamplighted elms into words that sang like the nightwind now rinsing my senses and shivering the spring leaves?  ~ Donald Newlove ~ I’ve written more about Newlove’s work here.

Love of My Days

Written By: Jessica Morrell - May• 26•25

It’s Memorial Day and I’m making lists of things that need accomplishing in the next few days and using damp heat on my sore back–gardening sometimes equals lifting which equals pain. And while I know how to properly lift heavy bags of dirt, it doesn’t mean I always do it right.

Two things: I want to wish veterans and families of veterans a good holiday and a sincere thank you. And if you lost someone who served in the US military, my deepest sympathies.

Second, I’ve got another short story recommendation: “Love of My Days” by Louise Erdrich in the latest issue of The New Yorker. I read it yesterday and it’s staying with me because it was so transporting, the voice reflects the times, the details are authentic, and it’s a Western. It begins: This happened on the table-flat plains before most farms had telephones. So these incidents came about because news traveled slow. Early one morning, Jake Weir went to town to see about a mixture of grains for his horses. When he returned to his farm and went into the house he saw a stranger sitting at his table. 

I used to glibly recommend that short story writers shoot the sheriff on the first page to yank readers into the story events. While this tale doesn’t accomplish that, the stranger-comes-to-town motif is working just fine. And the table-flat plans means it’s happening in the Dakotas in winter. And might I add that a remarkable horse team are the stars of the story. Then there’s also a possee and I cannot remember the last time I read a story with a possee in it. And might I also add that Erdrich is still at the top of her writing game as evidenced by this not-a-wasted-word adventure.

 

Portals

Written By: Jessica Morrell - May• 20•25

Chalky skies in the Pacific Northwest this morning and I want to pass along a few ideas about writing fiction, using characters crossing thresholds to thrust stories forward and create resonance. And I’d like to recommend that most stories contain more than one threshold or portal.

I finished working on a client’s manuscript last week and it’s continued to haunt me. The central concept is intriguing and fresh. It’s the first book in a 4-part suspense series and so there’s a lot at stake to get the inaugural story just right. Her series features two protagonists so it’s necessary to establish their personality traits, the key aspects of their backstories, and a general sense of the story world. And just a note, she’s a talented, best-selling author who has written two series and a stand-alone novel.

Since she had a tight deadline from her publisher  I began exchanging emails with her so she could start reimaging her next draft as I worked through the first round of her manuscript–I go through manuscripts twice using the Track Changes program.  I also create detailed memos. But time was short so our correspondence continued over the next three weeks and she’ll be sending me a new final chapter. Besides recommending a different climatic scene, I  suggested adding one or two  viewpoints, though they’s be much shorter than her  main viewpoints. As I often do, I recommended ways to make it more cinematic.

If that seems drastic, I’ve recommended that other clients revise their endings. One story comes to mind. Another best-selling suspense writer had created an ending in a benign setting mostly associated with fun. But, her story already featured a setting as central to the plot–a chilling, nighmarish, Franken-laboratory. I cannot disclose what it housed {or maybe jailed is a better term}  but they had more than two legs.

Back to my latest project. Some scenes were extraordinary–potent, revealing,  and intimate. I listed which scenes were the strongest and she replied that they were the ones she most enjoyed writing. You might want to take note of her observation because how you’re feeling while writing can clue you in on your scene’s strength.

I sent her a final missive andsuggesting  her best scenes happened readers envisioned her characters leaving the ordinary world and venturing into a dangerous unknown. In other words, turning point moments when her characters crossed a portal or threshold. A physcial boundary is potent. When characters pass through a portal, there is a defined before and after;  they’re making a choice;  and their venturing forth reveals what they’re made of.

Portals create metaphorical and emotional resonance. In suspense fiction the stakes can be life or death. And portals reveal who the character wants to be, though sometimes assuming their better, braver self can be a struggle. Thus they’re part of the revealing the character arc.

Archtypal stories often employ these visual portals, these lines of demarcation. Alice in Wonderland. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The Sorcerer’s Stone. The Wizard of Oz. The Shawshank Redemption. 

Neil Gaiman’s Corline’s venturing from her real home into the alternate reality through a secret door is a powerful example of crossing a portal. I wrote about it here before. Because portal crossings define characters and send stories along new paths. Often literally.

Quests always feature portals. This is illustrated in J.R.R. Tolien’s The Hobbit  homebody Bilbo Baggins leaving his comfy hobbit-hole in Bags Ends  and venturing out into the vast, scary, uncharted world with the dwarves and Gandalf.  Show characters setting forth, hearts thundering in their chests. Or excitement burbling in their veins–whatever emotions the scene calls for.

Keep writing, keep dreaming, have heart

Recommended: Blue by Richard Bausch

Written By: Jessica Morrell - May• 19•25

On days when the international news is unbearable, our democracy is rotting, and my stomach has been unsettled, I’m thrilled when my inbox delivers a gem of a short story. Electric Literature has a recommended reading feature and today’s recommended short story Blue by Richard Bausch is one that has stayed with me for the past few hours. And I plan on reading it again later today.

Jennifer Haigh, another award-winning short story writer and novelist, introduced it by saying, Richard Bausch, one of our greatest living short story writers grounds his fiction in a pivotal moment–the moment after which nothing will ever be the same….She continues, Ernest Hart is a mild, amiable man who spends his days painting portraits of other people’s cherished grandchildren and working part time at the public library to make ends meet. Earnest to a fault, he’s the kind of guy you worry about, a dreamy eccentric who habitually reads a book while walking down the street. Reading the opening pages, I thought, this guy is going to get hit by a bus.

I don’t want to spoil the story by saying more, but seriously, you need to read this story. Then analyze why it works.

I’ve been meaning to pick up a copy of his latest short story collection, The Fate of Others and this was just the nudge I needed.

Lists

Written By: Jessica Morrell - May• 06•25

Been madly busy, but in good ways. Last weekend attended a wedding in Cancun that was so lovely and joyful that I’m still dazzled by it. And that’s not to mention the tropical views and lapping ocean, food, and lots of dancing. But mostly the just-right-happiness of the beautiful couple.

Back in Oregon I’m tackling weeds and honeysuckle overgrowth, ailing yew trees, and general yard neglect. I’m also working on a  tricky manuscript that launches a thriller series, so making lots of notes trying to make certain the stage is set for all that follows.

A few things I’m focusing on that you might find helpful:

Determining if the protagonist and leading characters’ main personality traits are apparent in book 1. There will be more time to develop secondary and contradictory traits in the next stories, but first impressions are crucial. A character’s main traits don’t change over time; they’re embedded like your height or toes or elbows. {I had to pause for a moment here for the body parts that cannot be changed by cosmetics, dentistry, or surgery.}  I’ve also shrunk half an inch since my last physical so there’s more stretching in my future. Here’s more on this topic: Nail Your Character’s Essence

Pacing–this particular story needs a shattering sense of threat and urgency that pushes the story forward and grates on the reader’s nerves.

Structure–determining if the events are unfolding in the best order for overall coherence and suspense.

Voice–do the characters sound age and background appropriate? I often suggest to clients that their younger characters can sound edgier or more contemporary.

Word potency–I’ve got hefty word and phrase lists on my iPad and in my Commonplace Books (I create seasonal ones so I’m on Spring 2025 right now). The word lists are divided into power words, descriptions, settings, and bringing characters to life. I peruse them for inspiration with every manuscript I edit.

Nailing the landing–does the ending tie up the plot threads and provide enough emotional resonance and nudge the reader to look back at what came before?

Keep writing, keep dreaming, have heart

May

Written By: Jessica Morrell - May• 06•25