Top Writing Posts of 2010

Okay, this is really a list of the top writing posts I’ve written, by popularity of post and my personal preferences. It’s my blog, I get to pick! There are also a few other “best of” here that involve other people, so worries that this is all about me are premature. Enjoy.

5. How to Filter Through Feedback—Hey, there are some “helpful” suggestions we should ignore, let’s get honest.

4. Hindsight Lessons for the Emerging Writer—A run down of what I’ve learned this year, boiled into its own 5-point list.

3. Life after NaNoWriMo—It can be a blue time for some. Why I stressed keeping a focus.

2. Motivation 101—How and why to see a project through. I wrote this as part of my near-daily NaNoWriMo pep talk.

1. The Habits of Successful Writers—I combed through “How I Got My Agent” stories and looked for patterns, and the results were very interesting!

I’ve spent a lot of time working on mine own online presence this year, and I’m happy with the results. It’s also pushed my word count for 2010 into a range I didn’t know I had in me—I’m nearing 150,000 at this point—even if many of those words are conjunctions and articles. In the midst of this building process, I’ve run across some people who have been supportive, enlightening, or otherwise wonderful. Here’s a spotlight for them, even if they deserve much more:

@JohannaHarness on Twitter: Her blog is also on my blogroll here, but she’s a great Twitter connection, specifically. Johanna just signed on with an agent for her YA series, so I’m thrilled for her—she’s the creator of the #amwriting group on Twitter, which is one way writers of all levels and stripes talk to each other over there, and she started a Web site directory that I’ve found helpful for finding other people who write the kinds of things I do.

@ColleenLindsay on Twitter: Okay, the first thing I should mention is that Ms. Lindsay is no longer an agent. NO LONGER AN AGENT. So don’t send her queries, please, for the love of Pete. But she’s doing some interesting things over at Penguin now, and she still participates in the impromptu #askagent sessions. We need more snarky ex-agents in our lives, especially ones who pass on relevant links like she does.

@JaneFriedman on Twitter: Jane has got to be one of the nicest people in publishing. From my perspective, she is genuinely interested in helping folks who want to have a better grasp of the publishing industry find one. And her “There Are No Rules” for Writer’s Digest is a terrific mine of on-point information.

@IFMiB: This is short for I Fry Mine in Butter, the popular culture blog started by @Snarkysmachine where I’ve been writing since March. It’s a rare thing to find true comrades in a writing group, especially one that spends the majority of its time online, but this is it. I’ve learned so much from this joint endeavor, and I’ll never stop appreciating the talents of my colleagues. Plus hello, we get to write about television, movies, books, celebrities, and the news media! Links to the posts come out in a steady stream, and I recommend them all. Please leave comments on the site, P.S.

@BitchMedia: These are the people behind Bitch Magazine and its auxiliary blog, for which I contributed this year in two columns. It is beyond difficult to find an audience, especially in the din of very popular outlets like Salon, Slate, Huffington Post, and so forth. Bitch is working to a different standard than they are, and their principles are reflected in the excellence of their staff. I’m very grateful they gave me such a sturdy soap box, and I can’t recommend more highly that everyone should subscribe to their magazine.

Up next week: Top Writing Posts from People Who Are Not Myself