Junot Díaz: Writing as an Act of Persistence

Years ago, after a few online conversations, I had the pleasure of meeting Junot Díaz in person at a sold-out literary event in Washington. (I was later thrilled when he blurbed one of my novels!)

His insights into the writing process have profoundly influenced many writers–and entertained even more readers. He’s author of the Pulitzer-winning The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao and of the short story collection, This is How You Lose Her. Here are some of his key pieces of advice:

• Embrace Reading as a Foundation: Díaz emphasizes the importance of reading to fuel writing. He mentions, "My writing routine begins with my reading. I read immense amounts. The reading inspires my ideas, my sentences, my imagination."
• Maintain a Consistent Routine: He advocates for a disciplined writing schedule, sharing, "I write in the morning, very early. I wake up a few minutes before 5 every day, like clockwork."
• Persevere Through Challenges: Díaz believes that persistence defines a writer. He states, "A writer is a writer because even when there is no hope, you keep writing anyway."

For more about Junot Díaz and his work, visit his profile in The New Yorker. 

Elizabeth Strout on the Discipline of Curiosity

Years ago, I heard Elizabeth Strout speak at a literary event and got a moment to talk with her while she was signing books after her presentation. Here’s how the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Olive Kitteridge distills her craft, drawn from her own words and my notes from that day.

Stick With It, No Matter What
Strout’s mantra is persistence. “I never stop writing,” she said, even when the words feel wrong, because “work gets done if you simply do it.” She urges writers to read voraciously, write daily, and push past rejection. Her own path—honing her craft through years of quiet effort before Olive Kitteridge’s success—proves that stubbornness can outlast doubt.

Build Stories Brick by Brick
Strout shuns linear outlines, favoring vivid scenes that pulse with emotion. “I never write anything from beginning to end. ”I learned to write in scenes. After a while the scenes with heartbeats begin to form a kind of story.” These fragments, born from what presses on her heart, coalesce into narratives over time, like puzzles solved in hindsight. Her linked stories in Olive Kitteridge reflect this mosaic-like craft.

Live in Someone Else’s Skin
Curiosity about others’ inner lives drives Strout’s characters. “I’m so interested in the fact that we really don’t know anybody." It allows the imagination to take over.

Empathy crafts characters so real they seem to breathe, from Olive’s gruff complexity to Lucy Barton’s quiet resilience. Strout channels her own experiences to inhabit their worlds, making them unforgettable.

To dive deeper into her world, check out her profile on The Booker Prizes site: https://thebookerprizes.com/author/elizabeth-strout.

Michael Cunningham on Writing: Challenge, Persistence, and Keeping Stories Alive

It was years ago, at a small literary gathering in a DC bookstore, that I first met Michael Cunningham. Before a small crowd of readers, writers, and fans, Cunningham spoke with calm intensity.

He talked about the importance of discomfort—the kind that keeps a writer slightly off balance. If you feel entirely in control of a project, he said, you’re probably not reaching far enough. The best work, in his view, comes from that uneasy middle ground where clarity and chaos overlap. The challenge isn’t something to conquer but to inhabit.

Cunningham also described stories as living things—restless, unpredictable, demanding attention. A writer’s task, he said, is to keep them breathing. When the energy fades, readers can sense it immediately. 

He spoke, too, about persistence. It took him a decade to find real recognition, and during that time, he watched many fellow writers drift away. The difference wasn’t always talent—it was endurance. Rejection, he suggested, isn’t the end of anything. It’s simply part of a long conversation between the writer and the work.

In an age of constant noise and instant validation, Cunningham’s advice felt almost radical: stay with it, keep the story alive, even when no one’s watching.

You can find his full reflections in The Yale Review.

Shakespeare's Bad Side

 

Think form rejection letters are bad? Just be glad you don't have Shakespeare as a critic!

"Thou crusty botch of nature," he said. "(Thou hast) not so much brain as ear wax." He could be rather harsh. "(Thou) hath more hair than wit, and more faults than hairs, and more wealth than faults."

Check the link below, where Shakespeare will be happy to taunt you with lines like "There's no more faith in thee than in a stewed prune," "(Thou art) a wretch whose natural gifts were poor," and "(Your) brain is as dry as a remainder biscuit after a voyage."

"Methink'st thou art a general offence and every man should beat thee." More literary insults await!

http://www.pangloss.com/seidel/Shaker/index.html

Shanghai's Life in the Fast Lane

Beijing has it's Imperial history, Hangzhou has it's West Lake and Dragon Well Tea, Xi'an has the Terracotta Army, but for modern day life in the fast lane, there's no better place to visit than Shanghai.

The twisted side streets still wind within pockets of the city, as does the colonial buildings of the Bundt, but for the most part you'll notice the museum of skyscrapers and modern buildings.

Join me for a tour of Shanghai in this travel story published by HackWriters.

https://www.hackwriters.com/ShanghaiEDG.htm