I’ve been asked how to structure and write short stories by members of my #CampRevPit #CRPWizardWasps cabin and other #WritersofBluesky recently. The most common piece of advice I’ve seen to that end is, read a bunch of short stories first. That’s great advice, but it doesn’t answer the question.

Whenever I think a plot idea might be too risky... #CRPWizardWasps #WritersofBluesky

Good evening #CRPWizardWasps! Writing is a journey with as many different paths as there are writers. It’s been such a privilege to be on overlapping paths these last two weeks with all of you. I’ve really enjoyed learning about your stories and getting to know your voices.

Whoo! #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to the LAST day of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 14/final INTERACTIVE: What are your writing goals for the next week? And what are your writing goals for the next month?

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! Action scenes can be page turners when they’re unique, or make readers tune out when they aren’t. One way to make them work is to tie the action to the character’s identity in such a way that no two fight scenes could be interchangeable between characters.

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to the penultimate day of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 13 INTERACTIVE: How have your projects fared during these two weeks of camp? Have you made significant progress, changes to your MC, etc.? And do you have any requests, questions, needs, or feedback for us?

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! One-the-nose dialogue isn’t always boring; when done right, it can be used to hide important emotional beats behind major story revelations. Today’s exercise is also a great prompt for flash fiction. It’s called Interrupt It. Here’s how it works:

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to day TWELVE of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 12 INTERACTIVE: Do you also write short stories? If yes, do you develop new worlds and characters, or write spinoffs based on MCs and worlds from your novel projects? BONUS: What's been your experience pitching short stories?

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! The key to compelling subtext in dialogue is to embed emotion into 𝘩𝘰𝘸 things are said rather than 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 is said. This next exercise is especially helpful right before starting on a rewrite. It’s called Say It Without Saying It. Here's how it works:

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to day ELEVEN of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 11 INTERACTIVE: How do you juggle your writing routine with the rest of your busy life? Do you need a distraction free time to write, and if so, do you schedule it or work it in when you can?

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! I’ve been posting some elaborate writing exercises these last ten days, and I should explain my intentions with these. They’re fun to do with friends and peers, but I’m mostly just sharing them as takeaways, something to save in a file and break out later when needed.

#CRPWizardWasps It looks like everyone is on top of their feedback swaps, so this is just a cautious reminder - DM me or the #CampRevpit main account if you need assistance!

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to day TEN of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 10 INTERACTIVE: Do you have a favorite quote (or a recent one that really resonates with you) about writing?

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! Character development exercises aren’t just for the story/plot development stage, they can also be helpful when struggling with dialogue or trying not to get bogged down in the second act. One which I’ve found particularly helpful is called A Debt of Silence.

#CRPWizardWasps A sustainable pace wins the race!

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to day NINE of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 9 INTERACTIVE: What are your plans for your current project? (Pitching agents, self-publishing, etc.) When do you anticipate taking that next step? (Or are you already taking it?)

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! Today’s exercise is called “The Memory that Won’t Let Go,” and it’s about developing characters while discovering what makes them tick. Because characters that resonate often have memories that shape how they behave and what they believe.

The First Rule of Write Club is... #CRPWizardWasps

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to day EIGHT of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 8 INTERACTIVE: Have you ever co-written a novel or novella with another writer? If so, what was your process? If not, is that something you’d be interested in or open to exploring, and if so, what would your process be?

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! I’ve never been one to romanticize life in the Victorian era, mostly because of all the inequity and racism, but also because deodorant wasn’t invented until 1888. But their slang makes that era feel less like a place in time and more like a story world.

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to day SEVEN of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 7 INTERACTIVE: On “pantsing” (writing from the seat of our pants) vs. plotting (writing from an outline), where do you fall? E.g. are you a 100% plotter, a 60-40 pantser…

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! I’ve got a fun little exercise that breaks through boring moments by forcing my characters to act and react – often saying and doing things that I can pull from the exercise and insert directly into the scene in front of me. It’s called The Stranger at the Threshold.

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to day SIX of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 6 INTERACTIVE: Let’s talk about writer’s block: Do you experience it? (Occasionally? Often?) What do you think causes it? What solutions have you tried, and did they help?

