Writer's Digest November/December 2012 (PDF)

You'll Love This Issue If:

• You are looking for story ideas
• You want to learn new ways to be more creative and more productive
• You're a fan of author George R.R. Martin

Do you have an idea for a story but aren't sure what to do with it? Are you having a case of writer's block or looking to express your creative side? When you buy this month's issue, you'll read articles that will teach you how to turn your ideas into great stories, how to overcome writer's block and fuel your creativity, and much more!

Jessica Strawser writes in the Editor's Letter, "Ideas really are everywhere. It's what we do with them that matters." Take your ideas to the next level , download this issue today!

In This Issue You'll Learn:

• How to develop any idea into a great story
• Innovative ways to be more creative than ever before
• Seven days worth of exercises, prompts and ideas to help you have a perfectly inspired week of writing

What's Inside This Issue:

How to Develop Any Idea Into a Great Story

Even stories that start with brilliant strokes of inspiration too often fizzle out before we reach The End. Use this four-step method to develop your best ideas to their fullest. by Elizabeth Sims

Overcoming Writer's Block Without Willpower

In a modern world full of distractions, writer's block may just be at an all-time high. Here's a look at why our brains freeze, and what we can do about it. by Mike Bechtle

Inside the Creative Processes of Real Writers

Where do ideas really come from? Why are we compelled to put them into words, and how do we do it? In this essay series, writers share their creative struggles, epiphanies and victories. by Roger Dunlap, Joanna Castle Miller, Nancy Clark, Deborah Hall & Deserét Baker

Have a Perfectly Inspired Week

Use this idea-packed day-to-day guide to invite more creativity into your writing life. by The Writer's Digest Staff

THE WD INTERVIEW: George R.R. Martin

Who says you have to write a book a year to succeed in publishing today? For the author behind A Game of Thrones, the best things come to those who wait. by Rich Shivener

The Amazing Mr. Appel

The winner of our Annual Writing Competition proves that no matter how busy you are, anyone has the time to pen a spectacular story. by Marielle Murphy

PLUS: The top 10 winners in every category.

WRITER'S WORKBOOK: Character Motivation

4 Ways to Motivate Characters and Plot

by Nancy Kress

How To Make Ordinary Characters Compelling

by Steven Harper

Deepen Motivations Through Archetypes

by Victoria Lynn Schmidt

INKWELL

The 7 Deadly Sins Of Self-Editing

Avoid these tempting traps, and save yourself from the kind of painful revision that can lead your manuscript to eternal damnation.

by Janice Gable Bashman & Kathryn Craft

PLUS:

• How to Publish Your Book
• Poetic Asides
• Top Shelf: Gift Books
• When Weird Works

COLUMNS

ASK THE AGENT: Eddie Schneider, JABberwocky Literary Agency

by Kara Gebhart Uhl

BREAKING IN: Debut Author Spotlight

by Chuck Sambuchino

QUESTIONS & QUANDARIES: Which vs. That; Why Word Counts in Magazine Queries Matter

by Brian A. Klems

YOUR STORY: The Safe Zone

by Patricia S. Cook

STANDOUT MARKETS: The Countryman Press; The First Line; Yoga Journal

by Tiffany Luckey

CONFERENCE SCENE: Blue Flower Arts; Aloha Writers Conference; South Coast

by Linda Formichelli

REJECT A HIT: How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

Spoof-Rejected by Richard Vega

PLUS:

• ONLINE EXCLUSIVES
• EDITOR'S LETTER
• CONTRIBUTORS
• READER MAIL