Ask the Author: Peter Wisan
Answered Questions (6)
Peter Wisan
I love dogs! The one I have now is a crazy, energetic, chocolate lab. I grew up on a hobby farm so I was raised with all kinds of animals--from goats to ducks to rabbits, you name it!
Peter Wisan
Great question!
The coolest thing about being a writer is that you don't need credentials. Doctors and lawyers go to school. But the only things you need to become a writer are 1. to write, and 2. to tell people about it.
Tell the stories that you enjoy reading. The things the make you cry, that touch your heart, that stir your spirit of adventure, those are the subjects and plots that you should write about. There are certain stories I tell that I can work on for 8 hours a day then rinse and repeat for six months. Those are the ones that I focus on.
Every great writer has one thing in common: consistency. Set out a regular time to write every single day. Some will do 500 words, some 2000, some ten minutes, others four hours. Whatever your rhythm is, find a way to be consistent in writing.
Finally, always have a mindset of improving. Even people who have done this for eighty years are looking for new plots and new ways to tell stories. Writing is one of the most fulfilling devotions in the world, so if you enjoy doing it, pursue it with everything you are!
The coolest thing about being a writer is that you don't need credentials. Doctors and lawyers go to school. But the only things you need to become a writer are 1. to write, and 2. to tell people about it.
Tell the stories that you enjoy reading. The things the make you cry, that touch your heart, that stir your spirit of adventure, those are the subjects and plots that you should write about. There are certain stories I tell that I can work on for 8 hours a day then rinse and repeat for six months. Those are the ones that I focus on.
Every great writer has one thing in common: consistency. Set out a regular time to write every single day. Some will do 500 words, some 2000, some ten minutes, others four hours. Whatever your rhythm is, find a way to be consistent in writing.
Finally, always have a mindset of improving. Even people who have done this for eighty years are looking for new plots and new ways to tell stories. Writing is one of the most fulfilling devotions in the world, so if you enjoy doing it, pursue it with everything you are!
Peter Wisan
I am in the process of completing a book explaining the final cure for writer's block. Stay tuned!
Peter Wisan
One of my friends recently asked me if he was a good writer. I asked if he'd ever written anything that HE wanted to write. It turns out, he had penned countless essays and poems and blurbs as assignments. But he couldn't think of a single thing that he had written for himself.
The only way you'll discover your style is to write the things that make your heart beat. The only way you'll discover what makes your heart beat is to start writing. Through sitting down and putting pen to paper, you'll find out what genres and characters you enjoy. What you enjoy will soon become what you're good at. And in time, you'll become the leading expert on those stories and characters.
But it all starts with writing something that you want to write.
The only way you'll discover your style is to write the things that make your heart beat. The only way you'll discover what makes your heart beat is to start writing. Through sitting down and putting pen to paper, you'll find out what genres and characters you enjoy. What you enjoy will soon become what you're good at. And in time, you'll become the leading expert on those stories and characters.
But it all starts with writing something that you want to write.
Peter Wisan
Inspiration always comes in different ways, but my favorite method of encouraging it is to go into the woods, to travel high up into the mountains, or to take a long drive by myself. A trip without distractions is an amazing way to think of new ideas and to discover unthought-of settings for characters. Looking out over the Pacific Ocean from a surfboard at sunset helps, too.
Peter Wisan
The best thing about being a writer is that you see stories everywhere. Whether in a diner or a jungle, you constantly ask yourself what shared experiences these people have, what has this beetle seen?
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