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! Predictability and boredom are the worst things that can happen to a story. One way to avoid them is by brainstorming on the worst things that can happen to a character in the story. So, today’s exercise is aptly named, “What’s the Worst that can Happen?”

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to day FIVE of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 5 INTERACTIVE: Of all the relationships you’ve written, which is your favorite, and why? BONUS: To what extent do you draw on your own real-world relationships in your writing?

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! Earlier, we did a little exercise in fleshing out and developing new characters. One of my favorite things about humans – real or fictional – is that we can get to know them by asking the right questions. But we deal in fantasy…

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, welcome to day FOUR of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 4 INTERACTIVE: Pick (or invent) a character and ask them these questions: What do you want right now? What will happen if you don’t get it? What lie are you telling yourself? BONUS: what situation would make you admit the truth?

#CRPWizardWasps Mid-week check in, how's everyone doing? I know we have some lurkers, which is totally fine (I'm often a lurker myself), but I want to check and make sure we're not missing anyone who feels left out, or is maybe shy, or has questions, or needs some encouragement.

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! One of the things I want to explore is using joke structure in conversations between characters. The same techniques that late night talk show writers use to get laughs can also be used in a completely non-comedic way to punch up dialogue.

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, how is everyone? I’m going to do a little check in later tonight, see how everyone’s doing and make sure everyone feels included and is being helped as needed. But I’ve got a band rehearsal that’ll eat up most of my day, so heads up, I’ll be incommunicado for a while.

#CRPWizardWasps, welcome to day three of #CampRevPit! Our DAY 3 INTERACTIVE: What inspired your current project? BONUS: what is your normal/most usual source of project inspiration (e.g. dreams, visual triggers, flashbulbs between the ears)?

Good evening, #CRPWizardWasps! I attended a talk by a neuroscientist recently who said that one of the main reasons people read stories is to see how imaginary (but realistic) characters deal with extraordinary situations. And it occurred to me that…

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, and welcome to day two of #CampRevPit! We talk a lot about our MCs, but every story has one or more pivotal characters without whom the MC would flounder and flail. Exploring these characters and their worldviews can often lead to breakthroughs and stronger stories.

I'm seeing some really compelling stories here, and I'm curious to know more about them, especially from the characters' POV. What is your MC passionate about? #CRPWizardWasps

@jason-antares.bsky.social Welcome to #CRPWizardWasps! Let me know if you have any questions or need anything! (And disregard that email question about the typo, we figured it out on this end.)

@gaylestorming.bsky.social Welcome to #CRPWizardWasps! Let me know if you have any questions or need anything.

#CRPWizardWasps I’m looking into a scheduled sprint later in the week, but in the meantime, let’s do a practice one! Sometime (anytime) today, set a timer for twenty minutes and write a brief (50-150 word) letter from one of your characters to another.

Morning, #CRPWizardWasps, and welcome to day one of #CampRevPit! I want to kick off the day by running some icebreakers and exploring cabin activity schedules. Please respond to the threaded posts ⤵️with your answers.

@owlsayswho.bsky.social @aurora-lore.bsky.social @rammwriter.bsky.social @sagecollins.bsky.social @jenshoes.bsky.social @amanda-fitz.bsky.social @catherinewinters.com @jundlife.bsky.social @airjoshb.bsky.social @panicwritten.bsky.social Quick request for my Wizard Wasps:

Greetings, Wizards, and welcome to the Wizard Wasps Cabin! In case you’re wondering, the name is a colloquial rendering of Aleiodes dresdeni, a species of wasp named after the main character from Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files. #CRPWizardWasps

Camp ⛺ officially starts tomorrow, so make sure you're following @reviseresub.bsky.social for daily camp activities! And use #CampRevPit and #CRPWizardWasps whenever you post so they show up in the main feed and our cabin feed!

@owlsayswho.bsky.social @aurora-lore.bsky.social @rammwriter.bsky.social @sagecollins.bsky.social @jenshoes.bsky.social @amanda-fitz.bsky.social @catherinewinters.com @jundlife.bsky.social @airjoshb.bsky.social @panicwritten.bsky.social #CRPWizardWasps Welcome to the Wizard Wasps Cabin!